Three Cheers For Ginger Beers

Or ginger ale; same thing. Here's how we did it:

Ginger Beer

Start with:

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup grated ginger (a 3-4" piece, peeled and grated)

3/4 cup water

1/2 liter (or 1/2 quart) of sparkling water

Tie up your grated ginger in a piece of cheesecloth. Place the ginger, the water, and the sugar in a small saucepan. You want to steep the ginger like a teabag. Bring the water and sugar to a boil together until the sugar dissolves, and you're left with simple syrup.

However, if you've got a gas stove, be careful that the ends of the cheesecloth bag don't hang into the flame, or you'll be left with this: 

As I noticed and held the flaming pot aloft, Matt was laughing so hard I had to tell him, "Hey, I could use a little help here!"

After you put out the fire, squeeze out the cheesecloth, remove, and discard. Add the ginger syrup to the sparkling water in a ratio of approximately 1 part ginger syrup to 2 parts water. Adjust to taste, and add a squeeze of lime if desired. Serves 2. Classy lime garnish optional.

Delicious!