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Epicurious

The Husker Dew

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Photo by Chelsea Kyle, food styling by Tommy Werner

Coffee-Cherry Simple Syrup lends fruity and floral notes to this refreshing summer cocktail. The name is misleading: the syrup contains neither cherries nor coffee beans. When harvesting coffee, farmers pick coffee cherries, which are shelled for their bean pits. The beans are roasted to become the coffee you know. While the cherries are usually discarded, you can actually steep their husks in hot water for an aromatic tea.

Cooks' Note

The Coffee-Cherry Simple Syrup makes enough for 8 cocktails and can be made up to 5 days in advance and refrigerated.

Find Cascara, the coffee cherry tea, online from coffee roasters like Verve in Santa Cruz.

See Related Recipes and Cooking Tips

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