Tres Amigas
I want to start off this entry with a confession & a total truth.
I’m totally addicted to RHOC & Shannon Beador is my absolute favorite.
The furious hand motions, the “HOW DARE YOU?”, the all-black outfits, the fun-having, her loud-ass mouth, the blonde hair, THE CONSTANT ORDERING & DRINKING OF TEQUILA – I mean, seriously who wouldn’t want to be her friend?
So, for Cinco de Mayo 2022, I decided to go all-out! Or at least try my best.
I present to you 3 delicious drinks in honor of Shannon Beador & the spirit of Cinco de Mayo – hence, Tres Amigas. (plus that’s a line that Shannon always *screams* and it makes me giggle)
one more.
I also have another truth – Shelley is one of my sweet foodie friends on Instagram & she was one of my very first supporters. She guzzles spicy margs on the daily, rates them, posts amazing pictures & tells us where to find these gems all over Chicago. I stewed my own spicy tequila in honor of her as well – I hope it does her proud ;)
you can check out her Instagram with her array of awesome posts at : @chicago_spicy_margs
Spicy Lime Tequila
I bought a small bottle of Lunazul Blanco Tequila. I love the clean, crisp taste of this tequila as it is – so I knew whatever I added to it wouldn’t compete with the actual taste of the tequila. Plus you gotta take some risks to hopefully get the reward, which is spicy tequilaaaa.
I wanted this concoction to stew for at least a full month, so my husband & I started this process on Saturday, April 2nd. It also happened to be the weekend of the Final Four and my husband is a HUUUUGE UNC fan ((which also means he is a huge Duke hater)) so we definitely used that as an excuse to pop the top off the Lunazul, pour a couple shots ((to create room for the lime peels & jalapenos, DUH)) and take some shots to obviously to give us some good luck for the game – AND CLEARLY IT WORKED CAUSE THEY STOMPED DUKE.
ANYWAY.
Ingredients & Instructions
ANYWAY.
I washed & peeled a lime and dropped the rind directly in the bottle.
I also washed & cut a small jalapeno ((kept the seeds & membrane in)) and dropped 2 slivers of the jalapeño directly into the bottle as well.
Gave it a few shakes, said a lil prayer & put it in a cool, dark cupboard and gave it a shake every week to check the progress. Within a week, a slightly green tinge had seeped into the Blanco tequila and it had a distinct spicy smell – I was so excited!
INGREDIENTS
· 1 750 mL bottle of Lunazul Blanco Tequila
· 1 lime – washed & peeled
· 1 Jalapeno, washed & cut – keep seeds and membrane
INSTRUCTIONS
If you read anything I said above, then obviously you know you need to take a shot or two to create room to put the ingredients in.
Wash the shit, cut the shit, drop in the shit.
Literally that’s it.
Have patience & enjoy!
how can you use this tequila?
This home-brewed spicy tequila would obviously be perfect for a spicy margarita – but let’s not stop there! How about adding a few tablespoons to shredded chicken heating up in a pan for tequila-lime tacos?! How about dribbling in a taste into guacamole for a welcome kick?! I truly feel like the possibilities are endless with this concoction – and other than having to wait for a month, it was super easy!
Lunazul in the house!
Funny enough, at the end of March, Chris took me on a date nite to our favorite Mexican joint – Cantina Laredo. It was their “Full Moon” party that night we attended and they had a Lunazul rep & table set up! It was so fun! I chatted with the rep about my concoction I was planning to start and he invited me to tag Lunazul in my blog entry – felt like a big time win. They served delicious drinks all night & gave out super fun merch!
Fresh Palomas
I don’t know when I found out about these drinks or when it hit me, but I love the combo of fresh grapefruit juice & tequila! You can’t go wrong! As I’ve aged *cough, I’m 35* I’ve realized I can’t handle the insane amount of sugar that is found in margaritas at restaurants. The calories & the hangover just ain’t worth it anymore. ((cue Shannon Beador ordering her Casamigos Blanco with a side of limes & club soda)) Clearly, all this means is that I need to enjoy tequila at home – which means I can have more – or that means I just need to find a fresh alternative as opposed to the commercial sour mix.
Fresh Grapefruit juice is so crisp & tangy – I love it paired with a tall glass of Prosecco too! But a Paloma will literally change your life, I promise you that. Just 4 ingredients, you’ll want to keep this at the ready to enjoy at home for all times! I will go ahead & say that Fresca is the superior choice for this beverage, I am also aware that *supply chain issues* have made it difficult to find the most random items *eyerollllllll* so just do what you can to make this delicious!
