Holiday Spirits

December 4, 2016December 3, 2016 ~ Angela ~ Leave a comment

Yup, I said spirits. Cause who couldn’t use a little nip after climbing up and down a ladder putting up your Christmas lights for the second time in a week because after you put them up the first time one of the strings died and you didn’t have a replacement string that matched so you had to go out to buy all new lights and then take the first set down so you could put the new strings up… Ho ho ho.

So after I did all that I put together some simple gifts with a boozy twist. First up – some presents for my annual Christmas lunch with a group of friends. I found these adorable towels and glasses at The Christmas Tree Shops.

Inexpensive Christmas Gifts with a Boozy Twist from Shake Bake and Party #margarita #cocktails

Add a ready-to-drink mini margarita bottle and you have fun, festive gift for under $10!

Inexpensive Christmas Gifts with a Boozy Twist from Shake Bake and Party #margarita #christmas #cocktails

Next up – something that would make a perfect gift for a group of coworkers! I found a box set containing 12 different hot cocoa mixes at Big Lots for $10. Then I headed over to the liquor store and picked out an airplane bottle of liquor to go with each flavor of cocoa.

Inexpensive Coworker Gifts - Spiked Hot Cocoa Kits from Shake Bake and Party #hotcocoa #booze #gifts

It was so much fun coming up with different flavor combinations! Cinnamon cocoa meet honey whiskey; gingerbread makes a perfect pair with Baileys Irish Cream… There are a ton of possibilities! Play your cards right with the booze selections and you can knock out a dozen gifts for less than $5 per person! Your friends at work will thank you when they are sipping on a spiked hot cocoa after a long day of last minute Christmas shopping.

Do you give Christmas gifts to coworkers? I’d love to hear some of your ideas!

Saturday Night Sips – Hot Buttered RumChata

December 20, 2014December 20, 2015 ~ Angela ~ 39 Comments

A few Christmases ago I made a delicious Colonial Hot Buttered Rum recipe that I found on Allrecipes.com. It was so simple (you make it in the slow cooker!) and SO delicious! I served it at my family Christmas dinner and everyone raved about it.

I decided that I wanted to make it again today – it’s Saturday and it’s cold, why not? 😉 I changed it up just a bit though and I am in love with the results! This recipe was awesome before but when you swap out half of the rum for RumChata…

This is FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC!!!!!!!!!!!! I could sit and drink this all day. It warms you up from the inside and the flavor stays on your lips (if you’re into buttered rum kisses).

Hot Buttered RumChata (adapted from Colonial Hot Buttered Rum submitted to Allrecipes.com by Linda Correia)

Ingredients

2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup of butter
1 pinch of salt
8 cups of hot water
2 cinnamon sticks
6 whole cloves
1 cup of Captain Morgan’s Spiced Rum
1 cup of RumChata
Whipped cream and ground nutmeg for garnish (if desired)

Directions

1. Combine the brown sugar, butter, salt and hot water in a 5 quart (or larger) slow cooker. Add cinnamon sticks and cloves.
2. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours.
3. Stir in the Spiced Rum and the RumChata.
4. Ladle into mugs (or awesome cups like the ones shown in the photo from SucreShop), top with whipped cream and ground nutmeg.

*** A note on RumChata curdling: Several commenters have said that they had trouble with the RumChata curdling when added to the hot butter/water mixture. I did not encounter this issue but I have done a little research and think it may be due to temperature. RumChata does contain dairy, which can curdle when added to very hot liquid. My RumChata had not been in the refrigerator (once opened it can be stored at room temperature for six months) and my low setting on my slow cooker doesn’t get super hot. If you are using RumChata that has been in the refrigerator I’d suggest measuring it out and letting it warm up to room temperature. If your water/butter mixture is boiling hot, let it cool some before adding the RumChata. You can also temper the RumChata first by measuring it into a bowl or cup, and then bit by bit pour some of the butter/water mixture into the RumChata, effectively bringing it up to the same temperature before adding it to the slow cooker. A last note – if you have been storing your RumChata at room temperature and it is much older than 6 months it may just be on the verge of going bad. ***

Makes 8 servings.

This recipe can easily be scaled down to make fewer servings. I made half a batch tonight but I wish I had made more! It takes just a few minutes to throw together and once it’s done you can just keep it warm in the slow cooker until every last drop is gone. It’s a perfect drink for Christmas, a New Year’s Eve party or any random winter weekend!

Cheers folks!

