Big batch margaritas

I'm pretty transparent and steadfast about the things I love. If you've been hanging around here for any length of time, you know that. I often spout about my love of the color green. And limes. And margaritas. And peonies. And champagne. And fabric. (OK - no fabric links...too many to chose from!) I could go on, but I won't.

For my 40th, I wanted food with Mexican flavors and margaritas. That's all. And because I'm picky (that may be an understatement) about my margaritas, I said I would make them. What I didn't know was how to translate my favorite recipe that yields one or two cocktails into the large volume a party requires without making them too booze-y or too sweet.

So, I hit Google. I typed in "big batch margaritas". I clicked on this recipe, looked at it and then adapted it to my tastes. I was planning on doing the same thing Jeffrey does: buy cheap bottled water by the gallon, use it to water the plants or cook pasta or whatever, and reuse the plastic gallon jug. There was some higher math involved as we extrapolated one recipe into five. But once they were made, with one taste, I knew it was close to my favorite recipe. Here's what I did:

Big Batch Margaritas, adapted from A Gallon of Margaritas by the Gallon by Jeffrey Morgenthaler

6 c silver tequila

2 1/2 c Cointreau

5 c freshly squeezed lime juice (10 - 12 limes generally yields about 2 c)

2 c simple syrup ( I used a 1 to 1 ratio of sugar to water)

Mix everything in a gallon container and then refrigerate. Serve on the rocks with salt and a lime garnish. (If you put it into an empty gallon water jug, you will need a funnel to avoid spillage.)

If you have leftovers (pshaw!), pour them into a freezable container and pop them into the freezer. Once frozen, you can have leftover margarita slushies as wanted. I know because we have 6 frozen quarts at the ready. Thank you to Alicia for that brilliant idea! I've got cocktails covered for most of the summer.

Happy weekending folks!