When life gives you limes..What’s a girl to do? Make this Brazilian Margarita with Citrus Salt!!
With Cinco de Mayo upon us and warm weather finally here in MN, it’s time people. It’s time for cold cocktails on the patio. What could be better than a margarita. This is not your run of the mill, plain jane, margarita because why would I do that to you? This is an unexpected new twist on a classic.
We are taking top shelf ingredients and pairing them with one of my ultimate faves, St. Germain. For those of you not familiar, it’s an elderflower liquor made in France, named after one of my favorite areas in Paris. What’s not to love? It has beautiful floral notes with a sweet, smooth taste. I love to pair it with Proseco during the Summer and elevate a martini to a whole new level of sophistication.
So what makes it Brazilian? A traditional margarita normally starts off with lime juice or a sweet and sour mix as the base. Not this bad boy. This margarita is made with a traditional Brazilian caipirinha base of muddled limes and sugar. A caipirinha is Brazil’s national cocktail made with cachaca, sugar and lime.
I know it doesn’t sound like a big difference, but trust me, this little detail sets the whole cocktail up for one of the tastiest margaritas ever. You just don’t use the juice either, after the muddling the rinds you throw them in the glass. It looks awesome and the acidity helps smooth it out. This is one of the easiest drinking margaritas you’ll ever have! Beware, they may go down too smooth.
One more thing… the orange liqueur… don’t cheap out by using triple sec. Get a good one, it’ll be worth it. I love the orange liqueur from a local Minneapolis company called Norseman Distillery. It’s a fantastic choice because it’s not too sweet, and it tastes and smells like real oranges, which is really important!
To make it look extra festive, I’ve added dried lime and orange zest to the salt for a pop of color!
Hold on to this recipe all summer, it’s one you’ll come back to again and again! Feliz Cinco de Mayo!
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This Brazilian margarita takes top shelf ingredients and pairs them with St. Germain liquor. A new spin on a classic recipe!
Ingredients
Citrus Salt
- 3 T. Margarita Salt
- Zest from 1/2 Lime
- Zest from 1/2 Orange
Margarita
- 2 Parts Patron Silver Tequila
- 2 Parts St. Germain Liquor
- 1 Part Orange Liquor (I use a local brand called Norseman here in MN)
- 2 Limes
- 1 t. Sugar
- 2 dashes of hibiscus bitters (not essential, but it really works!)
Instructions
Margarita Salt
- Take zest from 1/2 lime and 1/2 orange and mix together with 3 T. of margarita salt. Mix until combined with a spoon or fork.
Margarita
- Cut 2 limes into quarters lengthwise, place in a glass. Add 1 t. of sugar and muddle together.
- Add crushed ice to a shaker, adding lime/sugar juice, tequila, St Germain, orange liqueur and the bitters, and shake, shake, shake!!!
- Pour salt mixture on to a small plate. Now grab one of the limes you just muddled, and wipe around the entire rim of the glass you’re going to use. Dip the rim into the salt and get it nice and crusted with your salt. Work it around if you have to.
- Fill the glass half way with crushed ice, throw in three of the muddled lime wedges, fill the rest of the glass more crushed ice. Now strain the margarita from the shaker into the glass.
- Garnish with a slice of lime, orange, a pretty flower, an umbrella, what ever you like really!
- Enjoy!
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