Saturday Night Sips – Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cocktail

October 11, 2014October 8, 2014 ~ Angela ~ 6 Comments

Given my obsession with pumpkin flavored booze (aka Pinnacle Pumpkin Pie vodka), I am kind of embarrassed to say I had never tried Fulton’s Harvest Pumpkin Pie liqueur. Until a few weeks ago, when my life changed forever…

Ok, so maybe it wasn’t that dramatic but this stuff is DAMN TASTY! Definitely good enough to drink on its own, right out of ~~the bottle~~ a shot glass. Which I did. But then you know me, I had to mix it with some other stuff too.

The inspiration for this drink was a recipe I saw (where else?) on Pinterest – White Chocolate Pumpkin Snickerdoodles from Sally’s Baking Addiction. All of Sally’s recipes are completely drool-worthy, you should definitely check out her blog! Back to the drink though…

I had the pumpkin pie liqueur, I had the lovely cinnamon infused Rumchata AND I had white chocolate liqueur. Those cookies were just begging to be turned into a cocktail.

Ingredients

2 oz Fulton’s Harvest Pumpkin Pie liqueur
1 oz white chocolate liqueur (I used Drillaud’s Creme de Cacao Blanc)
.5 oz Rumchata
3 oz milk (I used almond milk and it was delicious! I wouldn’t use half & half though – it would be way too heavy combined with the super creamy pumpkin pie liqueur.)
ice

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Shake until chilled, pour and serve!

This drink was every bit as delicious as I hoped it would be, and it is so easy to make. The Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cocktail is definitely a drink to add to your rotation of fall cocktails. I’m not the only one with a “rotation” of cocktails, right? Just agree with me. : )

Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend and an extra special thanks to Krissie and Barbara for so generously giving me a bottle of Fulton’s Harvest Pumpkin Pie! You guys are awesome! Cheers!

Pumpkin Pie Soda Float

September 16, 2014September 15, 2014 ~ Angela ~ 6 Comments

I’m just surrounded by people with good ideas lately. Last week a friend provided the inspiration for my Chocolate Dipped Double Caramel Apple Oreos (you heard me right – go check ’em out if you haven’t already) and then over the weekend my mom and brother gave me the idea for this:

My brother had picked up some Maine Root Pumpkin Pie Soda from Wegmans a few weeks ago and he brought me two bottles. I had them in the fridge, waiting for a day that felt a bit like fall (it was almost 90 in Jersey just last week) and Sunday turned out to be the day.

I had plans to just drink the soda while daydreaming about Halloween until my mom mentioned a conversation she had with my brother about adding some vanilla ice cream to it and turning it into a float. So then I had to go to the grocery store in the middle of Sunday afternoon, which I usually try to avoid (you know how mobbed the grocery store gets the few days before Christmas? That’s how our Wegmans is EVERY WEEKEND) to buy some vanilla ice cream.

I have sadly developed some kind of adult onset lactose intolerance (seriously, I couldn’t have developed an allergy to cauliflower or something?) so I got vanilla almond milk ice cream. You can obviously use any kind of vanilla ice cream – the creamier the better! I didn’t have any on hand, but you could top this off with a drizzle of caramel sauce if you like things to be fantastic.

This was really good, and makes an easy fun treat for the kiddos if you have them. You could also make an adult version by adding a splash of Pinnacle Pumpkin Pie Vodka which, of course, I did. Either way you’ll end up with a glass of cold, creamy, pumpkin-y deliciousness.

Pumpkin Pie Soda Float

Ingredients

Pumpkin Pie Soda
Vanilla Ice Cream (or other flavor of your choosing)
Pinnacle Pumpkin Pie Vodka (optional)
Caramel Sauce (optional for garnish)

Directions

1. Pour chilled Pumpkin Pie Soda into a glass. If using the vodka add a splash and give it a stir.
2. Add as many scoops of ice cream as your little heart desires
3. Top with caramel sauce (optional)

Saturday Night Sips – Fizzy Candy Lemonade

July 26, 2014 ~ Angela ~ 3 Comments

Hi everyone! Sorry for being MIA for the most part this summer – I started grad school and it’s ~~kicking my ass~~ very time consuming. However, after a long day of slogging through lease accounting homework I decided I needed a cocktail. I whipped up something new and had to drop in to share it. So this post is going to be short and sweet, just like the ingredient list for my Fizzy Candy Lemonade!

Fizzy Candy Lemonade

Ingredients:

Sparkling Lemonade
Sprite
Pinnacle County Fair Cotton Vodka
Grenadine
Ice

Directions:

Pour as big a shot of the vodka as you want into a glass. Fill the glass almost the rest of the way with half sparkling lemonade and half Sprite. Give it a stir, add some ice and then pour in a splash of grenadine.

