Sweetened with an herbal honey syrup, these Grilled Lemon Rose Vodka Cocktails are the perfect rosy drink to toast your Valentine, or simply toast yourself.

Happy Valentine’s Day Eve!

If you follow my Instagram wanderings, you may have noticed I’ve been traveling the Pacific Northwest, styling events for my friend Lindsey’s cookbook, Eat Your Feelings (which I also styled). I’ve been soaking up the West Coast sunshine, trying to eat as much as possible, caffeinating to the brink of jitters and admiring the Crafstman Style architecture to the point of spying/stalking. The only downside to this trip is I’ll miss spending Valentine’s Day with the Rustbelt Farmer (and Julep!). 

Are you gagging?

I’m unabashedly a romantic at heart, but in the interest of not grossing you out, or sending you promptly to X the tab where my blog lives, I’ll stop the “missing my boyfriend” thread right here. Instead, I’ll tell you about another hobby that has emerged on this cookbook tour: binge watching true crime shows.

I’m not talking high quality productions like Manhunt or Mindhunter (though I do recommend them). I’m talking terrible, laugh-out-loud, true crime shows like Forensic Files (thanks Netflix!), a Forensic Files MARATHON (thanks random television station!), Snapped (I’m new to Oxygen, but it makes me want cable) and even the E! True Hollywood Story on Tonya Harding (#TeamTonya).

A BIG common thread on these shows? Failed romances. 

A few life lessons I’ve gleaned from these shows:

1. ALWAYS be suspicious when your spouse/significant other/new love interest takes out a life insurance policy on you.
   1. Pro Tip for those considering a life of crime? Be sure to get the life insurance policy that is good for more than a commercial airline death before you commit to a crime of passion.
2. Romances are never what they seem from the outside.
3. Whenever the dramatic narrator voice says, “They looked like the perfect couple to all their friends, but police began to investigate..,” then you know the husband or wife was definitely involved. 
4. I’m fairly certain they drug the victim’s friends and family members to be able to ACT IN THE RE-ENACTMENTS because that is the fodder of a lifetime of therapy. 

So my bitter, anti-romance, cupid haters, my recommendation to you is to whip up these Grilled Lemon Rose Vodka Cocktails for Valentine’s Day, and take a deep dive into true crime and dark humor. Share these cocktails with a fellow bitter friend, or simply enjoy a few all by yourself.It’s your Valentine’s Day. Do whatever you gotta do to get to February 15th in good spirits (pun intended… not sorry)! 

Grilling the lemon slices adds an extra special touch and an intensified natural sweetness to these Rose Vodka Cocktails. While you have the grill pan in use (or an actual grill, since I am now realizing people live in places that are warm and pleasant in the winter), grill some extra lemons for a dessert garnish.

The honey rosemary syrup base for this drink, which also makes a satisfying mocktail, makes a great drizzle for cakes as well. I’m giving you efficient cocktail and dessert tips and anti-Valentine’s Day crime dramas… do you see how much I care for your emotional wellbeing? For more on these organic red velvet cakes, check out my post on the Healthyish Foods blog. 

Stay tuned for more adventures, and enjoy tomorrow with or without romance. 

Cheers friends,

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Grilled Lemon Rose Vodka Cocktails

Yield: 1 cocktail (the syrup yields enough for several cocktails)

Rosemary Honey Syrup

1/2 cup local raw honey
1/2 cup water
3-4 sprigs fresh rosemary

Cocktail Ingredients

1 organic lemon, sliced
1 1/2 oz Vodka
3/4 – 1 1/2 oz rosemary honey syrup
3/4 oz tart cherry juice
1/2- 3/4oz rose water, to taste
juice from one half lemon
fresh rosemary

Simple Syrup:

In a small saucepan, combine the honey, water, and rosemary sprigs. Bring to a boil, swirling to dissolve the honey, then remove from the heat and steep for at least 5 minutes. Strain and chill until needed, up to 1 week.

For the Cocktail:

Cut a lemon into slices. Place the slices on a hot stovetop grill pan. Grill until the flesh is charred, 2-3 minutes. Remove and let cool.

Pour vodka, rosemary honey syrup, tart cherry juice, rose water and lemon juice in a glass, over ice. Stir, then top with a grilled lemon slice and a sprig of rosemary.

Enjoy!