PINEAPPLE, BASIL & RUM KOMBUCHA COCKTAIL
If you are a KOMBUCHA fan, this healthy, flavourful cocktail is just for you.
SERVES 8
FOR THE COCKTAIL
1 large pineapple, peeled and cored
1 handful fresh basil
½ cup lime juice
½ cup light rum
Kombucha base (see recipe below)
Fresh basil to garnish
FOR THE KOMBUCHA
2 litres water
½ cup sugar
10 – 12 green tea or rooibos tea bags
4 – 6 mason jars (500 ml each)
Scoby (available from any health shop)
1. For the kombucha, bring the water to a boil and stir in the sugar until it dissolves.
2. Drop in the tea bags and steep until the water is cool. Remove the tea bags and pour the mixture into the sterilized mason jars. Add the scoby to the jars and cover with a coffee filter, securing it with an elastic band over the mouth of each jar. Keep the jars in a cool, dry place for 9 – 13 days to ferment, checking the contents periodically. (Stringy bits floating or scoby at the bottom or top and bubbles are all normal.)
3. From day 9, start tasting the kombucha and, if there is a balance between sweet and tartness, it is ready to bottle.
4. Lift the scoby from the jars and place it in a clean steralized mason jar. Add some kombucha and fresh brewed tea and store in a cool, dark place until you are ready to make another batch.
5. Pour the just-made kombucha into steralized bottles and store in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight for 1 – 3 days to carbonate. Open each bottle every day to release air. Refrigerate after 3 days to stop the fermentation and carbonation.
6. To make the cocktail, cut the pineapple into chunks and place it into a blender. Puree on high speed until completely smooth. Transfer to a jug and refrigerate.
7. Place the basil and lime juice in the clean blender and give it a blitz. If you do not have enough liquid, add a little bit of the pineapple juice.
8. Once the pineapple juice is chilled, remove it from the fridge, add the rum and basil juice mixture and give it a stir.
9. Moisten the edges of a chilled cocktail glass with lime juice and dip it into sugar. Pour in the cocktail mixture until the glass is two-thirds full, top up with the kombucha base and stir once. Garnish with fresh basil and serve immediately.
