Throwback Thirsty

Margaritas! Throw 'em back and do enjoy!

National Margarita Day is February 22 so relax into the weekend by celebrating with these margarita recipes from a few vacation spots beautifully situated around the Caribbean--make them at home and dream of frosty drinks in a temperate clime rather than just frigid weather. 

Frozen Tamarind Margarita (shown above)

From the Hyatt Regency Aruba

The classic Mexican cocktail is paired with a local Aruban ingredient–tamarind–resulting in this fabulous refresher. Aruba.Hyatt.com.

Ingredients:  

2 oz Jimador Blanco tequila

1 oz tamarind juice

1 oz lime juice

Directions:

Blend with a scoop of ice and pour into a Margarita glass with or without a salted rim.

Coconut Margarita

From Copamarina Beach Resort

Go coconuts on the beach or poolside at the Copamarina Beach Resort in Guanica, Puerto Rico with this crazy concoction. CopaMarina.com.

Ingredients:

2 oz. Patron Silver Tequila

1 oz. Malibu Coconut Rum

.50 oz. St. Germaine

3 oz. Fresh Coconut Water

Drizzle of Coco Lopez

Fresh Vanilla Bean (Scraped)

1 Fresh Lime Wedge Squeezed (to serve)

Directions:

Mix Patron, Malibu, St. Germaine, Coconut Water and vanilla bean in a shaker. Pour into a glass rimmed with toasted coconut. Drizzle with Coco Lopez and squeeze in a fresh lime wedge. Garnish with a lime peel. 

Sirenarita

From Isla Verde Resort

Creamy coconut and sour mix headline the Sirenarita at the family-friendly beachfront property, Isla Verde Resort, in San Juan which is made to order at any of the resort’s bars. Book now at SJCourtyard.com. 

Ingredients:

¾ oz Cream of Coconut

1 ¼ oz Tequila

1 ¼  oz Triple Sec

2 oz Sour Mix

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a shaker. Garnish glass with a slice of lime and orange. Such a delicious sip!
 

Rum Rita (shown above)

From La Concha Resort

At this San Juan beach hotel there is a rum version of the marg. Go to LaConchaResort.com for more information. In the meanwhile, the recipe for the Rum Rita is below!

Ingredients:

1 ½ oz Don Q añejo

½ oz Grand Marnier

1 oz Lemon juice

1 oz simple syrup

Salt (rim)

Preparation:

Shake up all of the ingredients and pour into a salt-rimmed glass. Garish with a slice of lime and get to know the lovely Rita.  

Marvelous Mole

The granddaughter of Texan Margarita Sames (who is rumored to have invented the Margarita) first taught me how to make a basic version of this recipe with chicken, peanuts and chocolate. I’ve dispensed with the jar of Mexican mole she uses as well as the fistfuls of peanuts. Reese’s peanut butter cups are solely my own idea, based on the 50's tradition of cooking with commercial products such as Coca-Cola for baked beans and Velveeta cheese for just about anything. Smoky chipotles add a delicious fuel to the fire.

Marvelous Mole

Serves 4/entrée

Ingredients
1 rotisserie chicken, shredded to a rag and a bone
1 tablespoon-ish olive oil

1 large onion, sliced thin; a Vidalia or yellow onion is nice
2 cloves minced garlic

1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes, coarsely chopped (save juice for another use)

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

2 tablespoons finely chopped chipotle peppers in adobo sauce with 1 tablespoon adobo sauce from the can

2 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
1 stick cinnamon
Several Reese’s peanut butter cups
Some Jif crunchy peanut butter

Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Sautee onion and garlic until yellowish. Add all the ingredients (except chicken, Reese’s cups and peanut butter) and simmer about 7 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer about 10-15 minutes more, blending in Reese’s cups and peanut butter. Throw in shredded chicken until heated through, about 10 minutes more. Add salt and pepper to taste, remove the cinnamon stick; serve on top of corn chips in an appropriate vessel.