If the Rose Darling caught your eye, you’re either a Steely Dan fan or a floral fan. I’ve been trying to veer away from typical Valentines-y cocktails in my V-Day drink series, but I can’t end it without utilizing such an iconic symbol of love. The Rose Darling is definitely floral and is definitely on the sweeter side. I’m not usually one for sweet drinks but certain occasions open me up to the idea.

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If you’re not a fan of florals, don’t shy away from the Rose Darling just yet. There’s a way to modify this rose cocktail by making a lightly-flavored rose simple syrup. Check out the recipe to see how you can tone it down. In that blog post, I also come clean about an infamous rose-scented candle, a burden that weighed on my family’s conscience for years. Okay, that might be a bit dramatic. But it is something that my mom and I have talked about several times since my childhood and felt an ounce or two of remorse over.

Although they aren’t necessary to the drink, the rose ice cubes do up the fancy factor. They require next to no effort, so why not? Especially if you are already going to be making your own rose simple syrup. I found the rose-shaped ice cube tray at Dollar Tree for a whole dollar, but I also put some petals in my large ice cube mold. I will note that since these rose-shaped ice cubes are quite small, I accounted for them melting quickly when creating the drink recipe. If you are going to use bigger ice cubes (or skip them altogether & pour the drink into a coupe glass), consider doing less vodka or a little more cran juice.

If you’re looking for a simple & delicious meal to go along with any of my Valentine’s Day cocktails, check out Cuisine & Cocktail’s DIY Bagel Bites. My husband and I have a yearly Valentine’s day tradition of making our own pizzas. We avoid the crowds & spend time together cooking (not common around our house!) food we know we are going to love. This year, however, Valentine’s weekend is packed for us and we won’t have time to celebrate until Sunday. We’ll be using Cuisine & Cocktail’s recipe (gluten-free English Muffins for me) to save us some time.

The Ingredients for a Rose Darling

• 1 1/2 oz vodka (Tito’s has always been my go-to)
• 1/2 oz orange liqueur
• 1/2 oz cranberry juice
• 1/4 oz or a couple squeezes of lemon juice
• 1/4 oz rose simple syrup
• Spoonful of apricot preserves

How to Make a Rose Darling

Add the vodka, orange liqueur, juices, rose simple syrup, and apricot preserves to a shaker filled with ice. [The more ice you add when shaking, the less it will dilute when shaking, which means the less your drink will be diluted when you pour it over the ice in your glass.] Shake & pour into a lowball glass filled with ice or into a coupe glass without ice.