Category Archives: Cocktails

February 9, 2012 · 10:17 pm

{Hand-squeezed} Blood Orange & Grapefruit Greyhounds

Valentines Day is right around the corner, and whether you’re a hater or a lover {oh!} of the holiday, a good, simple and clean cocktail recipe {or flavored water} is always a great thing to have up your sleeve.

So, whether it’s a little treat for a dinner in, a movie night, big party or a kickoff of the night to come, making your own cocktails means no added {gross} sugars or syrups, and the ability to use fresh, seasonal ingredients. In other words- better for you taste wise AND body wise. Same goes for flavored waters, if you want to make this without the alcohol component and keep it in your fridge for a little spa element at home.

So, it being citrus season and the week of all things red and pink, it’s the perfect time for my {hand-squeezed} Blood Orange & Grapefruit Greyhounds, no matter your plans. Ideal to make in a batch or by the glass for a little spunk in your holiday.

Please enjoy responsibly.

And don’t ignore your water glass in the process :)

{Hand-squeezed} Blood Orange & Grapefuit Greyhounds:

Ingredients: Makes 4 servings

2 ripe Rio grapefruits (sweeter variety)

2 blood oranges

citrus sparkling water

top shelf high quality vodka {optional, of course}

Directions:

1. Squeeze juice of 2 grapefruits and 1 blood orange (a citrus squeezer is nice here), and add to a clean mason jar.

2. Add 1.5 inches (approx) of sparkling citrus water to the jar with 4 shots of vodka {or more, if it’s that kind of night} or {none at all}. Add some ice, screw lid on and shake to combine.

3. Fill serving glasses with ice and slice the other blood orange into rounds for garnish on the glasses:

Staying in and need some fun dinner ideas for the night?

Have a little sweet tooth and don’t care about crappy Sweetheart hearts or drugstore chocolate boxes? Ditto.

Leave a Comment

Filed under All Recipes, Cocktails

Tagged as , , , , , ,

August 5, 2011 · 7:49 pm

Honey Sweet-Tea Cocktails

Honey-Sweet Tea Cocktails

It’s Seattle Seafair weekend. A great excuse for a cocktail recipe on a healthy food blog? I think so. Sometimes being healthy means enjoying the sweet pleasures in life- like a perfectly crafted cocktail while floating on Lake Washington’s beautiful waters this weekend.

You won’t find any high-fructose corn syrup pre-made mixer in these hands. A simple syrup made with honey instead of corn syrup, sugars, additives and colorings makes this version of sweet tea lemonade cleaner, cheaper and much more delicious. This would taste great without alcohol as well for the whole family to enjoy.

Honey Sweet-Tea Cocktail Recipe:

4 TB Honey (preferrably raw)

1/2 cup water

4-6 black tea bags (or green if you prefer)

Premium brand vodka

Lemon and orange slices to garnish

Directions:

1. Boil a few cups of water in a large pot. After it boils, set aside on stove and add your teabags. I tied them to the pot handles to keep them secure. Steep for as long as you’d like.

2. Heat a seperate small saucepan over the stove on medium heat. Add the honey until it melts, then add water and cover for 5 min or until honey dissolves. This is your honey syrup. If it’s too sweet, add more water and vice versa.

3. Discard the teabags and pour the tea into a large pitcher. Add the honey syrup and lots of ice. Add as much water as you’d like to get the volume you want, noting the ice will melt as well. Add 1-1.5 oz of premium vodka per serving or person (depending on the size of your pitcher), and slices of oranges and lemons. Stir, and refrigerate or serve immediately over ice.

Other great variations: Green tea with cucumber slices, white tea with melon and berries, rooibos tea with mint and mango slices.

Please enjoy responsibly. Have a great and safe summer weekend, Seattle!

Leave a Comment

Filed under All Recipes, Cocktails

Tagged as , , ,

May 4, 2011 · 6:28 pm

Sarah’s Classic Margarita

Blackberry Lime Margaritas

Happy Cinco de Mayo! A little treat for you all today.

Margaritas on a healthy, real food blog?  You better believe it.

If you know me even in the slightest bit, you know that margaritas are my favorite drink- no matter the time of year. This makes Cinco de Mayo even more of an exciting one for me- it’s in my top 3 favorite holidays for the margaritas alone. And no, I’m not making that up.

If you know me in the slightest bit, you also know that I’m not talking about a margarita mix or prepackaged bottle. Please. Call me a margarita snob, but it’s got to be a good one for me to want to drink it. What does a “good one” mean? One made with fresh limes, great tequila, and some kind of cleaner sweetener- natural lime juice, or a  homemade simple syrup made with honey.

What’s the difference you ask? Packaged drink mixes are the epitome of processed food. They’re often filled with high fructose corn syrup, fake sugar, preservatives, and chemicals. And people wonder why they feel awful in the morning. This year, try it a better way- upgrade your ingredients and you’ll get a drink that looks better, tastes better, and feels better the next morning.

You can go with the classic (my personal favorite), but can also spice it up a bit by adding pureed blackberries (as shown), blueberries, or use a splash of pomegranate juice for some color.

Sarah’s Classic Margarita:

1 shot good quality tequila (you get what you pay for here, just a warning)

3 limes, cut in half and juiced

4 oz club soda or sparkling water

2 oz orange liqueur (like cointreau)

Directions: Fill a glass or martini shaker with ice. Add tequila, fresh lime juice, club soda and cointreau. Shake and pour into a glass. Garnish with a wedge of lime or bright flower. For flavored margaritas, add a splash of your favorite pureed berries or juice.

Homemade Honey Simple Syrup:

If you like your cocktails a little bit sweeter, try using a homemade honey simple syrup instead of a white sugar based one. Honey has some natural enzymes and minerals that boost your immune system and it interacts with your blood stream in a much slower way (a good thing).

Directions: Combine equal parts honey and water in a saucepan. Heat over low flame and stir until the honey melts into the water. Measure out what you need and add into the margarita.

Have a happy Cinco everyone!

3 Comments

Filed under All Recipes, Cocktails

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , ,