I realize that in winter many suffer a bit through the cold, through the snow and rain, through the relentless gray skies and shorter days. But here in Southern California we’ve had day upon day of gorgeous, sunny weather and lunches eaten outdoors in sundresses and flip flops. The daffodils and tulips are up. And so are my spirits.
I spent all of January, and most of this month caring for my daughter who broke her leg on December 28th when she was thrown from a horse. She’s a good patient, but boy it’s hard to hear MOM! called across the house for the umpteenth time. She’s back in school this week, and I’m doing a little dance, remembering what it’s like to have my days to myself again. Yipee.
But back to winter. Here winter means citrus and my CSA box has been overflowing with all sorts of wonderful things from tangerines, to lemons, to oranges (blood and navel), and grapefruits. I’ve made lemon curd, lemonade, and candied orange slices. And in order to make room for the new crop of fruits that would be coming in my box, I squeezed a whole pile of tangerines, filling a quart-size mason jar to the top with brightly colored juice.
The juice tastes incredible on it’s own. (But I can never leave anything alone.) So I added a little citrus vodka, and some Cointreau to make a martini recipe. A friend stopped by, we made another round and sipped them well into the warm winter evening, windows open, our laughter and conversation spilling out into garden where those confused daffodils had already folded up their petticoats and gone to sleep.
Tangerine Martini Recipe
This gorgeous martini packs a bright citrus punch. Serve it straight up in a martini glass, or over ice with a splash of soda.
Ingredients
- 2 ounces freshly squeezed tangerine juice
- 2 ounces Absolut Mandarin vodka
- 2 ounces Cointreau
- sugar for the rim
Instructions
- Rub the rim of 2 martini glasses with a cut lemon and dip into a plate that’s been lightly coated with sugar.
- Place the tangerine juice, vodka and Cointreau into a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously for 30 seconds.
- Strain into the glasses and serve immediately.
