This post is sponsored by Cape Cod Select. By agreeing to take part in their Summer Breeze Recipe Challenge, I received two bags of Cape Cod Select premium frozen cranberries to create original cranberry recipes, including these cranberry lime margaritas. All opinions and pictures are my own.
My husband and I try to make a point of having cocktails together, at home, at least once a month or so. It’s a great opportunity for us to connect, without the kids. Don’t get me wrong, we talk all the time, but it’s like our date night. We don’t go out often, if ever, without our kids. So this particular evening I made cranberry lime margaritas.
Now some may be thinking, gosh, they are always with their kids? They never have date night? We are, pretty much, always with our kids and that’s by choice. When we do have a date it’s for lunch. So I will often make an appetizer like pimiento cheese pinwheels or warm cranberry spread on a Friday or Saturday and we will enjoy cocktails while we make dinner.
My husband and I both like cranberry so this cocktail was really a no brainer. Especially since it’s summer right now and, well, margaritas are synonymous with summer, right? You maybe wondering why I went to all the fuss of blending the cranberries rather than using juice. Well, by making a sort of puree with the frozen Cape Cod Select cranberries it made the drink a bit thicker, almost like a frozen drink consistency, but not quite. I didn’t want a frozen drink, I wanted one on the rocks. Another reason I blended the frozen lime juice concentrate to thin it out a bit.
So, if you know anything about making margaritas, you know they are made with triple sec, which is an orange liqueur. I substituted orange juice. Sometimes just adding a liqueur only adds more alcohol. The juice adds more flavor and acidity, therefore you need a bit of water to cut the acid. To make the cranberry puree, place the cranberries in the bowl of a food processor with about a tablespoon of water. Blend until liquified, adding a bit more water if necessary. Strain through a mesh sieve and continue with recipe as written.
A few fun acts about cranberries:
- Cranberries are one of the fruits native to North America. Some others include blueberries and concord grapes, among others.
- Cranberries have small pockets where air seeps into that allows them to float. That’s why bogs are flooded for harvesting.
- Cranberries do not grow in water.
- Cranberries grow in beds layered with sand, peat and gravel commonly known as bogs, or marshes.
- One cup to cranberries is about 50 calories.
- Cranberries are typically in season from October until December.
What makes Cape Cod Select cranberries so special is that they are a small, women-owned family business. I love supporting small family businesses. This family business is now in the fourth generation and they have been growing cranberries on their 800 acre farm for more than three-quarters of a century. They also focus on sustainability by powering their facilities primarily with solar power. Want to learn more about Cape Cod Select? Find them on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest or their website. Looking to purchase Cape Cod Select premium cranberries in your neck of the woods? Find their store locator on their website. Or order the frozen jewels directly.
Ingredients
- 2 cups Cape Cod Select premium frozen cranberries, pureed and strained
- 1 (12 ounce) container frozen limeade
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup orange juice
- 3/4 cup tequila
- Lime wedges and Cape Cod Select premium frozen cranberries for garnish
- Sugar
Instructions
- In a food processor blend cranberry puree (that has been strained) with frozen limeade concentrate until smooth and blended.
- With motor running add orange juice.
- Pour mixture into a pitcher and add water and tequila. Stirring to combine.
- Run a lime wedge around rim of glass and dip in sugar to coat rim.
- Fill glass with ice and pour cranberry mixture over ice.
- Garnish with lime wedge and cranberry.
I absolutely love it when I can educate my kids about food. My two teenage boys have never had sorbet, or sore bet as they first called it. That was the first lesson, how to say it correctly – it’s sore bay. The second lesson was what it is. I explained that sorbet is a palate cleanser and can be served before or after the main course. I like to serve it before. It’s essentially a fruit ice, in this case a lemon sorbet, served cold before a warm meal. The difference in temperature wakes up the taste buds allowing a more palatable experience when dining.
So you may be wondering about the difference between sorbet, sherbet, ice cream and Italian ice. How is it different? A few ways. First, sorbet is dairy-free and gluten-free. There are 3 ingredients, fruit, sugar and water. So, right there, because there’s no dairy makes a big difference from ice cream and sherbet. If you’ve ever had Italian ice you know it’s chunky with ice chips, sorbet is not. Sorbet is smooth and melts lusciously in your mouth. There are no artificial colors in sorbet, but there are in the syrups used in Italian ice. The textures of all I’ve mentioned are very different too.
