Ohhhh, so close I can taste it. Those warm summer nights, sittin’ on the deck, watching the kids play and sipping on a wee summer cocktail and chatting with my husband. We. Are. Almost. There.
Except today, though, it’s snowing. We’re in that mid-spring weather that tricks you for like a week with warm sun and 70 degrees and waits til you’re all complacent and maybe even plant a little flower and then BAM! Your flower gets killed dead and buried under 2 feet of snow. Such is life in Colorado in April.
So I’m actually still drinking these, I’m just sitting in my basement with four layers of clothes, mixing up summer cocktails and dreaming of somewhere tropical. It’s almost the same.
1.) GRAPEFRUIT BOURBON MARTINI
I think this one’s my favorite. I can’t explain why I love me some ruby red grapefruit juice, but not actual real grapefruit. Even with sugar. In a martini, though? Sweetened with a little honey? And the bourbon, instead of your usual vodka. It all works. Also, holding a martini glass always makes me feel all fancy — like Chris and I should be making appointments for tennis at the club. Martini-holding people do not fish the last coffee filter out of the garbage so they can try to reuse it. They have people for that.
2.) SPARKLING PINEAPPLE COCKTAIL
The Opening of Trader Joe’s in Colorado last year made me weak in the knees and a little teary, I confess. And I may still have been celebrating in December when I bought 7 boxes of dark chocolate peppermint Jo-Jos (seriously. Try them.) We marked the occasion earlier in the year by inventing a cocktail using only ingredients we bought at Trader Joe’s. But the good news for the TJ-deprived is that none of these ingredients are unusual, and you can buy them all at regular grocery and liquor stores.
Branch out from margaritas this Cinco de Mayo! This summer cocktail is lots of fun — it’s got a little bit of a kick from the jalapeño but it cools off quickly, thanks to the ice and mango juice. And you can adjust the spiciness but including the seeds for a hotter drink, or scraping them out for a more mild version.
Oh, those Mason jars. You really can do anything with them. Bake a cake or wrap a present or mix a cocktail or…lots of things, I’m told. I’m a little afraid to admit I’m a mom and a Pinterest-addict and yet the only thing I use Mason jars for is mixing my drinks. Make of that what you will. These are my go-to drink, though, and you can’t go wrong with a good margarita.
Ok. So. I’ve got the drinks. Just need the weather and a kiddie pool to dip my toes in. Bring on summer!
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