Decorative Ice Cubes with Flowers, Fruit and Herbs
Decorate Your Cocktails and Beverages with Pretty Ice Cubes
With these hot summer days upon us, sitting out on the lanai, patio or veranda (depending where you live) drinking a cool cocktail, perhaps a lemonade, a refreshing fruit punch, or even a cold glass of herbal sun tea, is just one of the pleasures of the end of a long hot summer day.
Add a little fun and pretty colors to your drinks by making beautiful decorative ice cubes you can make at home yourself.
Ever sense I first saw Martha Stewart make flowered ice blocks for a fruit punch bowl, I was hooked on making pretty ice cubes for summer beverages.
Flower Ice Cubes
Decorative Floral Ice Cubes
Making Decorative Floral Ice Cube Garnishes
You wouldn't think it is very difficult to figure out how to make floral ice cube garnishes, and it is not, but it does involve a process.
Below are steps to get the perfect floral ice cubes.
Before you start following the steps, you need to know that choosing the right water will make a big difference in how your ice cubes turn out. This information I got many years ago from a Martha Stewart Living magazine, but it can be found today on her website as well.
If you like a hazy, muddled look then just use plan old tap water.
If you want your ice cubes to be crystal clear then you will need to use distilled water that has been boiled and then cooled.
5 Steps to Creating Floral Ice Cubes
If you want the flowers to be suspended in the center of the ice cube this is the process. You will of course need to have the EDIBLE flowers that you want to use. Be sure that the flowers are edible. You will also need the ice cube trays and a pair of tweezers.
- Select the type of water you are going to use for the type of ice cube you want to create. Fill a small bowl with this water.
- Fill the ice cube trays 1/4 full with water.
- Pick up your flower blossom with the tweezers and dunk into the bowl of water. Next, place the flower face down onto the top of the water in the ice cube tray. Repeat for each ice cube section. Freeze.
- Once the first layer has frozen, add another layer of water to bring the level to halfway. Freeze again.
- Once frozen, add your last layer of water almost to the top of the ice cube tray. Freeze again. The ice cubes may be removed once completely frozen and stored in another container until needed.
Mini Flower Silicone Mold
Using decorative ice cube molds can really add to the WOW factor of your floral ice cubes.
Your beverages will look so beautiful your guest will really be impressed while they relax with their drinks.
Silicone for molds and for ice cube trays are the best ever! Silicone is the greatest little invention. When it comes to these little babies it is so much easier getting ice cubes out of them.
There is no longer any beating of the frozen trays against the side of the sink. There is no longer any scaring the grandkids or guest half to death with Grandmas cursing because I can't get the little suckers to release.
I use them all the time now and just love them. The ice cubes pop right out of them without the old tray hassles.
I like the using large muffin size silicone molds and the fun shaped molds to make flower ice.. They are large enough to use in a big bowl of fruit punch or a large pitcher of Sangrias.
Since they are muffin size, they would NOT be a good mold for beverage glasses.
Ice Cubes Using Rose Petals
Make these pretty rose petal ice cubes by placing a rose petal in the bottom of each ice cube hole. Then pour the distilled water right on top.
Pansy Ice Cubes
Pansies are one of my favorite edible flowers. They come in so many gorgeous colors and I love the smiling little faces that all pansies seem to have. They are also one of the easiest flowers to grow. Plant some pansy flowers in the spring and you can have an endless supply all summer all.
Use Wildflowers to Make Flower Ice Cubes
Wild flowers make beautiful ice cubes! Just be sure when picking wild flowers that you are picking flowers that are edible and flowers that have NOT been sprayed with insecticides.
Freeze Fresh Fruit in Ice Cubes
Fresh Fruit Make Beautiful Ice Cubes
Freezing the fresh fruit in season in your ice cube trays will also be beautiful in summer beverages. and the lovely thing is that when the ice melts you still have the wonderful flavor of summer fruits, with their nutritional value I might add, in your beverages.
I like to freeze fruit into ice cubes that will be an accompaniment to the drink I am serving. For example, I like a mint ice cube in a mint julep, or perhaps blackberry ice cubes in blackberry sun tea.
