by Lauren Haslett

Created on: August 28, 2009

A Red Lotus cocktail is fruity, refreshing mixed drink that features LICHIDO, a lychee-flavored liqueur made in France. It is simple to make, yet tastes wonderful and looks elegant when presented at any cocktail party or friendly gathering - it's sure to make a good impression on your guests!

*Note: the recipe that follows is for one cocktail. If (as is likely if you're hosting some sort of party), you wish to make more than one drink at a time, just put additional glasses in the freezer to chill, and double your ingredients to allow yourself to make two drinks at once. If you have a larger-than-average cocktail shaker, you can even triple or quadruple the amounts to make things really easy on yourself.

To start, place a cocktail glass or martini glass into the freezer to chill - I would recommend allowing the glass to sit in the freezer for at least 30 minutes prior to mixing up your drink.

Then, to make a Red Lotus, place the following ingredients in a cocktail shaker:

Ice cubes

1 shot of your favorite brand of vodka

1 shot of LICHIDO, or any other lychee-based liqueur you prefer

A splash of fresh lime juice

A splash of cranberry juice (this last ingredient can be adjusted to suite your own taste)

At this time, remove your chilled glass from the freezer. Mix all of the above ingredients together in the cocktail shaker thoroughly, until well-combined. Use a drink strainer over the top of the shaker (to keep the ice from crashing into the glass), flip the shaker and pour the liquid into your cocktail glass.

To make your creation look extra special, you can garnish your drink with any number of items. Try a wedge of lime or a sprig of fresh mint perched on the side of the glass, or place a lychee fruit in the bottom of the glass to reinforce the main ingredient. A great tip to save time during your party is to have all of these small garnishes cut up and prepared ahead of time. Place each item in a separate dish in the fridge and seal or cover with plastic wrap. Just before your guests start arriving (and drinking), remove the lids or plastic wrap, and lay all your ingredients out on the bar or counter on a platter and you're set to go!

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