Pink Squirrel
intro
A silky, blush-pink vintage creamy cocktail with delicate almond and white chocolate notes, served ice-cold for a smooth, indulgent, dessert-like sip perfect for sharing.
Ingredients
Steps
Chill Coupe Glasses
Place both crystal coupe glasses in the freezer for 3 minutes to frost the exterior, or fill them with 3-4 ice cubes and cold water while you prep the cocktail to chill the glass thoroughly. Dump out the ice water and wipe the interior dry with a corner of the linen towel right before straining the drink to avoid unwanted dilution.
Measure Liqueurs
Remove the cap from the crème de noyaux and white crème de cacao bottles. Use the double-sided stainless steel jigger to measure 2oz (60ml) of crème de noyaux and 2oz (60ml) of white crème de cacao, pouring both directly into the base of the cobbler cocktail shaker. Hold the jigger at eye level to ensure measurements are exact for a balanced, not-too-sweet flavor.
Add Heavy Cream
Use the same stainless steel jigger to measure 2oz (60ml) of cold heavy whipping cream, pouring it into the shaker on top of the two liqueurs. Do not stir the mixture at this stage—agitation with ice later will create the proper emulsified, frothy texture.
Add Ice to Shaker
Use the small stainless steel ice scoop to transfer 1.5 cups of clear cubed ice from the insulated ice bucket into the cocktail shaker, filling the shaker to ¾ of its total capacity. Do not overfill the shaker, as too much ice will prevent proper agitation and lead to an over-diluted drink.
Shake Until Frosty
Secure the tight-fitting lid and cap onto the cocktail shaker, pressing firmly to create a watertight seal. Hold the shaker with one hand on the base and one on the lid, and shake hard and fast for 12-15 seconds, until the entire exterior of the shaker feels frosty and ice-cold to the touch. This chills the drink to approximately 40°F (4°C) and lightly aerates the cream for a silky, light mouthfeel.
Strain Into Coupes
Remove the pre-chilled coupe glasses from the freezer (or dump the ice water and dry the interiors quickly). Hold the Hawthorne strainer firmly over the top of the shaker opening, and pour the pale pink cocktail evenly between the two glasses, filling each to 1cm below the rim to leave space for garnish.
Garnish and Serve
Skewer one plump brandied cherry per glass on a thin silver cocktail pick, resting the pick across the rim of each coupe. Serve immediately, while the drink is ice-cold and condensation is just starting to form on the outside of the glasses.
Tips
2.Don’t skimp on shake time: the 12-15 second hard shake doesn’t just chill the drink—it emulsifies the heavy cream to create a light, frothy, silky texture, rather than a thin, separated drink that tastes like straight cream and liqueur.
3.Skip serving over ice: this is a classic 'up' cocktail, so pre-chilling your coupe glasses in the freezer for 3 minutes keeps the drink cold for 10-15 minutes without dilution from melting ice that would water down the sweet, nutty, creamy flavor profile.
Brought a batch of these to our neighborhood potluck over the weekend and I can’t believe how many people asked for the recipe! I was worried the pink color would make people think it was too sweet, but it’s perfectly balanced, not cloying at all. Even my husband who only drinks beer and whiskey tried one and said he’d have another. Win win!
OMG I haven’t had a Pink Squirrel since my grandma used to make them for our holiday girls’ nights back in the 90s! This recipe is so spot on, perfectly creamy and that pretty pastel pink is chef’s kiss. No weird fancy ingredients, took me 2 minutes to shake up for my book club last night and everyone was begging for the recipe. Total game changer for my retro cocktail rotation!
Made these for my girlfriend’s pink-themed birthday pregame and they were a massive hit! I’m literally the worst at making drinks, I can barely pour a beer without making a mess, and these turned out perfect first try. She said they taste just like the ones we got at that fancy ice cream bar downtown for half the cost. 10/10 will make again.
Solid Pink Squirrel recipe! I work at a small dive bar in Brooklyn and we added this to our retro cocktail special last week. Only note I’d give is I swapped the heavy cream for vanilla ice cream to make it a frozen version and customers went nuts for it. Super easy to batch for happy hour too.
My kids thought I was making them milkshakes when they saw me pull out the cream! I made a virgin version for them with a little almond syrup and pink food coloring and they went crazy for it. The adult version with the liqueurs was even better, perfect for our Friday family movie night treat. Will be adding these to our regular rotation!
We made these after our ski trip in Breckenridge last weekend when we were all curled up in the cabin and they hit so different! They’re ice cold, but they were such a cozy fun treat after being out in the snow all day. We didn’t have crème de noyaux so we used a little amaretto and extra pink food coloring and it still turned out great. Easy peasy.
Made these for our sorority big/little reveal last night and they were SO good! We did pink sugar on the rim to match our bid day theme and they looked so cute in the coupe glasses. Literally zero effort for how impressive they look, perfect for when you’re running around last minute trying to get event set up and don’t have time for fancy complicated drinks.
Made this for my at-home date night with my wife last Friday and she thought I ordered fancy cocktail mixers! I didn’t tell her how stupid easy it was to make, let her think I’m a master mixologist for a night. We paired it with chocolate covered strawberries and it was the perfect sweet treat after dinner. 10/10 would recommend for impressing your partner without putting in actual work.
I’ve been making Pink Squirrels since the 1970s, and let me tell you, this recipe is exactly how we used to make them back at the supper club! So many recipes these days add weird extra ingredients or skimp on the cream, but this is the real deal. Made a batch for my bridge club ladies earlier this week and they all said it tasted just like the old days. Thanks for keeping this classic recipe alive!