Garden Inspired Cocktails and Mocktails for Joyful Living

We often talk about garden-to-table, but what about garden-to-glass? AKA how to grow plants for garden inspired cocktails, and all the ways to turn a harvest into something delicious, regardless if you drink alcohol or not. I spent a full year not drinking, first through fertility treatments and then through pregnancy. And I learned that the mocktail section of most menus is a trap. Everything is so sweet that you finish it in about 90 seconds. And then I met Belinda and Venise at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show. They're sisters, they're plant ladies, and they run a garden-to-glass syrup company called Simple Goodness Sisters. They also wrote the book called Drink Your Garden. In this episode, they share different ways you can enjoy your garden harvest in easy yet delicious cocktail and mocktail recipes. Let's dive in!

In this episode, we learn:

• [02:46] Meet Belinda and Venise of Simple Goodness Sisters!
• [03:26] How did their syrup business begin?
• [06:29] Venise's homesteading story
• [10:49] What the farm grows for the business vs. for their families
• [13:52] What counts as a cocktail garden?
• [15:29] Home Greenhouse Revival by Leslie Halleck
• [17:07] How to use edible flowers
• [18:18] Which edible flowers are easiest to grow?
• [21:33] What actually belongs in a cocktail garden
• [22:41] Why purple sage and mojito mint taste better in drinks
• [23:49] Rows vs. interplanting, reusable mulch
• [27:05] Building a bar cart from your garden
• [29:32] Why they wrote the book they couldn't find
• [30:34] What is a syrup and how do you make one?
• [32:06] Their favorite syrups
• [36:09] What is a shrub and how do you drink it?
• [38:57] Beet shrub showstopper
• [40:05] How to make a blue mocktail for a baby shower
• [40:48] Tinctures vs. bitters
• [42:42] How an infused spirit becomes a liqueur
• [44:59] Buzz button gin, cherry bourbon, and Midnight at the movies
• [49:03] Travel syrups hack!
• [52:06] Cordials, and balancing sweet, sour, bitter, and spirit
• [53:00] What to gift a gin-obsessed dad, and why you might just dislike tonic
• [55:00] How to make your own compound gin at home
• [56:38] Garnishing like a container garden (thriller, filler, spiller, and powdered rims)
• [58:30] Braided chives, pickled garnishes, and drinks you can snack on
• [1:00:10] Where to find Belinda, Venise, the book, and the Farm Club subscription box!
• [1:02:47] The herbal lemonade and blue spritz I served at my baby shower

Mentioned in our conversation:

• Join the Cocktail Farm Club - Simple Goodness Sisters
• Drink Your Garden: Recipes, Stories and Tips from the Simple Goodness Cocktail Farm by Belinda Kelly and Venise Cunningham
• USDA Organic Blue Spirulina Powder
• Organic Apple Cider Vinegar | Bragg
• Herb Garden Syrup (Lemon Herb)

For Belinda and Venise's scrumptious cocktail recipes,

check out the full show notes and blog here!

Follow Simple Goodness Sisters:

Website
Instagram
YouTube
Recipes

Thank you to our episode sponsor:

Quarto: Home Greenhouse Revival by Leslie F. Halleck

Home Greenhouse Revival is available for pre-order now at quarto.com and launches in September. Pre-order your copy wherever books are sold or through your local bookstore.

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