Strawberry Ice Cube
Fruity Decorative Ice Cubes
Lemonade Raspberry
Photo and Recipe from Martha Stewart WholeLiving.com
Don't sweat the hot summer temperatures we have had lately. Plop one of these fruit-infused ice cubes into a tall glass of water, and feel completely refreshed.
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1/3 cup lemon juice
- 6 ounces fresh raspberries
- Mint sprigs
Instructions
- 1. Dissolve honey in warm water.
- 2. Stir in lemon juice.
- 3. Divide fresh raspberries into an ice-cube tray. Place a sprig of mint in each cube. Add lemonade and freeze.
Citrus Slices in Ice Cubes
Jessica Claire of The Word According to Jessica Claire Blog gives a really great tip for freezing fruit for cocktails.:
"I like to tailor the ingredient selection to the specific drink I'm serving. For example, if making a white sangria, I'll use citrus slices and apple juice instead of water.
When in doubt, go with simple citrus and water with a squirt of lime juice. This combo complements everything from diet coke to a gin and tonic and you can leave the citrus cubes on the bar for both drinkers and non-alkies to use at their discretion."
Great idea, I think.
Ingredients
- Lemons
- Limes
- Oranges
Instructions
- 1. Thinly slice lemons, limes and oranges (or other desired fruit)
- 2. Layer the slices in a silicone muffin/tart tray
- 3. Fill each cup 3/4 the way with water or desired fruit juice and freeze
- 4. Once they're frozen, pop out the ice cubes and enjoy!
Herbal Ice Cubes
Adding Bits of Herbs to Ice Cubes
Adding bits and strips of citrus and fresh herbs to ice cubes can make the difference in an iced herbal sun tea or just to freshen a glass of water on a hot day. Slices of cucumber and bits rosemary or mint with citrus rind strips are wonderfully refreshing.
Cucumber-Basil Puree Ice Cubes
Photo and Recipe from Martha Stewart at WholeLiving.com
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1 cucumber (peeled and seeded)
- 1/4 cup torn basil
- Coarse sea salt or kosher salt
Instructions
- 1. Combine water, cucumber, basil, and salt in a blender and puree.
- 2. Freeze in an ice-cube tray.
- 3. Once frozen add to ice water, iced tea or a vodka cocktail. Enjoy.
Do You Want to Make Flavored Decorative Ice Cubes?
What Flavor Ice Cubes Do You Think Yo Will Make?
Seashell Ice Cube Molds
These are my favorite mold shapes because I love seashells.
I like to add a little blue and green food coloring to the water to make a pretty aqua color. A small mint leaf or a pansy flower in the aqua water is very pretty too.
Right Click the Link or the "Buy Now" Button to Get the Details of these Star Shaped Molds in a New Tab.
Lavender Ice Cubes
Sue Goetz says to, "Add lavender ice cubes to lemonade or spearmint to a mojito."
Basil and rosemary are good with vodka or gin. Puree celery and fennel freeze as ice cubes and add to a Bloody Mary.
There are all kinds of different uses for different herbal fusions in ice. Use your imagination.
Summer Herbal Vodka Tonic - Hot Summer's Most Refreshing Drink.
This refreshing herbal tonic is originally from ChicagoTribune.com
Ingredients
- Whole fresh mint leaves
- Whole fresh basil leaves
- Whole fresh thyme leaves
- Fresh lime juice
- Vodka
- Tonic water
- Whole fresh mint leaf for garnish
Cook Time
Prep Time: 10 minutes, plus freezing time
Serves: Up to You
Instructions
- Herbal Ice Cubes:
- 1. Fill 1 (or more) ice cube trays with water.
- 2. Drop one lovely mint or basil leaf (or several thyme leaves) into each compartment.
- 3. Drizzle lime juice (about 1 lime per tray) across all the cubes-to-be. Freeze solid.
- 4. Pop out cubes and store in a zip-top freezer bag.
- Cocktail Mix:
- 1. In a chilled tall (8-ounce ) glass, place 4 or 5 herbal ice cubes.
- 2. Add 2 oz. vodka
- 3. Squeeze juice from 1 lime.
- 4. Fill with 4 oz. tonic or club soda and stir.
- 4. Garnish with fresh slices of lime and fresh mint. Enjoy!
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