Sangria for the Holidays

Sorry only had my cell phone camera with me so this picture is not very good!!!

Last night I went to a Christmas Party with a group of friends. Everyone brings an appetizer and we all talk until we're hoarse. The hostess with the mostess made this amazing sangria for the party and it was delicious. This recipe is fast, easy and doesn't contain the hard liqueur the many sangrias have.
Sangria is basically a combination of fruits, fruit juices and wine. There are thousands of recipes out there and it's fun to play with the different combinations. Many people think of Sangria as a summertime drink but I think that it's festive and perfect for winter holiday parties, especially when made with red wine. The site Wine Intro.com has over 80 Sangria Recipes if you want to try a few out.
Sangria is also a great money saver for a large party because you can use an inexpensive wine, I usually use a $5 to $8 range wine in sangria. I've even used 2 buck Chuck in a spiced sangria for a huge crowd.

Here's how my friend made it.
                   1/3 C sugar
                   1/3 C lemon juice
                   1/3 C orange juice
                   1 Bottle of red wine, 750ml size
                   1 orange, thinly sliced
                   1 lemon, thinly sliced

1. In a large pitcher, add the 1/3 C sugar, 1/3 C lemon juice, and 1/3 C orange juice 
2. Stir until the sugar is dissolved.  
3. Add one bottle red wine.  
4. Thinly slice oranges and lemons and place into the pitcher with the wine mixture.
5. Chill and serve.
   

That's it, you are good to go and ready for a party. You can make this a few days in advance and stick in the fridge until you're ready to serve it. The sangria was the hit of the party.

Here is the recipe for a spice sangria that I got years ago from a friend in Houston who served it at a Christmas party as well. It has a warmer flavor because of the spices.
         1 cup of cranberry juice
         1/2 cup sugar
         4 whole cloves
         1 cinnamon stick
         2 lemon slices
         3 orange slices
         1 750ml bottle of red wine
         2 to 4 tablespoons of brandy or triple sec depending on how orange flavor you want.
         1 orange (unpeeled), washed and thinly sliced
         1/2 cup of fresh cranberries
         1 cup club soda

1. In a small saucepan, place the juice, sugar, cloves, cinnamon stick, lemon slices and orange slices. 
2. Bring this mixture to a boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat to low. 
3. Simmer on low for 10 minutes. 
4. Remove from the heat and let sit for at least an hour to cool. 
5. When it's cooled completely, strain it (or just scoop out the chunks) into a large sealed container and add the bottle of wine and the liquor.
6. Place in the fridge to chill. You can do this up to 3 days before serving.

When it's party time, pour the sangria into your serving container. Add the club soda, the orange slices and the fresh cranberries to the sangria. To keep it chilled, you can freeze cubes of oranges and use them as ice cubes.