Sangria compliments of The Columbia Restaurant

Last week, I went back to my hometown of Lakeland, Florida with my family for Sun N' Fun. Previous to going to the fly-in, we stayed in Tampa and went out to Clearwater Beach to have dinner at The Columbia Restaurant. Not only do they have super-awesome food, they have a super-awesome gift shop, where I bought a copy of their cookbook.

Last night, I made a pitcher of Sangria, black bean dip and their 1905 Salad. Prepare to be a little bummed out at me though because I only took pics of the Sangria. Trust me, you really wouldn't want to see what pureed black beans look like and I was just too lazy to take pics of the salad. BUT don't worry - I'll most definitely be making the salad again soon! It's a great light salad and easy to make!

Onto the Sangria! And believe me, this recipe is so easy, you'll make it once and never need to look at the recipe again.

Pour a bottle of red wine into your pitcher. (I used a Woodbridge Cabernet).


Next, add 1/4 cup of brandy. I'm not a brandy drinker except for cherry brandy in a Singapore Sling (my favorite!) so I just bought a run-of-the-mill brandy.

To this add, two tablespoons of lemon juice and orange juice.


Now add, a cup of club soda and a tablespoon of sugar.


Stir the whole mixture with a wooden spoon until well mixed. I then stuck the pitcher into the fridge to let it chill for awhile. Its so much more refreshing and summery if its chilled, in my opinion.

Once chilled, pour into large wine glasses. Garnish with an orange slice and maraschino cherry and ENJOY!!


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Sangria (serves approx. 4)

Ingredients:
1 bottle of red wine, preferably Spanish
1/4 cup of brandy
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 cup of club soda

orange slices
maraschino cherries

Instructions:
Mix all ingredients together in a large pitcher except for the orange slices and cherries. Stir with a wooden spoon until well mixed. Chill for 30+ minutes. After chilled, serve in large wine glasses garnished with an orange slice and maraschino cherry.

Coconut Shrimp with Apricot- Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce

My dad wanted me to make that coconut shrimp i made right before i started this blog, so i did. And this is a remarkably simple recipe to make, but no one has to know that. All they'll know is they're eating awesome coconut shrimp that you SLAVED over. lol

First, you want to get your battering station ready:

a bowl with 1 cup flour
a bowl with 1 egg (lightly beaten)
a bowl with 1 cup panko bread crumbs and 1 cup shredded coconut



Then just dredge the shrimp in the flour, dip the shrimp into the egg and into the panko and coconut mixture. I did this while heating up the peanut oil i used to fry them.


I need to make a comment about the shrimp here though. The first time i made this recipe i used fresh shrimp with the tails on from the grocery store; they were specifically bought for the making of this recipe. This time though - i didn't have the resources - and already had a bag of frozen Costco shrimp in the freezer... i know, i know... get off my back. lol

Anyway - i found that you really want the bigger, prettier shrimp for this recipe. You need more actual shrimp surface area in order to get more shrimp taste and less coating. Don't get me wrong, they were still very good - just not as good as the first time around.

Now onto the dipping sauce:

2 tablespoons sweet chili sauce
1 tablespoon apricot preserves

Mix them up well and serve with them skrimps like so!

I served them with a romaine lettuce salad with carrots, cheese, egg and some slivered almonds. It was a good meal and very easy to make! YUM SHRIMP!