That’s it! Totally simple – no measuring required. And look, it’s ombré! Is ombré still in, or am I too late? I have been out of the loop the past few months… Oh well, it’s pretty, pink, summery, and tastes awesome. What are you waiting for? It’s Saturday night – drink up!

Saturday Night Sips – Classed Up Creamsicle

June 7, 2014June 14, 2014 ~ Angela ~ 8 Comments

I think I may have found my go-to summer cocktail! It is super easy to make and even easier to consume.

A few weeks ago I was feeling rather fancy so I picked up a bottle of blood orange soda at the grocery store. Never had it before, but any kind of orange soda can’t be bad. It’s a swankier version of good old Orange Crush. So of course, when you mix it with some Moscato and a splash of Pinnacle Whipped you get a Classed Up Creamsicle.

Classed Up Creamsicle

Ingredients

Moscato (I used Flip Flop Left Coast Moscato)
Blood Orange Soda (got mine at Wegmans)
Pinnacle Whipped Vodka

Directions

Pour a splash of Pinnacle Whipped into a champagne flute. Fill the glass half way with Moscato, and top off with the blood orange soda. Try not to make everyone jealous with how fabulous you look while sipping this down.

This would make a great brunch cocktail, an al fresco lunch cocktail, a lounging on the patio cocktail, after dinner cocktail… I think you get the hint. Make it. Drink it. Enjoy!

Easter Cake Cocktail

April 13, 2014 ~ Angela ~ 14 Comments

You didn’t think I’d let Easter come and go without giving you at least one holiday-appropriate cocktail, did you? Despite the fact that ~~Mother Nature has obviously lost her flipping mind~~ it is in the 80s today here in Jersey (after being cold enough for winter jackets last week) I am trying to stay in the Spring/Easter spirit. This cocktail definitely put me in the right frame of mind!!

Cocont, lemon, white chocolate…. Hmmmmm. Kind of sounds like a liquid version of my Lemon Coconut Magic Bars, doesn’t it?! They were a hit, and I am sure this will be too!

Easter Cake Cocktail

Ingredients:

1.5 oz Malibu Coconut Rum
1 oz Drillaud White Cocoa Creme de Cacao (or any white chocolate liqueur)
.5 oz Limoncello
2 oz half & half/milk/coconut milk
2 tsp white cake mix (I used Betty Crocker)
ice
Whipped cream and sprinkles for garnish (optional)

Directions:

In a cocktail shaker, combine rum, creme de cacao, limoncello, half & half and cake mix. Stir to incorporate cake mix into the liquid before adding ice and shaking till cold. Pour into glass and top with whipped cream and sprinkles. You could also use coconut flakes as a garnish instead of sprinkles.

* Please note that for these photos I doubled the recipe to fill the mason jar.

Even though I have named this drink after the upcoming holiday, it would make a lovely summer drink as well. You could even blend in some vanilla or coconut ice cream to make a Lemon Coconut Cake Shake!

Do you have a favorite Easter cocktail? Leave a comment letting me know what it is! I am always looking for holiday themed drink recipes! Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend!

Drink Your Pie ~ Caramel Apple Pie Cocktail

September 23, 2013November 20, 2015 ~ Angela ~ 45 Comments

As some of you may remember, last fall I might have had a slight obsession with Pinnacle Pumpkin Pie vodka. I made a Caramel Pumpkin Pietini, a Kahlua Pumpkin Cheesecake Martini, a Pumpkin Pie Frappuccino, a Pumpkin Mudslide AND a Cran-Pumpkin Pop. I was just a teensy bit out of control, but come on – pumpkin pie flavored vodka? How could you not have tons of fun with that?

And now, Pinnacle has done it again with their new flavor – Caramel Apple. I stalked the hell out of this stuff. I checked the online product locator, I called all the local liquor stores to see if they had it, I’d casually “drop by” Total Wine & More every week hoping to run into it in the vodka aisle. Then finally last week, there it was.

Two bottles sat on the shelf. I bought one. I should have bought them both.

I had this recipe planned out in my mind as soon as the new Caramel Apple flavor was announced and just as I suspected the vodka, RumChata and apple cider all blend perfectly in this quintessentially Fall cocktail. In a case of finding exactly what you need when you didn’t even know you needed it, I happened across a bag of Kraft Jet Puffed Caramel & Vanilla SwirlMallows on a toilet paper run to Dollar General. I couldn’t have found a better garnish for this drink if I had been looking for one.

This is some seriously good stuff. It doesn’t even taste like there is alcohol in it. It tastes like liquid caramel apple pie with a little bit of vanilla ice cream mixed in. Is there an award for Cocktail of the Year? Cause this should win it.

Caramel Apple Pie Cocktail

Ingredients

1 cup apple cider*
1 oz Pinnacle Caramel Apple vodka
1 oz RumChata
ice
* Since there is dairy in RumChata, it can curdle if combined with a liquid that has a high citric acid content. Try to get apple cider that does not have citric acid listed as an ingredient.

Directions

Combine cider, vodka and RumChata with a few ice cubes in a cocktail shaker. Shake vigorously for about 30 seconds and strain into a glass. If you wish, garnish with Caramel & Vanilla SwirlMallows. You could also rim the glass with caramel, cinnamon sugar, or both!

The cider does start to separate if you let the drink sit too long, so you might want to have a cocktail stirrer handy. However, this cocktail is so absolutely delicious that it sitting too long really shouldn’t be an issue. 🙂

If you give this one a try (and believe me, you should!) stop back to let me know what you think! And don’t forget to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter and all that other good stuff! The links are at the top right of my page!

Cheers!

~ Angela

Sundae Funday

June 17, 2013July 7, 2013 ~ Angela ~ 9 Comments

Here we are folks, Monday AGAIN. Another weekend has passed by all too quickly and another week looms long on the horizon. Right now you are probably saying to yourself, Monday mornings are bad enough without this chick bringing me down. What gives?

I give! I give you this!

That’s right – I am turning Mondays around! Okay, well maybe just this Monday but it’s a start, right?

One day a few weeks ago, while perusing Malibu Rum’s Facebook page, I discovered the existence of Malibu Sundae. Chocolate ice cream, coconut, rum… This sounded SO GOOD that I had to have it! I hit my usual liquor store which has a huge selection of pretty much everything. They did not have this.

Neither did any of the other liquor stores within a 15 mile radius of my house. I know this because I called them all.

“Hi! I was calling to find out if you carry Malibu Sundae?”

“Malibu Sunday?”

“Sundae like ice cream sundae.”

“Oh, no, we don’t have that.”

I finally found it on the website for a nearby liquor store. They didn’t have it in-store but I could special order it through their site.

And then it arrived. And it was good.

It’s delicious by itself, straight out of the bottle. It’s awesome mixed with Baileys Caramel and half & half. It’s AMAZING in my Tropical Sundae Cocktail!

Tropical Sundae Cocktail

2 oz Malibu Sundae
1 oz Creme de Banana
2 oz half & half
1 oz pineapple juice
1 banana cut into chunks
ice
chocolate syrup, 1 maraschino cherry, 1 pineapple chunk for garnish (optional)

Combine all ingredients except the garnish ingredients in a blender and blend. Swirl chocolate syrup inside the glass, pour and enjoy! Adding a hokey cocktail umbrella ups the cheer factor – especially helpful after another soul-crushing Monday at work.

Cheers!

The Margarita Distribution

May 3, 2013July 7, 2013 ~ Angela ~ 12 Comments

I haven’t been posting much lately because I have been busy taking the online Statistics class straight from the depths of HELL. That’s right my friends, my useless Political Science degree wasn’t enough for me and I’ve been toying with the idea of going to grad school. Before I can apply to any of the programs I am considering, I have to take a few prerequisite classes that my undergrad degree did not afford me. One of these classes is Statistics.

When I thought it would be a good idea to take this class online, essentially having to teach the subject to myself, I apparently grossly overestimated my intelligence. The book might as well be written in Turkish for all I understand of it; the language of Statistics is completely foreign to me. Stem and leaf plots, p-hat, x-bar and z-scores, Chebychev’s Theorem, letters from the Greek alphabet… You can see why I needed to take a break from studying for my final to have a drink.

Since Cinco de Mayo is this weekend, I decided to make it a margarita.

My boyfriend and I went to Chili’s a few weeks ago and I had one of their Mango Margaritas. It was so good I wanted to try to recreate it at home, and I think I came pretty close!

Mango Margarita

1 oz Jose Cuervo Silver Tequila
2 oz Triple Sec
2 oz Monin Mango Syrup
1 Tbsp lime juice

Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker, fill with ice, shake and then pour into a salt-rimmed glass. Use Statistics book as a coaster while you kick back and relax with a yummy tropical margarita. There is a 99% probability that you are really going to enjoy this drink!

Wish me luck on my final tomorrow morning. It’s cumulative, and it seems that I have already forgotten everything except the last two chapters!