Pink Peony Colada Cocktail, with homemade peony syrup, rum and coconut milk, ornamented with peony blossoms ice cubes is a First!
In A Culinary World With Fewer ‘Firsts’ Here Is One!
Pink Peony Colada Cocktail, with homemade peony syrup, rum, and coconut milk, ornamented with peony blossom ice cubes, is a first!
Not just a first for the season, not just a first for the garden… but a first in that magical way when something familiar transforms into something unexpectedly exquisite.
The inspiration came the way so many beautiful kitchen ideas do, standing in the garden, hands brushing against impossibly soft peony blooms, wondering how something so fragrant and fleeting could be captured before the petals fall. Peonies are extravagant. Dramatic. Romantic. They demand attention for their brief but breathtaking moment.
And so, instead of simply admiring them in a vase, I turned them into a beautiful, soft pink, deliciously romantic cocktail!
For The Love Of Pink Peonies
Our love affair with edible flowers is an ancient one, and aren’t we tickled ‘pink’ about that!
Each year, in the month of May, the durable peony plant bursts its way out from winter’s earth. The pinkest pink flowers inspire the landscape of budding plants to compete.
Concurrently, the month of May kicks off wedding season, and Mother’s Day in America. Those gorgeous pink peonies want to be the star of these momentous occasions.
A Pink Cocktail For The Ladies!
Okay gents, this cocktail is one you are sure to enjoy too, I promise!
I debated long and instinctively about the recipe I wanted to create for this beautiful pink cocktail. Certainly, I could have gone with a sparkling rose, to bubble and froth around the peony ice cubes.
But I didn’t want the sparkling rose to drown out the natural color of the peony syrup, we will make with the blossoms.
Eventually, after much experimentation, the soft white of coconut milk was to become the canvas to intensify the gentle pink of the peony.
What’s In Your Colada
Sure, sure, sure, most folks think only of pineapple, rum and coconut milk when they think of colada anything.
Do you know what a ‘colada’ is? I’ll tell you. A colada is a mixed drink of rum, coconut cream or milk, ice and fruit or fruit juice, usually served with a garnish from the fruit.
Well, well, well, there you have it! I knew exactly what I wanted in the creation of my peony colada.
The First EVER Pink Peony Colada Cocktail Is Right Here!
Having grown up in a Mediterranean home, in which we cook with the essence of flowers often, I wanted to create something new.
Middle Eastern folks have used rose essence and orange blossom essence in our cooking since, forever. You have seen flower essence often in my desserts, if you’ve been a friend of Whisk and Dine for any length of time.
For this lovely peony colada cocktail, I wanted the true essence of the flower to be the star. Not drown out its delicate flavor with heavy creams, or sweet sparkling bubbly.
So remember, your first ever, real pink peony colada cocktail was right here and nowhere else!
Let’s Talk About Edible Flowers
I remember back in 2004, when I worked a catering party (a family company), and edible flowers were being served for the first time. The men pushed them to the side, while they brought a bright-eyed smile to the ladies.
Let’s be clear about edible flowers; they are basically just herbs. Every part of most plants, for medicinal use, is considered an herb; leaf and petal to root. Keeping this in mind, we want the same precautions with all edible plants – Organic and Not Sprayed with insecticides!
So I am going to embrace that concept from a culinary point of view.
Flowers Are Not So Unlike Herbs
Basically, flowers, not unlike green herbs, are not all edible, so get to know your flowers, but edible flower petals have their own distinct flavors, just as herbs do.
You just need to know the varieties that produce the flavors, or holistic affects, you are after. Not unlike herbs, many flowers are what make up a variety of the teas we love to drink.
That being said, cookies, cakes and drinks all look far more appealing with colorful edible flowers on them.
What To Make With Flowers?
Oh, I am so glad you asked!
For the fabulous opportunity to cook on The Great American Recipe with PBS, I knew I had to wow the judges in episode 1.
First round, right out of the starting gate, I made a divine rosewater baklava, with rose petals. Sure wowed them!
Since then, I published my second cookbook, an entire book dedicated to muffins, unlike any you’ve had, and so of course, I had to create a Baklava Muffin with rosewater and rose petals!
However, throughout my blog you will find other fabulous recipes using edible flowers.
- Butterfly Pea Flower Tea Bread – a delicate tea made from butterfly pea flowers infused into a yeast bread and oh so lavender in color.
- Stuffed Pumpkin Blossoms – a very Italian tradition of stuffing the squash blossoms, only I delicately saute them, instead of fry, and stuffed with a lovely egg omelette.
