Ok well it’s not technically a champagne trio per se, more like sangria duo and a champagne cocktail. But trio sounds better so trio it is.
If you follow along with me on Instagram you may have caught the Whole Smith’s (craft)cocktail hour at some point. The idea behind it is to clean up our adult beverages at home. No hitting up Chevy’s for their syrup-y sweet, artificially flavored watermelon margaritas. It’s so much better to make the REAL thing at home. It tastes better, you know what’s in it and it easier on the wallet. And even better, you can hang with people you like in your sweats. 😉
No, drinking fruity alcoholic concoctions isn’t something I promote doing every day. Trust me, my liver is still mad at me for my 20’s. However, it’s unrealistic to think that with following a paleo diet you’re never, ever going to have alcohol again. I mean, paleo is a food choice not a 12 step program. So like everything, make good, cleaner choices and moderation.
All of the drinks we come up with are sweetened with honey, maple syrup or pure fruit juices. Fresh herbs etc. No neon margaritas mixes allowed!
So when this week’s One Day Sale Item at Whole Foods was WINE I knew just where to go with that. I love me a good sangria or champagne cocktail. Especially with the summer coming, it just can’t be beat. And I love that you don’t need to spend a lot of money on a fancy wine to enjoy this. It’s all about the fresh ingredients and flavors.
One of the ingredients that I found really made the red wine sangria and bellini was the vanilla powder Whole Foods carries. If you don’t have access to a Whole Foods you can find some online. It’s basically ground vanilla beans that you can add in lieu of vanilla extract. I find that I like the flavor if it much better. I’ve also started adding it to smoothies and my No’tmeal. So make sure to check it out, it’s one of my favorite new finds for sure!
I’m unable to add 3 separate recipes with the current program I run so apologies for the format below but you can figure it out. Like I’ve said before, you’re all smarts!
sangria trio
Ingredients
- Red Wine Sangria
- 1 bottle of red wine such a Merlot Tempranillo or Petite Syrah
- 2 shots of vodka - preferred choice 3 Hunters
- 3 grapefruits - 2 sliced 1 for juice
- 2 pears sliced
- 1/2 C. honey
- 1/2 C. water
- 2 tsp vanilla powder
- 1 cinnamon stick
- ----------------------------
- Blood Orange Sangria
- 1 bottle of white wine such as a Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Black
- 3 blood oranges 2 sliced, 1 juiced
- 4 honey tangerines 1 of them sliced, 3 juiced
- 1 lime sliced
- 1/4 C. mint muddled
- ----------------------------
- Peach Bellini
- 1 12 oz bag of frozen peaches defrosted
- 4-6 sage leaves
- 2 tsp vanilla powder
- 1 bottle of champagne or prosecco
Instructions
- Red Wine Sangria
- In a large pitcher, combine red wine, grapefruit slices, grapefruit juice, pears, cinnamon stick and vanilla powder
- In a small saucepan add honey and water and heat until combined
- Add honey simple syrup into pitcher and combine well
- Refrigerate for minimum 3 hours
- Serve over ice
- -----------------------------
- Blood Orange Sangria
- In a large pitcher add bottle of wine, blood orange slices, honey tangerine slices, lime and mint.
- Juice remaining 3 honey tangerines and 1 blood orange into pitcher
- Add mint
- Refrigerate minimum 3 hours to chill
- Serve over ice
- -----------------------------
- Peach Bellini
- In a blender or food processor add defrosted peaches and vanilla powder
- Blend until smooth
- Fill champagne glass 1/4 of the way up with peach puree
- Add champagne to top, stir slightly to combine
- Add sage leaf to glass
