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I know this doesn’t sound like a problem to you, but I’ve got too much gin on my hands. I love gin but suddenly I found myself with five or six bottles of the stuff. I do plan on more Gin and Tonics, Martinis, NegronisJasmines, Rosemary Gimlets, and other gin-forward cocktails in my future. But I also had too many pink grapefruits on hand, the result of Romain bringing home a bag of them the same day that I did. Great minds think alike, I suppose…even if they’re thinking in two different languages.

Now that it’s summer, I thought it was the perfect time to slush things up. Unlike granita, this Pink Grapefruit and Gin Slush doesn’t need to be stirred; you just pour everything into a tub, and freeze it. Yes, you heard that right – no stirring, no work. For those two reasons alone, I can’t imagine a more perfect summer dessert. (That it contains gin might count as a third one?)

When it’s ready, you simply give the mixture a stir with a spoon, fork, or ice cream scoop, and pile it into glasses. Then drink (or spoon) it up.

Pink Grapefruit Gin Slush

I always like to use fresh citrus juice but if fresh grapefruits aren't available, store-bought pink grapefruit juice will work as well. Should you want the slush to be more gin-forward, use the larger amount of gin. If you're not a fan of gin, vodka will work in its place, as would tequila, which a reader mentioned in the comments. (Thanks!) This slush very refreshing on its own, but would make a nice dessert topped with fresh raspberries tossed in a little sugar. In the winter, you can garnish it with orange and grapefruit sections, as well as sliced kumquats. No matter what the season, if you want to splash a little extra gin (or a bitter aperitif, such as Campari) over it, be my guest.
Servings 4 servings
  • 2 cups (500ml) pink grapefruit juice, preferably freshly squeezed
  • 1/4 cup (50g) sugar
  • 1/4 to 1/3 cup (60-80ml) gin
  • In a small saucepan, warm about 1/4 cup (60ml) of the grapefruit juice with the sugar, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and stir the mixture into the rest of the grapefruit juice. Add the gin.
  • Pour the slush mixture into a freezer-safe container and chill for at least 8 hours, or overnight.

Notes

To serve: Pile the slush into chilled glasses.
Storage: The slush will keep for at least one month in the freezer, well covered.

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26 comments

    • Hutch

    I would assume that the gin adds flavor but could vodka be substituted? I purchased some (French) vodka on sale and hate to use my relatively expensive gin for any thing other than martinis.

      • Peg Wolfe

      Don’t see why not. Tequila would be even better, IMO.

        • Mary Ann Thompson

        Yes, grapefruit and tequila works for me. Very refreshing….

    • MrsSage

    I sat down this minute to check your blog for a recipe to use a 1/2 later pink grapefruit juice that sits in my fridge since yesterday evening. Are you a mind reader of some sort?! :) Since it’s a very hot day around here and it’s staying like this for a couple more this slush is just what I need. Thanks.

      • Brandy

      Just last night I was thinking I needed a recipe for a few left over grapefruits that I wasn’t going to get around to eating. And here it is! I do believe he is a mind reader!

    • Carol

    A favorite of mine that is also a gin/grapefruit: http://www.annies-eats.com/2016/03/25/gin-grapefruit-and-rosemary-cocktail

    Ingredients

    ¼ cup good quality gin
    1 sprig rosemary, plus more for garnish
    ¼ cup grapefruit juice
    1 tbsp. simple syrup
    2-3 dashes bitters

    Directions

    In a cocktail shaker, combine the gin with the rosemary. Muddle together until the gin is infused with the rosemary. Add in the grapefruit juice, simple syrup and bitters. Add ice to the shaker, close and shake until well blended. Strain into a glass and garnish with additional fresh rosemary.

    • Erik Meyers

    Great idea for gin! I’ve just made some shrub mixers, which I think you blogged about before. I will try them with gin.

    • Linda Moriarty

    Yum!

    • Frankie

    As the weather is gonna be hot and dry like this for the whole summer I’m going to buy a few kilos of pink grapefruit. I love gin. It should be the drink of the year! Thanks

    • David
    David Lebovitz

    MrsSage: Ha! Great minds (even far away!) think alike. Enjoy the slush : )

    Carol: If you like rosemary and gin cocktails, you might want to try my Rosemary Gimlets, which look similar to that cocktail.

