Margarita La Reina Cocktail Recipe

A cocktail fit for a queen!
This recipe is adapted from a Margarita La Reina served at Dona Tomas Restaurant in Oakland. It is perfect served with Mexican food!

Margarita La Reina
Yields 1 serving

Ingredients
Coarse salt
4 tablespoons simple syrup
Juice of 2 medium limes
5 counts silver tequila
2 counts Cointreau liqueur
1 lime slice for garnish

Directions
Salt the rim of a chilled margarita glass. In a pint glass filled with cubed ice, combine the syrup, lime juice, tequila, and Cointreau. Cover with a bar shaker and shake vigorously for 5 seconds. Strain into the prepared glass. Garnish with the lime wedge and enjoy.

Pomegranate Martinis and Margaritas

The Problem with Pomegranates
Pomegranates. I’ve got a lot of them. When I was a kid, pomegranates weren’t the craze they are now and they could be hard to find. I remember my grandmother would get so excited when we were over and she had a pomegranate that we could open and pick apart.

I have always liked pomegranates but they were kind of a one time deal. Once I ate one I was good. I didn’t need to have a stash. These days, thanks to the wonderful people of POM, if I need the seeds or juice for any recipe, I can go downstairs and grab some anytime.

Flashback about 3 years when we bought our current house. Among the various trees that came with the property was a rather funky looking pomegranate tree (though frankly it looks more like a large shrub). We pruned it and watered it and basically left it alone. The next year we got a couple pomegranates before they split. Last year was the same. This year? Three bushels. I have pomegranates coming out of my ears.

So, what to do with them? We ate some. We froze some. We gave some away. Our chickens get to eat the ones that split and spread seeds all over the ground but we still have too many to handle.

I don’t want to waste them especially since my kids and I braved the 3 inch spikes on the branches to pick them. (Note to self: When picking pomegranates, wear chain mail to prevent turning your person into a pincushion. We were a sad looking bunch when we were finished.) So, I have decided we will drink them. Preferably with alcohol (for me anyway). It’s medicinal. Gotta make sure those pokes heal and don’t get infected.
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Red Wine Sangria

Red Wine Sangria This year, my sister started a cookbook club for the two of us and some of our foodie friends. It’s been a blast. We choose a cookbook, test recipes for about a month, and then gather with all five families to share the foods we liked best. It can be a frightening display of indulgence, but great fun. Even the kids, ages 6 to 17, get into it and offer their reviews. We broaden horizons and push boundaries. How many eight year olds will proclaim the Country Pate was their favorite part of the meal? Awesome.

We’ve done The Lee Brothers Southern Cookbook, Gordon Hammersly’s Bistro Cooking at Home (A must-have for your library.), and Arabesque by Claudia Rodan.

Our next dinner is over Labor Day weekend. This time we want to grill, since Labor day marks the end of Summer fun. The kids go back to school, and Fall craziness ensues. (And don’t get me started on the Holidays…there are only 117 days until Christmas which means all the big chain stores will be putting up their decorations next week.) Anyway, we couldn’t quite come up with a book specifically on grilling so we went with a chef instead…Bobby Flay.

I didn’t love this pick mainly because my inner snob is put off by the fact that he is everywhere. I put him in the same category as Rachel Ray. Over exposed. As I started looking through his cookbooks however, I was reminded what got him all that exposure. Dude knows his stuff, and a lot of his stuff is very tasty and interesting which for me is key. I like different. BBQ Duck and Sauteed Shiitake Mushroom filled Blue Corn Pancakes with Habanero Sauce? Um, yes, please. Read more…