- Cranberry Orange Blossom Pie – while I have so many recipes with orange blossom, this tart, sweet and gluten-free crust pie is a holiday favorite.
- Rosewater Baklava and Rosewater Baklava Muffins – you may have seen me make this on The Great American Recipe on PBS.
- Borage and Apricot Muffins – a beautiful blue flower, sitting proud on top of my apricot and flaxseed muffin, 1 of 52 muffins in My Muffin Madness cookbook.
- Celebration Cookies – with an array of various edible flowers baked on a shortbread cookie.
Why We Love Color In Our Food And Drinks
I’m sure there is an entire psychology about food and people. But I’m not going to dabble in that.
What I will say, with certainly, is that people have psychological reactions to color in food.
It is said to affect our senses and have an important effect on what we choose. Not sure how that explains why little kids don’t like ‘green stuff’ on their plates (lol).
I do know that various colors trigger emotions. I’d love to know what your response is to the delicate pink peony color of this luscious cocktail. For myself, it felt soft, gentle, hopeful and happy. And… it tasted like, all the above!
Making Pink Peony Syrup For Desserts And Cocktails
If you are a cocktail drinker, you know about the ‘simple syrup’ made for the base of many of your cocktails.
Basically, a simple syrup is equal portions of sugar and liquid, boiled until it thickens into a syrup consistency. The sky’s the limit as to what essence or flavors you want to infuse into that syrup.
A peony syrup is just that:
- Sugar and water.
- Lots of peony organic, unsprayed petals.
- A little rum, which helps in extracting the essence from the petals.
- Simmer until the petals shrink, the liquid becomes syrupy and turns a lovely pale pink.
- Strain and keep in the fridge until ready to use.
Extracting Peony Essence For Eating And Drinking
The biological approach to extracting flavor, scent or essence from herbs is by soaking or steaming.
Soaking in an alcohol product, called tinctures, produces a more intense result. While soaking in water, produces a more gentle extraction. However, not everyone is interested in the alcohol content. So, I do both.
I have placed a little water in the pot, along with a little rum and sugar, simmer the petals briefly. After a brief simmer, turn the stove off and allow the extraction to cool and soak. The alcohol content has been simmered out. You now have a lovely flavor, essence, for your cocktail.
How To Make A Pink Peony Colada Cocktail
Once you have made the peony syrup, and it has chilled, the rest is fast and easy.
- A few ice cubes (plain ice), goes into a cocktail shaker first.
- Add a few shots of white rum.
- Followed by a few shots of coconut milk, not coconut cream.
- About half a cup of the peony syrup, which remember is water, petal extract and simmered rum.
- Shake really well allowing the drink to blend and chill.
- Pour into small 4 ouce glasses with peony ice cubes, and serve.
Don’t forget to make the peony ice cubes ahead of time!
Making Peony Ice Cubes
How beautifully whimsical to look into a cocktail glass and see your ice cubes with flower petals frozen inside!
The process is so easy.
Simply fill a few ice trays with water, press down a few petals for each cube, freeze and they pop out easily.
I first made these lovely ice cubes for a Cherry Blossom Cocktail, using cherry blossoms.
For this lovely pink cocktail, I’ve done the same with the peony petals.
Once made, store the cubes in an airtight container for other drinks, including water!
What Does Peony Flower Essence Taste Like
Often times, with flowers, they do not taste the way they smell. For instance, the nasturtium, a lovely sweet fragrance, has the flavor of radishes. Roses, on the other hand, have a flavor much like they smell.
Peonies, for me, are more delicate in flavor than rose petals, more like a dehydrated strawberry.
A ‘Fur Friendly’ Note About Your Pink Peony Colada Cocktail
Contrary to your usual pet indulgences, don’t let these guys sip on your cocktail. Apparently peonies are not ‘fur tummy’ friendly.
Go figure. Ancient Chinese medicine has embraced every aspect of the peony plant for its various medicinal properties for mankind. Just not pets.
Here’s another interesting ‘edible flower’ piece of information I recently picked, nearly from the horses mouth.
A stunning field of buttercups growing at a nearby horse farm, while I was on my way to the cattle farm to pick up my beef. I asked the cattle farmer about the buttercups.
“Buttercups are poisonous to horses, and yet not so to my cattle, who have four stomachs and are able to digest them with no problem.”
So, know your flowers before you experiment!
The Tools Behind The Beauty
- Small Saucepan – This is where the transformation begins. A modest saucepan becomes an alchemist’s vessel, gently coaxing color and fragrance from tender peony petals. As the sugar dissolves and the water warms, you’ll watch the liquid blush ever so slightly, proof that something lovely is unfolding.
