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.

A mere peek at a Bring It bonanza!