    Hutch: Yup. I mentioned just before the recipe that vodka would be a good swap-out. So feel free to use that French vodka here!

    • Jeanne

    Frozen Greyhounds! I love St. George’s gin. I also do a French 75 variation with gin. I shake equal parts gin and fresh lemon juice with ice and caster sugar to taste. Pour into chilled wine glass and top with bubbly–I use prosecco — I like the sweetness. Garnish with orange peel that’s been folded in half. They make a prosecco in the states by the split so I don’t have to keep drinking them to polish off the bottle! They are small and deadly, like the gun.

    • Susan

    Sounds wonderful! On my keto diet I would need to substitute stevia drops for sugar. When you put the mix in freezer for eight hours does it stay slushy from the gin, or do you have to defrost or use an ice pick? Do you have a favorite gin, David?

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      You don’t need to stir this as it’s chilling but if you’re omitting the sugar, you might need to since sugar inhibits freezing. I don’t have a brand I prefer since they’re so different but good gins that are widely available are Tanqueray and Beefeater.

    • Marie Theresa

    My alltime favorite summer cocktail is made with GF juice, Gin, and rosemary syrup.
    My guests favor gin with GF juice, after experimenting using vodka and reposada tequila.

    I will prepare David’s slush recipe in a few minutes, substituting my rosemary syrup, for the sugar.

    Add some vodka to your herb syrups, and store in refrigerator for future use.

    • Marie

    How about bourbon instead of gin?

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Yes, you could use bourbon if you prefer that flavor to gin.

    • bob in Vancouver

    Hi David,
    you can delete this comment if you like.
    Just tried the tahini choc chip recipe. Im familiar with cookie making, but this recipe produced the worst outcome, the cookies sprawled all over the place to make a very flat cookie – nothing like your picture. It seems to me that there is insufficient flour, checking other recipes including the one from your RFD book. Also the sugar quantity looks low. The only mod I made to the recipe was I reduced slightly the tahini b/c it was runny. Anyway I still have a 3/4 batch in the fridge. Suggest a fix? Thanks,

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      A number of people made those cookies successfully (here, here, here and here) so not sure what went wrong. This recipe has 4oz butter, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup/2T flour. My cc cookie recipe in Ready for Dessert (which makes 2x this) uses 8 ounces butter, 1 3/4 cup sugar, and 2 1/2 cups flour, so it’s roughly similar.

      For future questions on recipes, it’s best to leave a comment at that post so I can answer it there. Sometimes comments are closed (after 30 days) but that one is open : )

        • Calee

        I just made those cookies the other day and I loved them! Still have more dough in the fridge and I’m baking off a batch every day. Yum!

    • Lynn

    So could you swap out vodka for gin in your blueberry cobbler recipe?

    • danny

    No ice?

    • Marie Theresa

    I made the Tahini chocolate chip cookie recipe because I was curious.
    The results were not disappointing.

    They were a hit with friends and family at a graduation party and the favorite dessert.
    We are all fans of tahini and hummus! I referred everyone to your blog for the recipe.

    • Catalyst

    My wife has always said gin makes for a mean drunk so I’ve been a vodka man ever since. I may try this.

    • Stephanie

    Also with the abundance of gin at my home. Grapefruit is going on the grocery list…we make an awesome cocktail with gin, too…1.5 oz gin (love Hendricks and Aviation, but anything is good…a half ounce of St Germain (if you like it – I do, but my husband leaves it out), about an ounce of simple syrup, couple dashes of orange bitters, and the juice from half a lemon. Shake it up and serve over ice. Divine in the summer.

    • Walter Fey

    Realizing that you have an embarrassment of riches with all those bottles of gin, may I recommend another brand/style of gin?

    Many years ago, a style of gin called Old Tom Gin was distilled. It is light tan in color, which is a bit unsettling, but the flavors are more floral and less juniper-like.

    I am aware of one company that makes it, Ransom Distillers, a small regional distributer in Oregon, but it is available in San Francisco (when you get there again) at the Cask, on 3rd Street just south of Market. Next time, if you are looking to fill your luggage with some unique spirits, check it out. Best, and thank you for all your recommendations for restaurants and such.

    • Walter Fey

    You see what ethnocentrism can do? After my post I realized that you ALREADY are familiar with the charms of Old Tom Gin by way of your Icelandic bottle of tan ethanol.

A

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