A Fun Way to Drink a Bottle of Wine - Sangria Recipe

I suppose it's a lot of fun to just pour wine into a glass, sip, and enjoy. You can even get glasses that can hold an entire bottle of wine. But, there are other, more fun, ways to drink your wine.

So, how can you make wine more fun? Make Sangria!

Sangria is light, smooth, and refreshing. You could easily drink a bottle (or more) of wine in the blink of an eye. What? You've never made it before? You should! Here's how:

Sangria

2 bottles of red wine (inexpensive, but not really cheap) - 1.5L total
1/2 cup brandy
2 Tbsp sugar
About 2 cups sliced/chopped fruit (I used 1 orange, 1 lemon, 1 apple)
A bit of fresh fruit (I used strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries)

Yummy Sangria!

Slice your fruit. I cut my orange and lemon into rounds but diced the apple (so it will fall into my glass when I pour and I can eat it!).

Put the cut fruit into a pitcher. Add the sugar and brandy and give it a mix. Refrigerate the pitcher for 6-8 hours to give the fruit time to macerate.

When the long wait is over, pour in all of the wine. Your Sangria is ready to drink.

Before pouring, prepare your glasses. Add a little fresh fruit and some ice. Pour away!


★ You can use any fruit you want for this drink, but it's important to have the citrus in the first step.
★ This is a great year-round drink and an easy party drink.
★ You can change it up each time you make it, using whatever fruit you have on hand or what is in season.

Green Iguana Margaritas

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I'm rocking a green shirt, but I won't be downing any green beer today. I like beer. Sometimes. Well, I mostly like sour beers (YUM!).

My husband and I have been on a margarita kick lately, so we decided that making green margaritas would be Irish enough for us! We took our basic Cadillac Margarita recipe and "greenified" it. Both the Cadillac and the Green Iguana Margarita are strong but smooth drinks. The Green Iguana has just a hint of melon flavor, which is perfect for me. I hate when cocktails are too sweet. Yuck!

Green Iguana Margaritas

Cadillac Margarita

3 oz 100% agave tequila
2 oz freshly squeezed lime juice
1 - 1.5 oz Cointreau

Green Iguana Margarita

3 oz 100% agave tequila
2 oz freshly squeezed lime juice
1 oz Cointreau
1 oz Midori

Fill a glass with ice (cute cactus-stemmed glasses are optional). Add all ingredients to the glass, and give it a quick stir. Sip and enjoy!

A Perk of Summer

I really, really dislike feeling hot, BUT hot days do have their perks. Today's hot day perk was a nice, refreshing afternoon cocktail. After being pregnant for what felt like a lifetime and then nursing for a year after Mr. Baby's arrival, an afternoon cocktail was a distant memory. I know it's silly, but it was really nice to finally be able to have a drink in the middle of the afternoon if I wanted to!

Today's cocktail was a Skyy Vodka invention called a Cherry Patriot. It's strong, but still easy to drink.

Cherry Patriot

1 1/2 oz Cherry Vodka (Skyy Infusions)
1 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Cointreau
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth
3/4 oz Rye Whiskey
2 oz Club Soda

Mix all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a cocktail glass.

Garnish with a cherry (or two). Because they're pretty . . . and yummy after they soak up a bunch of booze.  :)