Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween! from I Heart Sangria! My plan for tonight is to go out trick-or-treating with my husband and son, the gladiator (who knows where that came from?), and to take along some Orange Sangria in a to-go cup. The weather should be clear and crisp tonight, perfect for a walk through the neighborhood.  I'm encouraging the gladiator to get lots of Twix bars although he is more interested in Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.  Have a safe and fun Halloween!

Balsamic Marinated Olives

The perfect accompaniment to a cold, fruity glass of sangria has to be marinated olives. Here's a recipe that is absolutely delicious.

BALSAMIC MARINATED OLIVES

2 8-ounce jars ripe olives, drained
2 7-ounce jars kalamata olives, drained
2 7-ounce jars pimiento-stuffed olives, drained
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

Combine all ingredients. Cover and chill for at least 8 hours. Allow to come to room temperature before serving. Serve with slotted spoon.

Purple Party Sangria

There is no doubt about this recipe - you use this when you are going to be surrounded by adults who want to party hard and have a very loose definition of what qualifies as "sangria."  Even using a loose definition, however, this one is an unusual, colorful and surprisingly tasty drink (although I haven't personally mixed up a batch since college).  And, of course, you can customize it with whatever flavor of Kool Aide you like.  But grape-flavor and a sort of neon purple seems just right at Halloween.

PURPLE PARTY SANGRIA

2 packets grape Kool Aide
3 quarts water
2 cups sugar
1 750 ml bottle white wine
1 liter ginger ale

In a large punch bowl, mix Kool Aide, water and sugar until sugar dissolves.  After sugar is dissolved, add a block of ice.  Then, mix in white wine.  Add ginger ale just before serving.  Makes 30 servings.

Try making your ice block using washed-out surgical gloves that you've filled with water or ginger ale and frozen in advance!   Creepy!

Quick, Easy & Cheap Boxed Wine Sangria!

While I Heart Sangria! previously gave a great recipe for low-cost Boxed Wine Sangria, I just came across something quicker, easier and cheaper on the market: "Box Set Sangria" at only $12.99 for a 3 liter box. That's 4 bottles of wine. You can't buy 4 bottles of cheap wine for $12.99!

So how does it taste? Pretty darn good! The ingredients are wine and "natural flavors" and I'm assuming its heavy on the natural flavors. The color is dark and purple-y so it has a red wine base with some fruity, citrus notes to it. Straight up, it tasted fine. With some club soda, it definitely improved. By floating a few orange slices in it, I easily achieved a more-than-acceptable sangria that I would be happy to serve at a big party. I'm sure that if this boxed sangria was decanted into a pitcher filled with fruit slices and allowed to chill for a few hours, it would be close to fabulous.

I'm adding Box Set Sangria to my list of quick, easy & cheap sangrias!


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Blood Red Sangria

Another great Halloween sangria! This one comes from the Drink of the Week blog and is called "Blood Red Sangria."  It uses dark fruits and warm honey, along with the traditional sangria ingredients, to produce a sweet and ruby-hued drink fit for any blood-thirsty ghoul.

BLOOD RED SANGRIA

1 bottle red wine
12 oz. club soda
2 oz. cognac
3 tbs. warmed honey
4 sliced figs
1/2 cup red or black grapes, halved
1/2 cup pitted cherries (can use frozen if necessary)
ice

Combine the fruit in a large glass bowl, adding the cognac and honey until the honey is dissolved. Pour in the wine and stir gently. Refrigerate for a minimum of two hours and as long as over night.

When ready to serve, pour the mixture into a glass pitcher. (Some people prefer to strain out the fruit at this point and then add it at the end to individual servings.) Add the club soda and stir gently. Pour sangria into wine or highball glasses that are filled with ice.

Blog Action Day '09: Climate Change

Today is Blog Action Day - a day for bloggers throughout the world to unite and wield their "blogging" power by discussing one topic important to everyone. And this year that topic is Climate Change.

So while this blog is all about sangria, I'm here to tell you how we sangria-fans can make a difference in the world and have a positive impact on global climate change. And the one very simple thing we can do? Drink organic wines! More specifically, drink "biodynamic" wines.

