Five Great Drinks for Summer Entertaining
Faced with planning an upcoming, outdoor summer party, I spent about an hour on the internet a few days ago in search of some festive summer drinks. I couldn't believe how many great sounding recipes I encountered. Most of them were entirely new to me.
To see if the drinks that sounded good also tasted good, I put together and sampled about fifteen in my home. I then tried an almost equal number in a friendly area pub over the course of about a week. Interestingly, every drink that sounded good tasted good; every one, without exception. But, these five really stood out.
I found the Rasmopolitan at http://www.liclubs.com. It's a combination of 1 ounce of Stoli, a half ounce of Triple Sec, a half ounce of lime juice, and enough cranberry juice to fill a tall glass. Just mix it, strain it if you wish, and garnish with a lime wedge.
A drink called Sex on the Beach also comes from liclubs.com (a sight I wound up bookmarking). By putting together a half ounce of peach schnapps, a half ounce of vodka, and an ounce each of pineapple juice and cranberry juice you get a very refreshing drink. I shook mine over ice and fell in love after the first sip.
Dreamsmixer.com had a simple but great recipe for a drink they appropriately call a Creamy Root Beer Float. Fill a frosted beer mug or similar vessel with ice. Add about 2 ounces of Dr. Mcgillicuddy's Vanilla Schnapps, then add root beer to nearly fill the glass, and drop in a teaspoon of cream.
It must be apparent by now that I'm not a beer and shot kind of guy. In fact, I'm not much of a drinker at all, but I really enjoyed the Strawberry Colada a local bartender fixed for me, following the recipe I found at frontgate.com; one and a quarter ounce of light rum, an ounce of pina colada mix, an ounce of strawberry daiquiri mix, and 1/4 of an ounce of pineapple juice. After blending and pouring, an orange slice and a cherry make an attractive, great tasting garnish.
I wanted an alcohol free drink for the party, and boy did I find a good one. On recipelink.com I chanced upon a drink called the Butterfinger, named after the candy bar which is part of the recipe. To make this sure crowd pleasing treat, freeze a bowl, a Butterfinger, and a sixteen once glass for at least a half hour. Longer is better. When you are ready to serve it, crush the Butterfinger...it's easier if you do so while it's wrapped, and put it to the side while you mix 2 cups of vanilla ice cream and a quarter cup of milk in the frozen bowl. When the ice cream and milk mixture is soft and smooth, stir in 2/3 of the crushed Butterfinger pieces...that's what the recipe says...I used the whole candy bar and had no regrets. Pour into the frozen glass, and serve with a spoon.
I would be very surprised if you and your family or guests don't enjoy these drinks as much as I and those who joined me in my taste tests did. If I'm wrong, I can promise you'll find lots of alternatives to suit all tastes on the internet.
Daniel Z. Kane is a veteran college Dean who normally writes about online college degrees , financial aid, and online colleges .
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