Carrot and thyme garnish on carrot bourbon cocktail — This Carrot Bourbon Refresher is a great way to drink your veggies.

Carrot juice, orange juice and bourbon. Who knew these simple ingredients could meld into such a sublime and mellow cocktail?

I love vegetables and I love cocktails. I set out to create four cocktails using four different veggies and spirits. This Carrot Bourbon Cocktail is one of the best.

What you’ll need for a Carrot Bourbon Cocktail

Carrot juice
Orange juice
Bourbon
Thyme for garnish
Carrot ribbons for garnish

Make your own juice or buy ready-made?

I love to make my own juices and syrups for my cocktails, but it’s certainly not necessary. For this cocktail, you can use carrot juice and orange juice already prepared from the grocery store.

If you want to try your own, here’s how I made the carrot juice for this cocktail. Two options are below, depending on which machine you have available.

Options for making your own juices

If using a juicing machine: Put 8 ounces of mini carrots in the juicer. Don’t add water. Once they’re processed, strain through a fine mesh strainer.
If using a food processor: Start with 1/2 cup of water for 8 ounces of mini carrots. You may need to add more water once you’ve started processing. You want the consistency to be watery. Once you’ve processed it, strain through a fine mesh strainer.

How to make a carrot ribbon

Using a vegetable peeler, slice a thin strip of carrot from a peeled carrot (you’ll need a long carrot for best results).
Soak the carrot strip in a bowl of water for at least 10 minutes.
Carefully roll the strip back and forth to form a ribbon.
Slide the carrot ribbon onto a cocktail pick. A metal pick works best for this.

CARROT BOURBON COCKTAIL

Recipe by Nana JanaCourse: CocktailCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Medium

This simple cocktail only requires three ingredients.

Ingredients

For the carrot juice:
8 ounces mini carrots
1/3 cup water to start with
For the cocktail:
3 ounces carrot juice
2 ounces freshly squeezed orange juice
1.5 ounces bourbon
For the garnish:
One peeled long carrot for the carrot ribbons
Fresh thyme

Directions

To make carrot juice
You can buy carrot juice, if you want, but I prefer the freshness of just-made juice. If you use a juicer, there’s no need to add water. Just put your carrots in the juicer and, if necessary, strain through a fine mesh strainer. If you use a food processor, add the water and blend until the carrots are completely liquid. You’ll probably need to strain the juice to get a smooth mixture.
To make the cocktail
Combine carrot juice, orange juice and bourbon in a cocktail shaker or lidded jar. Shake well and serve straight or over ice. Garnish with carrot ribbon and fresh thyme.
To make carrot ribbons
Peel a long carrot. Using a vegetable peeler, slice a very thin slab of the carrot all the way down the length of the carrot. Put the slices in water for at least 10 minutes. They should be soft enough then to carefully thread onto a cocktail pick.

Notes

See notes above for additional information on carrot juice and carrot ribbons.

Looking for other veggie-themed cocktails? Here are three more I think you’ll love.

Kale Vodka Tonic
Red Bell Pepper Paloma
Beet Gin and Tonic

CARROT BOURBON COCKTAIL

What you’ll need for a Carrot Bourbon Cocktail