Cue the mariachi band! With Cinco de Mayo coming up, we have been dreaming about delicious margaritas! We celebrate Cinco de Mayo in our household with a yummy drink in hand and a plate full of chips, fresh salsa, & homemade guacamole. With the weather really getting warm, there’s no better way to enjoy this drink than on your patio or deck.
This year, I’ve decided to branch out from my classic margarita recipe and try a few other favorite sweet flavors: blood orange and pineapple. These juicy fruits are excellent companions to the lime & tequila flavors. They also pair well with your favorite carnitas tacos or taco salad, too!
Ingredients in a margarita
Margaritas require lime juice, Tequila, orange liqueur, simple syrup, and a salt rim. Fresh squeezed limes are best, but you can use lime juice found at the grocery store. Margaritas are very easy to make at home! I omit the simple syrup when making variations of margaritas because the added juice contains plenty of sugar for me. If you find you’d like your margarita sweeter, add more simple syrup or fruit juice! If you’d like your margarita less boozy, add less tequila!
Equipment needed to make margaritas
- Use a small plate or very shallow bowl to put the rim salt.
- Cutting Board
- Lime or citrus juicer
- Margarita glasses – I use these recycled glass margarita glasses
- Shaker
- Jigger or small liquid measuring cup
- Pitcher, if making a large batch for a party
How to make margaritas
- Wash the fruit. Slice the limes in half, and slice a wheel of lime for your garnish.
- Pour some kosher salt onto a small plate. Use a lime half to wet the rim, making 2-3 passes around the glass. Dip the glass into the salt, and swirl it a little to coat the rim. Lift and set aside.
- Juice your limes (and oranges, if using a variation).
- In a shaker, add the lime and other fruit juice (if using), Tequila, orange liqueur, and simple syrup (see notes), then fill the shaker with ice. Seal and shake for 10-15 seconds.
- Pour shaker contents, ice included, into the prepared margarita glass. Garnish with preferred fruit garnish, and enjoy!
Delicious hispanic-inspired desserts
Don’t forget dessert! If you’re looking for more ways to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, take a look at these amazing hispanic-inspired dessert recipes.
- Most Amazing Alfajores: This classic, South American alfajores recipe is filled with melt-in-your-mouth dulce de leche and rolled in shredded coconut. They are so soft, delicate, decadent, and so easy to make! You’ll love how the different textures come together to create an amazing cookie.
- Tres Leches Cake: This easy Tres Leches Cake is a melt in your mouth sponge cake that gets soaked in a sweet milk mixture and topped with homemade whipped cream and fresh fruit. This surprisingly simple cake is such an unexpected showstopper and the perfect ending to any meal.
- Dulce de Leche Cinnamon Bars: Cinnamon bars swirled with dulce de leche. Soft, sweet, salty, nutty, spicy and caramel-y.
- Tres Leches Bread Pudding: Easy bread pudding recipe with tres leches, meaning “three milks”, with added cinnamon and a hint of orange.
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Margaritas: 3 Different Ways
Classic Lime Margarita, Blood Orange Margarita, & Pineapple Margarita Recipes. Listed from most sour to most sweet! Adjust the yield to 4 to create a pitcher of margaritas recipe.
Ingredients
Classic Lime Margarita
- Kosher salt to rim the glass
- 2 oz fresh lime juice
- 3.5 oz Tequila (blanco or reposado)
- 1.5 oz orange liqueur
- .5 oz simple syrup
- ice cubes
- lime slice garnish
Blood Orange Margarita
- Kosher salt or sugar to rim the glass
- 1 oz fresh lime juice
- 2 oz fresh squeezed blood orange juice
- 3 oz Tequila (blanco or reposado)
- 1.5 oz orange liqueur
- ice cubes
- blood orange slice garnish
Pineapple Margarita
- Kosher salt or sugar to rim the glass
- 1 oz fresh lime juice
- 4 oz pineapple juice
- 3 oz Tequila (blanco or reposado)
- 1.5 oz orange liqueur
- ice cubes
- pineapple wedge or leaf garnish
Instructions
-
Wash the fruit. Slice the limes (and oranges, if using) in half, and slice a wheel of lime (or orange, or pineapple wedge) for your garnish.
-
Pour some kosher salt onto a small plate. Use a lime wedge to wet the rim, making 2-3 passes around the glass. Dip the glass into the salt, and swirl it a little to coat the rim. Lift and set aside.
-
Juice your limes (and oranges, if using).
-
In a shaker, add the lime and other fruit juice (if using), Tequila, orange liqueur, and simple syrup (see notes), then fill the shaker with ice. Seal and shake for 10-15 seconds.
-
Pour shaker contents, ice included, into the prepared margarita glass. Garnish with preferred fruit garnish, and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Easy Simple Syrup: Combine equal parts sugar and water in a small saucepan on the stovetop. Once combined, remove from heat and let cool. The reason for doing this is to dissolve the sugar into a liquid form. I typically use turbinado or raw sugar in my simple syrup.
*Note: simple syrup is not necessary when using sweeter fruit juices like orange or pineapple. You can also add fruit to the simple syrup during the cooking process to create sugary fruited syrups with different flavors. This works especially well with blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries. When adding fruits to the simple syrup, simply strain the syrup before using to eliminate cooked fruit residue and seeds. If using a fruited syrup in your classic margarita, add at least 1 ounce so the flavor comes through.
**If your margarita is too strong, add more fruit juice– lime, orange, or pineapple! If you prefer your margarita to be sweeter, add more simple syrup! Drinks are a personal preference, so I hope this recipe gives you a great start!
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