If you were a kid of the 80's like me, you know the phenomenon of the slushie machine. Or the brain freeze, it could bring. Oh the good old days. I mean, even 7/11 has free slushie day!
When I was a kid this was preferred drink while at the movies, roller rink or swinging by the corner store. Then in college, my friends and I would roll up 7/11 or any hot summer day carrying a small bottle of vodka. Adding it to our slushies before we headed to the park to hang for the day. Also, the good old days.
Sadly, I am no longer in my twenties and my body reminds me of this nearly everyday, so we revolutionize the way we used to live and change shit up. Gone are the days where the sugary chemical filled slushie or icee that used to bring me childhood joy. Now that I am in my early 40's my body can no longer handle the high fructose corn syrup or colors with numbers in my foods or drinks, so I came up with my own version using whole fruit and natural sugar. Honestly, I can barely tell a difference, except for the lack sweetness, which you can adjust to your liking. I guess that's the greatest part about staying your ass at home and making your food and drinks, it not only saves you money, but you are able to control the ingredients that you consume. Now, I am not saying vodka is healthy, all I am saying is life is about balance. I gave up the artificial colors but keep the vodka and the wine. Life is about balance and this a perfect example of mine.
This summer cocktail pairs well with this our Jalapeño Poppers, so if you are looking for a perfect appetizer give the poppers a try or maybe some Cauliflower Ceviche for the vegans you love.
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Ingredients
I've shared this in past posts and on social but I love watermelon, and making an adult slushie is one of my favorite ways to use leftover watermelon. I love watermelon so much, that when I left the Pacific Northwest for Southern Cali and now Las Vegas I would get a watermelon from Hermiston, OR shipped to me by one of my friends. Crazy, right? Maybe, maybe not. Either way, grab any watermelon and remove the rind, then cut the watermelon into cubes, place them on a sheet pan, and freeze them for one hour; after that hour, I put the cubes in a large freezer-safe bag and place them back in the freezer until I am ready to use the frozen fruit.
This recipe is a no ice cubes, simple syrup, no slushy syrup zone , as we don't water to water down the drink, hence the use of frozen fruit for one of the most tasty frozen adult beverages you've experienced. A new summer cocktail thats similar the beloved strawberry wine slushies or frose, but if you are a true wine lover, check out the substitution section to see how you can make this recipe sans vodka, add white wine.
- Fresh lime juice
- Fresh lemon juice
- Vodka
- Cointreau or triple sec
- salt
- chili powder
- cane sugar or sub coconut sugar, maple syrup, honey, or agave
- frozen fruit (frozen watermelon or frozen pineapple work great)
See recipe card for quantities.
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Here is the best part of this recipe, you just put everything in the blender in the order listed in the recipe and blend on high-speed until you get your desired slushy consistency.
Substitutions
- Frozen Fruit - You can use pretty much any frozen fruit that you love for this recipe or a blend fruits for tropical fruit slushies. Here are some favorites: frozen pineapples, frozen strawberries, frozen mango, or frozen watermelon cubes.
- Vodka - you can sub tequila, white rum, or white wine. Or say "fuck it" and put a little bit of everything in there
- Sugar - I am not a huge fan of added sugar, so I always taste my drink first before adding a sweetener. You can feel free to use your preferred sweetener in this recipe or skip it and enjoy a no added sugar frozen cocktail
Variations
- Spicy - if you want to add additional spice, cover rim in lime juice and dip in Tajin, or a mix of ¼ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon sugar, and 1 teaspoon chili powder.
- Deluxe - salt rim, use cointreau, a blend of different fruits and top shelf vodka (we love Tito's).
- Kid friendly - this recipe is easily made into a kid-friendly non-alcoholic drink by skipping the vodka and cointreau for orange juice, pineapple juice, or any fresh fruit juice that pairs well with the frozen fruit you choose. The kids will have so much fun drinking one on a hot summer day.
Equipment
- Juicer, or fork
- High-speed blender
- Paring knife
- Cocktail glasses, margarita glasses or wine glasses
Storage
I wish this was a recipe you could make and save the leftovers for the next day, but sadly it doesn't keep. So make what you think you will drink and enjoy it immediately. If you do find to have some leftover, fill a popsicle mold or ice cube trays and freeze. Use in ice cubes in your favorite wine or cocktail.
Top tip
There are a few things that people may forget from time to time when making blended drinks to make them come out perfectly. The biggest mistake I often see is people adding ice cubes to their frozen cocktails. Now in some cases ice cubes are necessary, but most of the time you can skip and simply make sure your main ingredient is frozen, which in this recipe is the watermelon. If you are able to avoid adding ice to your frozen cocktail this will keep the drink fruit flavor forward, because the ice will melt and then make the drink watery and nobody wants that, we want fruity fun drinks on a warm summer day.
If you do not have a good blender (high speed blender), make the drink in batches, by cutting the recipe in half in the regular blender. The fruit should break down much easier than ice cubes.
FAQ
In this recipe, you do not freeze the slushies. You will be starting with frozen product so it is unnecessary to freeze them prior to drinking the slushies.
Do not add ice cubes, use frozen fruit and honey or agave to sweeten. This should create a thicker texture.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with [this recipe]:
Whole Fruit Adult Slushies
Equipment
- 1 High speed blender
Ingredients
- 2 limes juice only
- 1 lemon juice only
- 5 oz vodka I enjoy Tito's
- 1 oz Cointreau
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoon cane sugar add more for a sweeter drink
- 4 cups frozen fruit I love using watermelon and pineapple
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a high-speed blender in the order listed.
- Blend on high until frozen fruit has become fully combined into a slush.
- If you need to add any additional liquid, I suggest adding extra lime juice or filtered water. You may also need to scrap the sides of the blender or break up frozen fruit if it gets stuck.
- I love to serve this with sugared lime slices with a bit of chili powder; you can also do a lime, sugar, and chili rim.
- Non-alcoholic version: you can sub 6oz of liqueur with apple juice for the same slushy vibes that are non-alcohol friendly.
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