There I go again, making summery, freezing cold treats in the dead of winter. Ironically this delectable beverage is, well other than the frozen bit, entirely seasonal.
You see while strawberries are ripe for the picking (pun entirely intended) in NSW during late spring and early summer, they roll out of tropical Queensland by the tonne all winter long. They are sweeter and juicer and less expensive now, even being shipped a state down, than they are coming from only an hour or two away in the summer.
Throw in some Aussie-grown limes and blood oranges and all of a sudden winter is a little more bright and happy. As an added bonus all the ingredients are loaded with immune boosting Vitamin C.
Now the version I made is alcohol-free but a shot or three of tequila — or rum if you want to go the daiquiri route instead of the margarita one — never hurt anyone.
Wait, that may not be entirely true, proceed with caution when adding three shots of tequila to anything, ahem.
Of course this recipe makes stunning popsicles too, I know this because the leftovers went into the freezer and came out as popsicles, but that’s another story for another day.
As for today, this recipe was inspired by my Secret Recipe Club assigned blog for July, Shockingly Delicious. Dorothy is a food writer and editor by trade and her blog is overflowing with quick and budget-conscious recipes for the whole family.
Now I do have something to admit… I received my SRC assignment a month or so ago, went straight to Dorothy’s site to explore, thought I had bookmarked some things and then got caught up in life. Then this weekend I went to check my inbox for the assignment and ended up with the July 2013 assignment thanks to email search fail.
Not seeing any recent recipes pinned to my secret Pinterest board — I had pinned this cake and this pancake from Dorothy’s site yet the penny still did not drop — I searched the other blog and after garnering inspiration from a pie and some cinnamon buns and some overnight dinner rolls I ended up with these. In any case as I was writing that post I somehow had a second thought and checked my email again. Then I growled a few choice words, loudly.
Luckily during a quick scan of Dorothy’s recipes her Strawberry-Citrus Frappe jumped out at me. There were strawberries leftover from the scrolls and a few more in the freezer, a blood orange in the fruit bowl and leftover lime wedges in the fridge from an ombre popsicle adventure. The sun was shining, the orange straws were on the dining room table, unused from some other project earlier in the week, and before I knew it this happened. After all that I probably should have added the tequila…
Strawberry & Blood Orange Frozen Margarita
Sweet-tart, bright and happy, this icy cocktail is just as enticing as a virgin strawberry orange frappe as it is a tequila or rum laced party starter || inspired by Shockingly Delicious for SCR
Serves 2 – 3, multiply as desired
INGREDIENTS
- 1 c strawberries, fresh or frozen
- 1 blood orange, peel and seeds removed
- juice from half a lime
- 2 – 3 handfuls ice cubes
- honey/maple syrup/apple juice, optional
- 2 – 3 shots tequila or rum, optional
METHOD
Blend strawberries, blood orange flesh, lime juice, and enough ice to make a thick, icy treat.
Sweeten or add more lime juice if necessary — this will depend on the fruit you use and your and own taste. Blend through alcohol if using and serve immediately.
COOK’S NOTES
- Quantities: If using frozen strawberries you will need less ice and possibly a splash of water or orange juice, if using fresh strawberries you will need more ice. Just go with it.
- If you’re a salted-rim type person: combine flakey sea salt with zest from a lime, rub edge of glasses with a wedge of lime, dip in lime salt.
vegan // vegetarian // diary-free // gluten-free // soy-free // nut-free // almost recipe
I’m so envious that you can get good fresh strawberries at this time of the year – no such luck here. We can, however, get blood oranges here – imported from Australia, and of course we do have frozen strawberries all year round. Frozen treats like this are right up my alley too, even in the heart of winter – I still make a batch of ice cream most weeks, and I can’t wait to try this.
Sue
A batch a week? That is both heaven and my worst (waistline) nightmare!
Oh, how beautiful your version is! Well done! I want one, and it IS summer here!
What a gorgeous drink! It makes me dream of being next to a swimming pool, working hard on a sun tan (don’t tell my dermatologist)
beautiful!
I am in dire need of both sun and a pool right now!
What gorgeous photos! I’d like one of these drinks please…with or without alcohol…it doesn’t matter 😉
Well after all that you still came up with a gorgeous recipe to share. Hope your puter problems are a thing of the past.
Margaritas are my favorite summertime (or wintertime) happy hour treat. These are beautiful and look so refreshing! Great pick this month 🙂
Yum! I love blood oranges and I can only imagine how delightful these margaritas are. Lucky for me, it is summer here still!
I’d definitely go the rum route. 😉
This does sound beautifully refreshing, and that’s coming from someone in a 95 degree Florida summer.
Nice pick this month!
Love frozen fruit drinks. Sounds like you are pretty fast on your feet, you recovered very nicely!
Tequila is not optional in my book… 😉 These look SO DELICIOUS. Why is it only Monday!?
Those are stunning. Beautiful photo. I might have to try one with rum and one with tequila. Just as an experiment, right?
It is 5 o’clock somewhere right? Lovely pick!
This looks absolutely delicious! I might have to make this at home with rum later this week. Great SRC post
lovely photos. I think your margaritas look so refreshing!
That margarita looks amazing! Perfect for Summer!
You’re a brave soul photographing spilled drinks… I’d be too afraid that it would go everywhere!
Thanks Christine – I must admit that all the liquidly bit was removed (drunk!) so only the frozen part was spilled, much easier to control 😉 Also the board is waxed which helps with cleanup!
Stunning images as always and such a LUSH recipe JJ! Karen
What a great idea to turn the leftovers into popsicles. Beautiful drink too!
Absolutely beautiful photos! Will definitely need to try this. Great pick!
The forecast is 104 today, I need one of these margaritas immediately!
Oh that looks SO refreshing, tasty, and fresh!! What a great SRC pick this month – yumm!!!
I love Dorothy’s blog!!! These margaritas look so perfect for a hot evening!!
this is the best winter pick me up! ive been eating strawberries daily, feeling so blessed!
Horrendously obsessed with blood oranges at the moment.
And obsessed with your US pics. wwaahhhh
T x
Y-U-M. And your photos are GORGEOUS!