Ice that's nice: Turn ice cubes into drink ornaments with berries and herbs

Rosemary, lavender and berries turn ice cubes into ornaments in any drink. It takes a few simple tricks to keep the ice from clouding up and the ingredients from floating to the top when freezing. — Photo: Julia Uehren/loeffelgenuss.de/dpa

The possibilities are almost endless. From savoury rosemary and fragrant lavender to sweet berries and crisp slices of cucumber, almost anything can be frozen in ice cubes.

Edible flowers, herbs and fruit easily transform ice cubes into a drink's signature feature that not only cools it down but also catches the eye.

As the flavoured frozen ornament slowly melts in the glass, the ingredients release their delicate flavours into the drink - perfect for sparkling water, lemonade, iced tea and long drinks.

Ingredient ideas:

• Rose buds
• Lavender flowers
• Lady's mantle
• Mini mint leaves
• Mini basil leaves
• Thyme sprigs
• Rosemary sprigs
• Small strawberries
• Small blueberries
• Kiwi
• Cucumber
• Lime

Note: Ingredients should be organic or not sprayed with pesticides.

Preparation

A few tips for making ice cubes as clear as possible: the smaller the mould, the clearer the ice.

Boiling the water several times and then cooling it will reduce the minerals that can make the water and cubes cloudy.

Freezing in stages ensures that the water freezes from the bottom up, so the ingredients float in the middle of the cube rather than rising to the surface.

1. Rinse the flowers, herbs and fruit under cold water and leave to dry slightly. Cut the berries, kiwi, lime or cucumber to fit the size of the ice cube mould. If necessary, pull herbs and flowers apart into small segments.
2. Fill the ice cube tray about one-third full with water (pre-boiled and cooled, if possible). Place the flowers, fruit or herb leaves inside and put the mould in the freezer for around 1 to 2 hours until the first layer has frozen solid.
3. Remove the ice cube tray from the freezer. Add further ingredients on top of the frozen layer if desired, or leave them out. Top up with a little water so the new ingredients are just covered. Freeze again for around 1 hour.
4. Finally, fill the moulds completely with the remaining water until the ice cubes reach their final size. Leave to freeze through completely overnight.
5. Carefully press the finished ice cubes out of the mould, add to glasses of water, lemonade, sparkling wine or cocktails, and serve. - dpa