Thirsty Thursday: Whiskey Cranberry Slushies!

It's safe to say that it's officially the "Holiday" season.  We just passed Halloween, Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and then the whole December fiasco follows right up on its heels.  There a more holidays in the last quarter of the year than we quite know what to do with.

I know, however, what makes those holidays go down a little easier - ALCOHOL!  That's right, kids, I'm endorsing imbibing to help keep those holidays bright.  It's with that in mind that when I saw Food Network Magazine's recipe for Whiskey-Cranberry Slushies, I knew we had to jump right in.  It's November 3rd, and there's no time like the present, right??

Super simple, just grab your ingredients...

Mix all the liquids (only 3 cups of cranberry juice) together, including your juice from the limes, and put in a large, shallow tuperware container.

Take out some cranberries and chop them up.  Do you know I've never tasted a fresh from the store cranberry before??  Wow, are they bitter!  I cringe to think how much sugar is added to make these even palatable!!

Then, shove it in the freezer, taking it out to stir evey half hour or so to keep it from truly solidifying. Give it a good five hours, depending (I suppose) on how potent your freezer is vs. how much whiskey you added.  This step seemed to take forever.  The slush took a long time to form, but then BAM!!!  It was ready right on schedule.  Who knew, right?

Once you have a nice slushie formed, fill up your glasses, top up with chopped cranberries, and a sprig o' mint go garnish.  Now, because I was having slush issues, and was concerned about having enough, I did some chopped ice too.  Couldn't hurt, maybe helped?  Doesn't matter.  The drinks were delicious!  I didn't add the remaining cranberry juice as the recipe called for, just filled with the slush and these drinks were amazing!  So much so that I'll be making them again for a big party.  The honey whiskey really helped, too.  I think that was Thomas' favorite part!

After a few, I'm sure you'll be racing the angel to the top of that Christmas tree!

On a PS note, remember how bummed I was about my mini caramel apples?  Well, we tried them again for our fancy dinner, and served them straight out of the pot.  Result?  Caramel still fell off the apple and more stuck to the plate than was actually eaten.  At least they looked cute, right??

Thirsty Thursday: Cran-Raspberry Fizz

This drink is so ridiculously easy (and delicious), that I suggest you run to the store during lunch today and pick up the (short list of) ingredients!

I got to use my mandoline on this, which always makes me happy, but (more importantly), there's a raspberry sorbet in here, so it's crisp AND refreshing!  We also added some Malibu and some citrus rum, to make it more adult, but this would be great for a party of all ages as a punch.

Go get some fun cups while you're out, too.  These definitely deserve pretty glasses, or crazy straws.  Either way, this one's a winner!!

Thirsty Thursday: Quick and Sleazy Edition

The Horny Goat!

This week is just as quick and sleazy as one could hope - a Horny Goat.  I don't name them, I just share them.  This is another recipe(*ish) from my (bloody) Aunt Mary.  See why we love when she comes to visit??  The information she departs is truly invaluable!

Today, we are taking equal parts of a "lemon lime" carbonated beverage (Sprite Zero) and cranberry juice (Diet Ocean Spray).  I filled half the glass with ice, then about two-thirds with this concoction, and then I topped it off with a citrus rum and Caribbean rum (equal parts).  The first time I made it, I did half alcohol and half non-alcohol and Thomas claimed it was too strong.  The original recipe also didn't ask for Malibu, just Limon, but when you have both, why not try it?!

Well, ladies and gents, it's five o'clock in the East Coast, so here's a cheers to you, and to the rest of you as you make your way home from work and on to the couch to kick off the mini-weekend.  For those of you on Summer Break (lucky ducks), start drinking now, and save a little for us to join in on the weekend!

Cheers!!