- Strainer – Once the petals have surrendered their perfume, the strainer steps in. It separates silk from stem, leaving you with a clear, delicate syrup, free of debris, yet full of essence. There’s something satisfying about this moment, watching the last rosy drops fall into the jar below.
- Measuring Tools – Precision matters, even in romance. Measuring cups and spoons ensure the balance between sweetness, strength, and creaminess is just right. Too much rum and the floral notes disappear. Too little syrup and the drink loses its whisper. These quiet little tools keep harmony in the glass.
- Cocktail Shaker – Here is where garden meets celebration. The shaker chills, blends, and lightly froths the coconut milk into the rum and syrup. Give it a confident shake, you’ll hear the ice crack and tumble, feel the cold against your palms. It’s a small ritual that signals something special is about to be poured.
- Shot Glass – For measuring the rum, and perhaps for a tiny celebratory sip while you work. It keeps proportions tidy and the flavor consistent, especially if you’re making several glasses for friends gathered on the patio.
- Ice Tray – The finishing touch. This humble tray becomes a stage for suspended peony blossoms. Nestle whole petals or small blooms into each compartment, cover gently with water, and freeze. The result? Crystal-clear cubes with flowers captured inside, little frozen jewels that slowly bloom again as they melt into the cocktail.
Ingredients Needed To Make The Magic
- White Rum – The quiet backbone of the Pink Peony Colada. White rum brings warmth without heaviness, a clean, slightly sweet spirit that allows the floral notes to shine instead of competing with them. Think soft sugarcane, a whisper of vanilla, a gentle glow that lingers after each sip. It carries the garden into the tropics and makes the whole drink feel like a slow exhale.
- Peony Petals – The star. The muse. The fleeting beauty we’re determined to capture. Fresh, unsprayed peony petals lend a delicate floral fragrance that feels luxurious but never overwhelming. When steeped into syrup, they transform from show-stopping bloom to subtle flavor, soft, slightly sweet, almost ethereal. Choose petals at their peak, fully opened and fragrant, and always from flowers that have not been treated with pesticides.
- Sugar – Sugar does more than sweeten. It preserves the perfume of the petals and gives body to the syrup. As it dissolves into water and gently warms with the peonies, it becomes the bridge between floral and tropical, rounding edges, softening sharpness, creating that silky mouthfeel that makes a cocktail feel indulgent.
- Water – Simple, yes, but essential. Water is the quiet extractor, drawing out the blush color and delicate aroma from the petals. Use filtered or distilled water for clarity, especially if you’re making syrup meant to glow in a glass. It allows the true flavor of the peony to come forward, clean and pure.
- Coconut Milk – Creamy, dreamy coconut milk is what makes this a colada. It adds lushness and a subtle nutty sweetness that wraps around the floral syrup like silk. The richness balances the brightness of the rum and the delicacy of the petals, creating a cocktail that feels both tropical and garden-grown. Shake it well before using, that velvety texture is what gives the drink its cloudlike body.
Pink Peony Colada Cocktail Recipe
Equipment
- Small saucepan
- Cocktail shaker
- Ice tray
- Shot glass
Ingredients
- Peony Syrup makes 10 oz.
- 1 cup Peony petals just petals
- 1 cup Water
- 1/2 cup White rum
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- Pink Peony Colada Cocktail
- 2 shots White rum
- 2 shots Coconut milk not cream
- 1/2 cup Peony syrup
- 1/4 cup Plain ice
- Peony ice cubes
Instructions
- Peony Syrup
- To make the peony syrup, place water, sugar and 1/2 cup of rum in a small saucepan, on medium low heat. When bubbles begin to form, add the peony petals. Stir and let it simmer until the petals have wilted to almost nothing.
- When the liquid begins to swirl with a thicker viscosity, turn it off and allow it to steep for about 30-minutes. Strain and store in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Pink Peony Colada Cocktail
- In a cocktail shaker container, place a few plain ice cubes. Add the rum, peony syrup, coconut milk and peony syrup.Place the top on, give a good shake, allowing the milk to blend well with the ingredients and the ice cubes to chill the mixture.
- Place a few small peony petal ice cubes in a 4 ounce glass, pour the cocktail and serve.
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I believe the table... that place that draws people to gather, is the most powerful symbol of togetherness. All that happens before the table is set, the planning, the gathering, the preparing, are all an intricate part of the dance that create the mood of celebration to share with friends and loved ones.
What a beautiful and I am such yummy cocktail. It would make a perfect signature drink at a wedding. You are so creative Robin ❤️🥂
Beautiful! Would be a great signature drink for a bridal shower!!
This is so pretty and clever!