Ingredients & Instructions
INGREDIENTS
· 1.5 oz of your favorite Blanco Tequila – I love 1800 Brand
· 2 oz fresh grapefruit juice (or bottled, whatever is easiest!)
· 6 oz Fresca (or Izze Sparkling Grapefruit soda)
· Juice of ½ lime
INSTRUCTIONS
I suggest you chill your tequila before assembling your drink – chilled tequila is PRIMO – but I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that. Use a shaker with a few ice cubes, shake for 15 seconds & set aside.
Use a juicer or hand-squeeze the grapefruit juice over a strainer – the seeds in a grapefruit are smaller & different than a lemon so they may be harder to spot, you definitely don’t want them in your delicious drink!
Find your favorite tall glass, fill with ice.
Pour in your chilled tequila, top with the fresh grapefruit juice, pour over your Fresca soda and squeeze in your lime.
*do you smell that?* It’s summer AND happiness in a glass.
Using a straw, give your drink a stir & take a well-deserved sip!
Ragged Branch Bourbon Margarita
I saved the best for last y’all! & I’ve got the cutest backstory to go along with it! : )
Back in April 2019, Chris and I were traveling thru Charlottesville on our way to Kentucky to celebrate our engagement with my side of the family.
We saw a sign on the highway advertising a brand of Bourbon we had never heard of….in Virginia. It was only a few miles off the interstate, so we decided to make a pit-stop.
The long driveway up to the tasting room hooked us in immediately. It was tucked up on a mountain, a quiet hillside with the most beautiful & spectacular view. Unfortunately, we were there around Noon but we’ve enjoyed many-a-sunsets there as well!
THE VIEWS
First off – shit, it was worth it. & THE VIEWS.
We walked into the tasting room on a random Thursday afternoon and were greeted warmly by David, the master bartender. He showed us the tasting menu, gave us a spiel about the distillery AND the cattle that is raised on-property for beef. We loved every minute of our experience there!
We tasted our bourbons, sat on the porch in the rocking chairs, and chatted excitedly about our next visit. We got in the car and immediately called Chris’ mom and told her we wanted to have our Virginia engagement party there in 6 months. We loved the place so much & told her to take a visit out there to see for herself – obviously she was hooked as well!
Ragged Branch has been such a special place to us the past 3 years and it is our absolute favorite place to go together in Virginia. The house is large & inviting, the bar is a beautiful polished wood, completed with a wrap-around porch along with plenty of rocking chairs to take in the view. Ragged Branch also has a stone patio with a fire pit and more tables and chairs.
Ingredients & Instructions
INGREDIENTS
· 1.5 oz Ragged Branch Signature Bourbon
· ½ oz Grand Marnier
· ½ oz Orange Juice
· 2 oz Sweet & Sour mix
· Lime wedge, squeeze & garnish
INSTRUCTIONS
In a shaker filled with ice, combine bourbon with Grand Marnier, OJ, Sweet & Sour Mix – shake well for 15 seconds.
Strain into a glass rimmed with salt OR a chili-lime rim ((we enjoy either one, but the Trader Joe’s Chili Lime works great for this rim!))
Squeeze in a wedge of lime, give it a stir & enjoy!
Chris’ mom chose a custom drink for us to serve to our guests at our engagement party – the Ragged Branch Bourbon Margarita. It was & still is out of this world! Smooth bourbon, homemade sweet & sour mix, Gran Marnier, a homemade chili-lime rim, and a sweet splash of Orange Juice to tie the knot! This margarita strays far from the norm and whomever you choose to serve it to is lucky indeed!
If you don’t come there for the view or the bourbon, then at least take home some of their delicious beef – raised right there on site! Filets, Tenderloins & Flank Steak are just a few of the cuts we have taken home to enjoy. Bottles upon bottles of bourbon are available for purchase as well. I sincerely hope you’ll check them out! They are also on Instagram @raggedbranch
whoop it up!
I hope you enjoyed this entry with 3 choices of beverage to help you properly celebrate Cinco de Mayo! I had so much fun taking these pictures & obviously doing all the important leg-work of taste-testing along the way and all the research that went into this particular entry *wink* so you’d BETTER be damn grateful! I also hope I’ve inspired a trip up to Charlottesville to see for yourself just how wonderful Ragged Branch Distillery is. Happy Cinco de Mayo my amigas – hope you are all celebrating Mexico’s independence & think of me while you enjoy 1 (or all 3?) of these beverages! Salud!
Thanks for stopping by!
I appreciate you stopping by! If you loved it, I’d love to hear from you.
If you hated it, then same.
Have a great day & look for my next entry!
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