"Organic" wines are made from 100% organically grown ingredients and carries the USDA's organic seal. They contain only naturally occurring sulfites. As the article Salute Organic Wines on The Daily Green website explains, "Biodynamic" wines go beyond organic:

Biodynamic is based on the precise observation and an attempt at balance of nature, a concept originated by the early 20th-century Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner. So, biodynamic wine is not only 100% organic, in addition, the grower has gone beyond to try to bring the farming process more closely in tune with nature. For instance, biodynamic wine growers may make their own compost and/or watch the stars and planets to time what they do.

The good news? Organic wines are everywhere, even at your grocery store. And biodynamic wines are not too hard to find either. Need help coming up with some good organic wines? Check out this article on The Daily Green: 6 Good Organic Wines for Under $25.

So enjoy your sangria and save the planet at the same time by drinking organic wines!

Boxed Wine Sangria

You're having a party and you want to make a lot of sangria, you want it to taste good, and hopefully, be economical (i.e., cheap).  Here's a great recipe using boxed wine which is not only reasonably priced but is also very tasty.

BOXED WINE SANGRIA

1 1/2 cups brandy
1 cup Grand Marnier
1 cup orange juice, fresh-squeezed if possible
3/4 cup lemon juice, fresh-squeezed if possible
1 cup sugar
1 3-liter box red wine, preferably Merlot or Shiraz
4 peaches, thinly sliced
48 oz. club soda, chilled

In a 2-gallon container, mix brandy, Grand Marnier, orange juice, lemon juice, and sugar.  Stir gently until sugar dissolves.  Add wine and peaches and stir gently.  Refrigerate for 1 to 4 hours.

To serve, pour 1/3 mixture into large pitcher half-filled with ice.  Add 16 oz. club soda.  Pour into glasses.  When pitcher is empty, repeat with 1/3 mixture and 16 oz. club soda two more times.

Makes about 30 servings.

Another Orange Sangria

Here's a beautiful, citrus-y, orange sangria, again perfect for fall and the Halloween season. This one is nicely spiked with sparkling wine.

ANOTHER ORANGE SANGRIA

1 gallon white wine
2 cups Triple Sec
12 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 cup lemon juice
2 oranges, thinly sliced
2 lemons, thinly sliced
2 bottles champagne or sparkling wine

Mix all ingredients, except champagne, in large pitcher. Chill for at least 2 hours. Add champagne just before serving. Makes 20-25 servings.

Black Sangria

I just love the name of this sangria - Black Sangria! And could there be a more perfect sangria for October and Halloween?  This is a recipe from the ever-popular and never-fail Silver Palate Cookbook.

BLACK SANGRIA

1 1/2 cups mixed cherries, blackberries and black grapes
1 strip of peel from a whole lemon
1/2 cup strongly brewed black tea, warm
1 bottle dry red wine
chilled club soda, to taste

1. Place the fruits and lemon peel in a 2 1/2-quart pitcher.
2. Add the tea and enough wine to cover the fruits. Chill the remaining wine.
3. Before serving, pour the remaining wine in the pitcher. Stir, and add ice and club soda to taste.

4 to 6 portions

Orange Sangria

October is here!  This month at I Heart Sangria! will be dedicated to all things Halloween!  To start with, a fabulous Orange Sangria.  I have made this excellent sangria so many times, I've lost track.  Any every time I make it, I'm asked for the recipe.  This is a nice sangria to serve in October when Halloween is on the way, citrus fruits are coming in season and orange is the perfect color!

ORANGE SANGRIA

2 medium oranges, sliced
1/4 cup sugar
2 cups orange juice (fresh-squeezed is best)
1 bottle white wine
1/2 cup Cointreau

1.  Place orange slices from 1 orange in bottom of large glass pitcher.  Reserve slices from second orange for garnish.


2.  Add sugar to pitcher and gently mash sugar into orange slices with wooden spoon.  Stir in orange juice, wine and Cointreau.  Cover and chill for an hour to overnight.

3.  Serve sangria in glasses over ice.  Using reserved orange slices, float an orange slice in each glass for garnish.