Category Archives: Sips and Slurps

Hard Cider Sangria

The great outdoors. Sort of at its greatest this time of year.

The great outdoors. Sort of at its greatest this time of year.

 

This week we had a bring-it fest—a group hike/farewell celebration with a picnic at the end. I am humbled by the culinary mojo of the women in this community…by their ability to make kale decadent, to transform a meat and cheese plate into a work of art and to master complex desserts that ought to be illegal. More importantly I love that they can bring it all with deftness and grace.

My contribution, as often is the case, was in the cocktail family. Also not surprisingly, given the time of year, it involved apples. Say hello to hard cider sangria, the step-down program from all those yummy summer drinks. This came from Food and Wine last October.

The only change I made was to triple it, so I could store and transport it in the same big Tupperware I use for freezer daquiris. I liked it so much I made another batch for book group the very next night.

Make it with grocery store hard cider and it is pretty sweet. You might want to cut it with some seltzer. Make it with a really good local hard cider in the wine aisle and it’s a tad more sophisticated (like we care) and less sweet. This recipe has been in my life for four days. Shockingly I have already made it both ways and it’s all good.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup quartered and thinly sliced unpeeled green, yellow and red apples
  • 1 navel orange—quartered and thinly sliced crosswise
  • 1 cup apple juice, chilled
  • 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup apple brandy
  • One 22-ounce bottle hard apple cider, chilled
  • Ice

Method

In a pitcher, combine the apples with the orange, apple juice, lemon juice and brandy. Just before serving, add the hard cider. Serve in tall glasses over ice.

Same sangria, All dressed up for an indoor appearance.

Same sangria, All dressed up for an indoor appearance.

Picnic spread

A mere peek at a Bring It bonanza!

Watermelon Sangria

Watermelon Sangria. Summer in a glass.

Watermelon Sangria. Summer in a glass.

I don’t think it’s going to get any better than this. Summer that is. And whatever else I might find to put in this glass. This recipe comes straight from Joy the Baker, with gratitude and reverence. If you don’t follow Joy you should. She’s smart, funny, and wildly successful at creating ridiculously good food and drink.  And she does not fuss. When I saw this recipe I immediately thought, “Great! A way to use up those three half bottles of Limoncello in my freezer.” Flash forward a month later and there I am making up an excuse to go to the grocery store so I can really go next door and buy Limoncello.

Trust me though, this is worth a new bottle of Limoncello. So as I said this comes straight from Joy the Baker BUT I have notes for practicality. Joy lives in urban California where a “small” watermelon is the size of a small melon. I live in rural NH where a small watermelon is the size of a large baby. Plan accordingly. Joy muddles things artfully in stages and I slammed all the fruit together in a blender.

Also, if you’re wondering if you can store the leftovers a la freezer daquiris, wonder no more. Yes! In fact the entire first batch (which my impatient not-gonna-go-to-the-store-one-more-time self made with boxed pinot grigio and no strawberries) went straight to the freezer and was a darned good consolation prize between batches. It has no high fructose corn syrup laden limeade in it though, so the texture ends up more icy.

Enough said. Dig out that Limoncello and prepare to be refreshed!

Limoncello. Out with the old, in with the new.

Limoncello. Out with the old, in with the new.

The rose of choice. French, screw top, cheap. All good!

The rose of choice. French, screw top, cheap. All good!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Watermelon Strawberry Citrus Sangria 

makes a big bunch

Ingredients

4 cups watermelon juice, from one small watermelon (see note above)
1 pound fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 bottle Rosé wine, not too sweet is best
1 cup vodka
1 cup limoncello or Cointreau
juice of 2 oranges
juice of 1 lime
1 orange sliced
1 lime sliced

Method

Slice a watermelon into large chunks.  Reserve a few smaller chunks for the sangria jar and for garnish.  Blend watermelon chunks with a handful of sliced strawberries until smooth.  Depending on the size of your blender, you may need to blend the fruit in two batches. Strain fruit juice through a fine mesh strainer and into a large measuring cup. You’ll need about 4 cups of watermelon/strawberry juice.

In a large container stir together, watermelon/strawberry juice, wine, vodka, limoncello, orange juice, and lime juice. Stir in the remaining sliced strawberries, a few watermelon chunks, sliced oranges, and sliced lime. Chill thoroughly before serving.  Serve over ice.

Summahhhhhh! Brilliant Frozen Daquiris

Freezer-daquiri-cup

Sandy’s Daquiris

“With a batch of these, and a peanut butter pie in your freezer you’re ready for anything.” That’s Sandy wisdom, and around here we love Sandy. First we love her for bringing her daughter, the fabulous Suzi, into the world. Before Suzi this neighborhood was a lot more like the Wizard of Oz before the Yellow Brick Road scene. Now, it is full on Technicolor. Anyway, we also love Sandy for bringing freezer daquiris into our lives. It is not unusual in our hamlet to see frozen Tupperware vats getting walked from house to house in the summer, the surplus from one party inspiring the next. As Sandy’s (also fabulous) son-in-law says, “The great thing is that it’s always just ready in the freezer. So, you know, at 2 or so on a Sunday after you’ve cut the lawn…” You might want to nab him for any serious chores before he cuts the grass.

This is Sandy’s basic recipe, with some freelance suggestions.

Ingredients

2 cups white rum (or white firewater of choice)
24 oz. Squirt (Fresca for New Englanders)
1 12-oz can frozen pink lemonade or limeade (one of each if making a double batch)
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 cups pineapple juice (or any combo of juices…half ruby red grapefruit makes it darned pretty)

Method

Mix together and freeze in a big rectangular Tupperware stirring every 2 hours. (Count on at least 10 hours and up to a day, depending on the container.  I do not bother stirring it until just before serving.) Depending on the party you can use 3 cups rum*, and try adding stuff such as grapefruit juice.

*This is the only place I take issue with Sandy. I’d say the party may depend on the three cups of rum. Go with it!)

Bring It!

Now, here’s the brilliant part. Use this frozen block of daquiris as ice and internal structure when packing a cooler for the lake/cabin/weekend escape. At your destination chunk it up with a serving spoon or simply let it thaw into a pitcher of perfect drinkable slurpees. Lifechanging I tell you. And who do you think is always welcome back at that lakehouse? You got it.

Brilliant for cooler packing, but also as a great way to store leftover cocktails that you can then revisit/re-serve at will. (See fabulous son-in-law note above)

Freezer-daquiri-block

Freezer-daquiri-breakup

 

Summahhhhhhhhhh!

Summahhhhhhhhhh!