Soooo, when we take our next trip south, I'm makin' a new drink each night... Friday - margaritas on the rocks; Saturday - mojitos; and Sunday - Caipirinhas. Here are some recipes I found... Thanks to Food & Wine and The Blue Talon!
Juicy Margaritas
Ingredients
1 cup tequila (preferably 100% blue agave)
1/2 cup Cointreau
1 1/4 cups fresh lime juice
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup superfine sugar
4 teaspoons honey, warmed
Directions
1.Combine all of the ingredients in a large pitcher and stir to dissolve the sugar. Refrigerate until chilled or serve immediately over cracked ice.
Notes
To be called tequila, the liquor must be made from at least 51% blue agave, a Mexican succulent plant. It can then be combined with liquor distilled from sugar cane or other raw materials. The finest tequila is distilled from 100 percent blue agave and categorized by how long it's aged. Plata tequila, also known as white or silver, isn't aged at all, and its clean, peppery flavor is ideal in margaritas. Reposado tequila is aged in oak for between 2 and 11 months, so it's mellower and sweeter. Añejo tequila, the most refined, is aged for at least 1 year in oak, making for a smooth, aromatic tequila that's best served neat, like good whisky or brandy.
Telluride Mojitos
Ingredients
16 small fresh mint sprigs, plus 4 more for garnish
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons superfine sugar
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
3/4 cup white or gold rum
8 dashes bitters
2 cups club soda
Directions
1.In a bowl, using a wooden spoon, crush the mint with the sugar until the mint is coarsely chopped and the sugar is pale green. Add the lime juice, rum and bitters and stir to dissolve the sugar.
2.Strain the mixture through a coarse strainer into a small pitcher. Pour into tall glasses over ice and top each drink with 1/2 cup of the club soda. Garnish with mint sprigs and serve.
Traditional Brazilian Caipirinha
Ingredients
2 ea Ripe Limes (or 4 Key Limes)
4 tsp Granulated Sugar
5 oz. Cachaça
Ice - Cracked or Small Cubes
Directions
This recipe makes two cocktails, as it would be a shame to drink Caipirinhas alone! This drink also requires one slightly esoteric piece of bar equipment, a muddler, which can be found at most kitchen or gourmet stores.
Begin by slicing the limes in half from top to bottom. Remove the pithy white part in the center. Lay each half lime flat on the cutting board and cut into 4 - 6 pieces, depending on size. Drop one entire cut up lime into each of two “old fashioned”, or highball, glasses. Add 2 tsp of sugar to each glass. Using the muddler, mash the limes and sugar together until well mixed. Add ice. Add 2 1/2 oz. of Cachaça to each glass. Stir or shake until all sugar is dissolved.
NOTE: Many Brazilians prefer the drink sweeter, so feel free to experiment with extra sugar if that is your style.
So, Tam - be prepared to get your drink on, sista! And all of the ingredients are NATURAL, so there's no reason to say "no"!
