As many of you know, I am originally from Minnesota. I have a lot of pride in my home-state and I often miss walking down the streets of St. Paul or White Bear Lake rather than the loud, populous streets of Tokyo. The Twin Cities (Minneapolis and St. Paul) possess the best of both worlds. St. Paul is quaint and has an old-world charm with it’s gorgeous historic buildings, beautiful Farmer’s Market, and a wide variety of restaurants. Minneapolis has a bit more of a classic metropolis feeling. The big, tall buildings, streets busy day and night with people going to work in suits, attending concerts, or going out for a night on the town for some drinks and dancing. To be honest, I typically stay away from Minneapolis and stick with St. Paul.

View of Minneapolis from the St. Paul side of the Mississippi River.

After my trip to Minnesota in December, I brought a little piece of the Midwest home with me in the form of Prairie Organic Vodka. This organic, gluten free, kosher vodka is made in Minnesota by Phillips Distilling Company. Phillips is also responsible for making Peppermint Schnapps, a favorite in the Terrace household when added to hot chocolate. Since hearing about Prairie Organic Vodka, I’ve been wondering how well Minnesota would produce such a popular spirit. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the taste was clean and smooth, making it a perfect addition to vodka-based cocktails.

To showcase the great flavor of Prairie Organic Vodka, I put together a very simple recipe for a Lingonberry Cosmopolitan. Lingonberries are a popular Scandinavian food and variations like lingonberry jam, syrup, etc, can be found all over the Midwest and are served with Swedish meatballs, drizzled over pancakes, or simply spread on a piece of toast. We found lingonberry syrup at IKEA in Tokyo and it makes the perfect addition to this Scandinavian cocktail. If you can’t find lingonberry syrup, you can stick with the traditional cranberry juice. This cocktail is really easy to make and will be a refreshing end to a busy week.

Cheers to Phillips Distilling for creating Prairie Organic Vodka!

Lingonberry Cosmopolitan

Makes 1 drink

2 oz. Prairie Organic Vodka

1 1/2 teaspoons lingonberry syrup (or about 1 oz. Cranberry juice)

1 tablespoon lime juice

lime wedge for garnish

ice

Combine the vodka, syrup (or juice) and lime juice in a shaker with the ice. Shake it up, pour into a chilled martini glass, garnish with the lime and serve.