Weekend Part 2 + Margaritas

The second half of the weekend was spent with our adopted family at the lake. RL {the dad} has recently decided to make it a running joke to deem what transpires as "blog worthy" or not. Something funny would happen and he would say, "Oh that's certainly blog worthy." My lovely Maui Jim t-shirt Hawaiian print koozie was proclaimed "blog worthy." The list could go on and on.

This is one of my favorite pics of the weekend. All except for the part where Bryan decided to put a hand on my head!! Why he did that, I do not know.

{Adam, Laura, me, Bryan}

My two favorite bikers-hippies-pirates.

My poor hubby was recovering from a sunburn last weekend and a slight one from working outside on Saturday morning/afternoon before the wedding. 

The kid is good at whatever she does. Here she is at the beginning of a jump.

Cathy {the mom} has a friend who makes the best margaritas that originally come from a restaurant in Dallas. She got the recipe and let me tell you, they are delish. Bryan decided to take over the making of them and he did a fine job. {Most certainly "blog worthy".}

I didn't get a good shot of the margaritas, but you get the idea. You can make them frozen or on the rocks.

Damn Good Margaritas

{I kid you not, this is the name.}

1 can frozen limeade (use empty can to measure)

1/2-3/4 can Herradura Tequila

1/4 can Cointreau

1/4 can Grand Marnier

Blend and add ice as needed or serve the frozen mixture over ice to enjoy on the rocks. 

Make sure to salt the rim and use fresh limes. Squeeze extra juice over the top of each margarita.

Warm Pear Cider

I have sorta been on a roll with my days this week, Tasty Tuesday, Wordless Wednesday, therefore I might as well continue on and do Thirsty Thursday. This warm pear cider looks amazing to me. Use your normal mug to serve them, or carve out the inside of pears like they did in the original post.

Warm Pear Cider

Ingredients:

3 ½ cups pear nectar

1-2 sticks of cinnamon

3 whole cloves

4 whole anise stars

¾ cup tequila gold

4 Asian pears (optional)

Directions:

Combine pear nectar, cinnamon sticks, cloves, and anise stars in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Add tequila and stir to incorporate.

To make the pear cups:

Cut off the pear top and with a sharp knife carefully outline a rim on your pear cup.

With a melon baller or a spoon, hollow out the pear making sure to leave about 1/4 inch at the bottom and around the edges, creating a cup.

Pour warm nectar into pear cups and enjoy.

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If you are a bloody Bloody Mary fan, head over to Sweet Southern Prep's Thirsty Thursday post today for a Bloody Maria recipe.

Hot Toddy

Being such a huge hot toddy fan, I knew I could not let National Hot Toddy Day go by without blogging about it. Confession, I only know this because it popped up as a reminder from Garden & Gun, thus I thought it only fitting to share their superb recipe today.

Hot Buttered Rum

Ingredients:

8 cups apple cider

6 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

15 whole allspice berries

10 whole cloves

2 cinnamon sticks, broken into small bits

5 tsp. dark honey

4 tbsp. unsalted butter

2 cups dark rum

Directions:

Boil first 6 ingredients about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add butter, stir till melted, strain into 8 warm mugs, and divide rum among them.

via

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... was the reply. "You are exhausted, of course, but if you do not get cold you will soon be all right. Maggie," she continued, to the servant, "tell Mr. Hesden to bring in that hot toddy now. He had better put the juice of a lemon it it, too. Miss Ainslie may not be accustomed to taking it. I am Mrs. Le Moyne, I forgot to say," she added, turning to her unintended guest, "and Hesden, ...

— Bricks Without Straw • Albion W. Tourgee

Sippin' on Saturday

This recipe for hot chocolate makes some of the most delicious hot chocolate that I have ever tasted. I served it on Christmas morning last year. Everyone went back for more and scraped the bottom for the last drop. I will certainly be making it again this year on Christmas morning, too.

Peppermint Patty Hot Chocolate

4 cups milk

4 cups whipping cream

1/2 cup sugar

3 (4-oz.) semisweet chocolate baking bars, broken into pieces

1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 cup peppermint schnapps

Garnishes: whipped cream topping, crushed hard peppermint candies.

Heat first 3 ingredients in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves and mixture is thoroughly heated. Remove from heat; add chocolate and salt, whisking until chocolate melts. Stir in peppermint schnapps. Garnish, if desired. Serve immediately. Yield: 11 cups.

Click here for a recipe to make Peppermint Marshmallows.

Click here for a recipe to make Peppermint Stick Cocoa in a jar.

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Chai Tea Mix

2 1/2 tsp. ground ginger

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

3/4 tsp. ground cloves

3/4 tsp ground cardamom (optional)

1 tsp. ground allspice

1 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 cups unsweetened instant tea or decaffeinated instant tea

1 1/2 to 2 cups sugar

1 cup nonfat dry milk powder

1 cup powdered nondairy creamer

1 cup French vanilla-flavored powdered nondairy creamer

Combine spices and tea in a food processor or blender. Blend 1 to 2 minutes or until mixture becomes a fine powder. Pour into large bowl. Add sugar to food processor or blender (without cleaning it), and process until superfine, about 30 seconds. Add sugar to bowl of spices. Stir in milk powder and creamers; blend well. Spoon mix into gift jars, if desired.

To serve, stir 2 heaping tablespoons Chai Tea mix into a mug of hot milk or boiling water. Yield: 5 1/2 cups mix.

Chocolate Chai Mix: Add 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa along with dry milk powder to the blend above. Follow serving directions above. (Use milk with this.)

Chai Shake: Blend 1/4 cup Chai Tea Mix, 1 cup milk, and 3 1/2 cups vanilla ice cream in a blender.

White Chocolate Chai: Add 1/4 cup finely chopped premium white chocolate to 1 cup Chai Tea Mix. Stir well. Follow serving directions above with 2 heaping tablespoons per cup of hot milk or boiling water.

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I added a few new items to my blog sale, so check it out!

Hot Apple Rum Wassail

The ribbon and cinnamon stick had me at "hello" on this tasty drink. We all need hostess gifts to give during the hoidays and I think this would make an excellent little treat.

Hot Apple Rum Wassail

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons whole cloves

1 orange

2 quarts apple cider

½ cup light brown sugar

pinch of nutmeg, grated

1 cup dark rum

Cinnamon sticks, garnish

Directions:

1. Stud the orange with cloves, slice.

2. In a medium pot, combine the studded orange slices and the remaining ingredients

except the rum.

3. Slowly bring to a simmer over low heat. Simmer for 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and add the rum.

4. To serve immediately - strain, ladle into mugs and garnish with cinnamon stick.

Idea:

Serve it in a punch bowl with fresh apple slices as garnishes.

Pumpkin Spice Latte

It's that time of year that Starbucks starts cranking out its Pumpkin Spice Latte. I had my first one last week! I could drink them every day, yet my bank account will not allow that. A much more affordable option is to make your own lattes at home. I get that not everyone can take the time to make one every morning, but they are a tasty treat to make when you have a friend pop over for a visit.

1. Make your coffee how you like it--press, pot, cup.

2. Make Pumpkin Milk.

1 cup milk

1/4 + cup of pumpkin puree

2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla extract

sweetener of taste (2 Tbsp. agave, 2Tbsp. brown sugar, maple syrup, etc.)

Blend all of the ingredients together in a bowl or a blender. Optional-reheat the mixture in the microwave or on the stove to get it nice and hot.  

3. Pour one cup of coffee into a mug and top with pumpkin milk. On the tippy top add whipped cream. And sprinkle with a little spice if you want to get real fancy.  

*Adjust the spices according to taste.