Tag Archives: drink

Texas Pete Bloody Mary

texas pete bloody maryWhen I worked at the Boys and Girls Club, the older kids liked to scare the little ones with the story of Bloody Mary. Have you heard it? As legend goes, Bloody Mary appears if they spun around three times in front of a mirror while chanting her name. (You can read more of the legend here.) It was kind of terrifying and I’m an adult. I will never forget the morning my favorite little kid ran out of the bathroom with tears in his eyes, so afraid that “Bloody Muddy” was going to get him. There were so many time-outs that day.

This drink goes out to that little guy, wherever he is. I hope he’s out terrifying the big kids with some gut wrenching tales.

bloody mary in a jar

Ingredients:

  • 8 oz. Bloody Mary Mix (I cheated a bit on this one and went with a Trader Joe’s mix. You could also use tomato juice and Worcestershire sauce).
  • 1 shot of vodka
  • 15! shakes of Texas Pete (less if you like a less spicy drink)
  • 1 dash of onion powder
  • 1 dash of garlic powder
  • Splash of canned olive juice
  • Garnish with fresh, cracked black pepper and olives

Also, can we talk about how serving in a jar saves on clean up. AND. AND. AND. You can make these before a party and have them ready to go! Have you ever had a Texas Pete Bloody Mary? Let me know in the comments!

love,
melanie

 

 

Tart, Ginger Cranapple Juice

homemade cranapple juiceIt seems like everyone is juicing lately. I have to admit, I’ve been on a couple of juice cleanses and I absolutely hated it. Let’s be real, ya’ll. No green juice is ever better than a real bacon and egg breakfast. And to be honest, I feel better eating high protein, low carb instead of the other way around.

But George loves apple juice. He is such a little kid sometimes. And I do worry about the boy’s sugar intake. I can be a real mom sometimes. So, I was looking for  a way to make a healthier, lower sugar, apple juice. Here’s what I came up with:

Ingredients

  • 2 Granny Smith apples
  • 1/2 inch of fresh ginger
  • 1/2 cup of cranberry juice (no sugar added)

I don’t have a juicer, so I made this one in my blender. It works well, but it would be smoother if you choose to make it in a juicer.

Peel, core and cut the apples into bite-size chunks. Peel and cut up the ginger. Add the cranberry juice to the blender first, then add the apples and the ginger. Blend until smooth and pour over ice. Enjoy!

Cranapple ginger juice

Tart and gingery! Have you ever tried a juice cleanse? Do you think it lives up to the hype?

love,
melanie

Saffron Lemonade

Saffron lemonade

Have you ever heard of saffron lemonade? This idea blew my mind in the best way. This drink came about while I was watching the Cooking Channel and running on the treadmill at the gym. I should be embarrassed, but I’m not. No shame in my game.

Mo Rocca was on and cooking with two adorable, little Indian women. I absolutely love the flavors of Indian cooking, so I was enthralled. Before the ladies began cooking, they served Mo saffron lemonade. My head nearly exploded. I quickly typed it onto the notes on my phone and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.

Saffron lemonade recipe

I googled their recipe, (which has now been removed from their site! Boo!), but I modified their original recipe a bit since I try to watch my sugar intake. If you don’t need to watch your sugar intake, feel free to up the sugar to 1/2 a cup.

Saffron Lemonade Recipe

Makes 16 oz.

Ingredients for Saffron Lemonade

  • 5-6 lemons
  • 1/4 cup of sugar
  • 2 pinches of saffron
  • 1 cup of cold water
  • A handful of ice

Squeeze the lemons, add the sugar, water and saffron, then add a handful of ice and shake. The longer you let the saffron steep in the lemonade, the stronger the flavor will be. I let mine steep about an hour and it turned a gorgeous orange color.

If you need to make this in advance, this could be refrigerated in the fridge overnight. I haven’t tried it but, I’d love to see how that flavor would develop overnight.

Recipe for saffron lemonade

The flavor kind of reminded me of kombucha, but less tart. Saffron lemonade is the perfect spring drink! This would also be the perfect base for a cocktail or mocktail too.

For another spring drink, I recommend a Peach Mint Julep!

love,
melanie

Infused Strawberry Vodka Lemonade

infused strawberry vodka lemonadeInfused vodka is one of those things that seems really difficult and maybe a little snobby, but it’s actually stupid-easy. Making grilled cheese is harder than making infused vodka, I swear. For this recipe, the hardest part is waiting a week for the fruit to mingle with the vodka.

Infused Vodka Ingredients

  • Enough fruit of your choice to loosely fill a mason jar (approximately 2 cups)
  • Approximately 12 oz. of vodka (I recommend at least triple-distilled)
  • A cool, dark place and patience

To make infused vodka all you have to do is wash and cut your favorite fruit, put it in a mason jar, and then fill the jar with vodka. Screw the top on the jar and leave in a cool, dark place for a week. Shake everyday, if possible. One week later, drain out the fruit and voila, you’ve got infused vodka!

I tried several different fruit-infusions: blueberry, lemon and strawberry. By far, the strawberry was the best. Below is the recipe I made with the infused strawberry vodka. I actually don’t usually enjoy vodka, one too many bad college nights, but this recipe made me a believer in the magic of the clear spirit.

Infused Strawberry Vodka Lemonade

  • Two shots of infused strawberry vodka (recipe above)
  • 6 lemons
  • A handful of ice
  • 2 tablespoons of sugar

Squeeze the juice from six lemons. Add the sugar and vodka to the lemon juice. Pour or shake over ice.

strawberry lemonade detail

Tip: I like to put my drinks in mason jars with lids, so I can easily shake the drink. James Bond style.

This recipe will make 2 small-ish drinks or one large-ish.  😉

Did you have any special spirits over the holiday weekend?

love,
melanie

Peach Mint Julep Recipe

Peach Mint Julep Recipe

The Kentucky Derby is pretty big deal in my family. In fact, my mom used to serve mint juleps at the derby! Most of my extended family still lives in Louisville, so horse racing is right up there with basketball on the important sports scale. There isn’t really an important sports scale, I was just being facetious.

Anyway, the derby is a great excuse to bring out your inner Gatsby– wear a large hat, make bets, and drink the classic derby drink, a mint julep.

But I have to tell ya’ll a secret. I am a southern lady, but I’m not the biggest mint julep fan. The drink always seems too sweet or too boozy. So, I put a little spin on the classic with the addition of peaches. I adapted the recipe from the following two recipes: Stonefruit and Mint Julep and Frozen Mint Julep.

This recipe will make four small drinks or two large drinks. I don’t judge.

Peach Mint Julep Recipe

Ingredients for a Peach Mint Julep:

  • 1/2 cup of water
  • 1 cup of sugar
  • 2 cups of mint leaves
  • 1 cup of Kentucky Bourbon
  • 2 cups of frozen peaches
  • 1 handful of ice

Peach Mint Julep Close-up

Step 1:

Make a mint-flavored simple syrup by boiling the sugar, water and torn mint leaves together. Use a whisk to help the sugar dissolve in the water.

Step 2:

After sugar has dissolved, take the syrup off the heat and let it cool. As the syrup is cooling, blend the whiskey, peaches and ice in a blender until it is the consistency of a smoothie.

Step 3:

Once syrup has cooled to the touch, strain the mint out of syrup. Add the syrup to the blender and give it one last whir to ensure the mixture is completely blended.

Step 4:

Wet the rim of your glass with water or fruit and dip the glass rim in sugar. Pour in your drink and garnish with a sprig of mint.

Step 5:

Bet on the prettiest horse (which is usually my strategy) and enjoy your julep!

Note: Traditionally a mint julep is served in a silver goblet! Crazy, huh? Since I didn’t have any silver goblets lying around, I served the drinks in plain ‘ol chilled mason jars.

For a snack to go with this treat, I’d suggest some sweet and salty trail mix. 

love,
melanie

Strawberry Grapefruit Mimosas

Strawberry Grapefruit Mimosas

I love a classic mimosa, but for brunch on Sunday I wanted to try something a bit different. So, somehow I got the zany idea to substitute grapefruit juice for orange juice. Here’s what you’ll need to recreate this bright, delicious drink.

strawberry grapefruit mimosas

Ingredients:

  • 1 bottle of (cheap) champagne
  • 1 bottle of grapefruit juice
  • 1/2 cup of sugar (You could use less sugar if you like a tart drink)
  • approximately 1 dozen strawberries
  1. Cut up the strawberries.
  2. Add the sugar to the strawberries and mix.
  3. Transfer strawberries to a pitcher or a glass and meddle with a spoon.
  4. Fill the pitcher 1/2 way full of grapefruit juice.
  5. Top the pitcher off with champagne. Stir. Enjoy. It’s too easy!

Mondays call for a cocktail, don’t you agree?
love,
melanie