Baller Batida
“We all know and love a Piña Colada, but it doesn’t have a monopoly on fruity, creamy cocktails. One of my other favourites is the Batida, a Brazilian drink. ‘Batida’ literally means ‘shaken’, and is quite a loosely defined combination of cachaça, fruit and lime, often with a creamy element of coconut milk or condensed milk. Cachaça is a sugar-cane spirit – essentially a Brazilian rum – so you can easily substitute it with another lighter-style rum instead.” - Cara Devine
SERVES 1
60ml cachaça
30 ml Lacto-nectarine syrup (see below)
30ml coconut milk (see Note)
15ml lime juice
cubed ice
lime wedge, to garnish
Lacto-nectarine syrup
500g lacto-fermented nectarines
salt (see Prep)
250g sugar (preferably raw sugar, but granulated white sugar is fine too)
Method - Add all of the ingredients to your shaker tins with ice and shake. ‘Dump’ into your glass (or strain over fresh ice if you’re feeling fancy!) and garnish.
Non-alcoholic option - Just leave out the booze! You can increase the quantities of everything else to get a reasonable volume.
Note - You can substitute the coconut milk for coconut cream or condensed milk – just use less as they are more intense than coconut milk.
Lacto-nectarine syrup
“Lacto-fermenting is a great way to preserve fruit at the height of its deliciousness. The sweet tanginess of nectarines works particularly well here.”
Prep - Ferment the fruit ahead of time. Remove the stems and pits from the nectarines and roughly slice the fruit. Weigh your nectarines and calculate 2 per cent of the total weight – this is how much salt you will need – a golden ratio of salt to fruit which can work for lots of different recipes.
Method - Combine the nectarine and salt in a zip-lock bag, squeezing to get rid of all the air before sealing it. Leave at room temperature in a dark place for 3 days (it is a good idea to pop it on a tray or in a tub in case of leakage). Monitor it daily – you should see the bag starting to expand. It should take around 3 days to fully expand, but obviously, if it looks like it’s ready to explode then stop the fermentation earlier to avoid disaster! You can also let it go longer if there is no danger of it popping; a longer ferment will increase the depth of flavour. When it’s ready, you should be able to taste an extra saltiness and acidity but nothing too funky or ‘off’. There’s no need to strain it, as everything in the bag can go in the final syrup.
Combine the nectarine and sugar in a blender and blend until smooth. Store, in an airtight container for up to 1 month.
Try instead - This works for all manner of fruit. Chopped fruit will ferment more quickly than whole fruit, which can take up to a week or more.
Pairs well with - Honestly, anything! It is light and bright enough to work with lighter spirits, but has enough depth of flavour to stand up to heavier ones.
This is an edited extract from Behind the Home Bar by Cara Devine, published by Hardie Grant Books. Available in stores nationally from the 1st of July. NZD RRP $36.99. Photography by Gareth Sobey.
