Bloggers are so amazing about highlighting season ingredients.  Fall hits and everyone’s blogs turn pumpkin.  Followed by butternut squash, acorn squash, and spaghetti squash.  Then the first of the year hits, and everyone gets sucked into the awesome citrius – Meyer lemons, grapefruit, and blood oranges.  Now we can’t gets Meyer lemons around these parts, and our house isn’t ahuge grapefruit fan.  But when I saw the blood oranges hit the market, I got incredibly excited.

I’ve had this recipe saved for nearly a year. By the time I saw it last year, the blood oranges had disappeared.

So I’ve been anxiously awaiting their arrival, dreaming of these bright red margaritas.

And Superbowl Sunday came, I knew it was “the day.” We had super exciting plans of watching the game/commercials in our pjs and eating junk food that we don’t normally eat.  Why not throw some margaritas in there as well.

And these margaritas lived up to my incredibly high expectations of them.  Blood oranges almost taste like a cross between an orange and a cranberry – just a little tart.  It was like combining 2 of my favorite cocktails – margaritas and cosmopolitans.

ooh, now I’m envisioning a blood orange cosmo…. hmm.  I’ll get back to you on that one.

One year ago: Vanilla bean ice cream
Two years ago:  Drunken Risotto

Blood Orange Margaritas
courtesy of Confections of a Foodie Bride
yields 4 servings

1/4 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
4 oz (1/2 cup) tequila
4 oz (1/2 cup) orange liquor (like Triple Sec)
4 oz (1/2 cup) fresh squeezed lime juice
8 oz (1 cup) fresh squeezed blood orange juice (about 3 oranges)

Combine water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium high heat.  Stir until combined.  Heat until sugar has dissolved.  Removed from heat, let cool.

Mix tequila, orange liquor, lime and orange juices.  Add cooled simple syrup.  Chill until ready to serve.  Serve over ice.

Cheers!