Inspired Living...: Recipe Monday! 5 Great cocktails to make this week!

An ode to summer! We can't get enough of the heat, long lazy hazy vacation days. The beach. The lake. Good friends and doing absolutely nothing! This week we feature 6 great cocktails to try this week. With fresh seasonal ingredients these drinks are sure to become some of your summer favourites.

xoxo daniela & paulina

Peach Old Fashioned

Ingredients

2 ripe yellow peaches
2 tablespoons sugar
6 sprigs thyme, plus more for garnish
4 dashes of bitters
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
6 ounces bourbon

Directions

Quarter peaches and grill until charred. Muddle sugar, thyme, bitters, and lime juice in a cocktail shaker. Add bourbon, and divide among 4 ice-filled glasses. Garnish with peach section and thyme sprigs.

Summer Sangria

Summer Sangria

Today looks a lot like cookouts, pool parties, fireworks, burgers, and salads all under the hot summer sun. It’s just missing one thing—Sangria. Cheers to a festive Fourth!

Sangria

Serves 4-6 people

1 bottle of dry red wine

1 c. freshly squeezed orange juice

1/3 c. sugar

1/3 c. tequila

1 orange, sliced

1/2 lb. (8 oz.) strawberries, sliced

1 lime, sliced

sparkling water

1. Add about half of the orange juice into a sauce pan with the sugar. Cook on medium heat and whisk until sugar dissolves. Allow to cool completely. Stir in remaining orange juice.

2. Pour wine into pitcher. Add tequila and cooled orange juice. Stir.

3. Add sliced fruit and place in refrigerator for at least 4 hours before serving.

4. Serve with ice and sparkling water. Optional—garnish with lime or orange wedge.

Pomegranate, Blueberry, Matcha Tea Slushy Recipe

INGREDIENTS

2 Tablespoons of high quality Matcha green tea powder
1 or 2 Tablespoons of raw honey or the sweetener of your choice (adjust sweetness to taste)
1 cup (140g) frozen blueberries
½ cup (120ml) 100% pomegranate juice (no sugar added)
200 g of ice cubes

INSTRUCTIONS

Briskly whisk the 2 Tablespoons of Matcha powder into ½ cup of hot water. Add sweetener of choice and stir until completely incorporated. Set aside until cool.
Puree the frozen blueberries, pomegranate juice, prepared Matcha tea and ice cubes in a high powered blender until smooth.
Serve immediately.

NOTES

This is equally delicious made into Popsicles, just fill a mold with the slushy mixture and freeze.

Preparation time: 10 minute(s)

Number of servings (yield): 4

Eldeflower Champagne Cocktail

(sourced from zested.wordpress.com)

Elderflower Champagne Cocktail

(sourced from zested.wordpress.com)

Fill a tumbler with ice. Fill three-quarters of the glass with dry champagne or prosecco. Add thinly sliced cucumber and fresh mint. Top off with St-Germain.

Fruity Frozen Vodka Slushi Recipe

Frozen Vodka Slush

Recipe Notes: Prepare this recipe a day or two in advance so the slush can freeze and be extra delicious when served. You also may want to double the recipe -yes, it’s that tasty- so pick up 2x’s the ingredients when you’re at the market!

Ingredients:

8 cups water

3 cups white sugar

juice of 2 lemons

juice of 2 oranges

one 48oz can of pineapple juice

one 12oz can frozen Minute Maid grapefruit juice

one 12oz can of frozen Minute Maid lemonade

26oz Vodka - I prefer Ketel One

Method:

First, make a simple syrup. Boil 8 cups water and stir in 3 cups white sugar. Continue to stir until the sugar incorporates with the water, for about 15 minutes. Let cool.

In a separate bowl, combine the juice of 2 lemons, 2 oranges, 1 48oz can of pineapple juice, 1 12oz can frozen Minute Maid grapefruit juice, 1 12oz can of frozen Minute Maid lemonade and 26oz Vodka.

Once the simple syrup is cooled, add the juice/vodka mix to the syrup. Stir and transfer into an air-tight tupperware container(s) with lid(s). Freeze.

When your guests arrive, stir the slush and fill the glass half-full with frozen vodka slush. Fill the rest of the glass with diet 7-Up. Enjoy!

Blackberry Sage Cooler

sourced from scalingbackdog.com)

Blackberry sage cooler

(sourced from scalingbackdog.com)

Ingredients:

15 medium sage leaves

4 tablespoons sugar

1 cup water

8 ounces of blackberries

Method:

Bring the water and sugar to a boil over high heat just until sugar dissolves. Crush the sage leaves with the back of a spoon and add to the syrup mixture and set aside to let the sage infuse for 15 minutes and then remove the herbs.

Meanwhile puree the blackberries in the blender and then strain the mixture through a fine strainer.

To serve place a tablespoon of the blackberry puree in the bottom of a glass, add a tablespoon of the sage syrup and top off with 8 ounces of club soda.

sourced from scalingbackdog.com)

sourced from scalingbackdog.com)

Toasted Coconut Vanilla Limeade

(sourced from the kitchy kitchen)

For 4 cups

1 cup lime juice (about 10 limes), fresh squeezed

1 cup sweet coconut flakes, packed

2 1/2 cups hot water

1 1/2 cups coconut water (optional, just use regular water if you prefer)

1/4 cup agave nectar

1/2 vanilla bean, scraped (or 1 teaspoon vanilla paste)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly toast the coconut on a baking sheet, thinly spread out, for about 5-7 minutes, stirring once halfway through. Juice the limes and put all of the used halves into a bowl, along with the coconut and vanilla bean (or vanilla paste), and cover with 2 cups of hot water. Let it sit for about 10 minutes. The hot water pulls all of the natural oils out of the lime skins and adds so much flavor. Strain into a blender and add the coconut water, lime juice, and agave nectar. Blend until just incorporated. Pour into a pitcher and chill in the fridge until ready to serve.