It’s Friday! That means it’s time to try a new drinks recipe.  The weather is cooling off for many parts of the world.  Here, the leaves are changing into beautiful colors and the days are cool and the nights cooler.

When the weather shifts in the fall, I start ordering drinks with a bit more substance.  The vodka tonics and rosé wines from summer don’t feel satisfying anymore.

In the last couple of years I’ve really started enjoying hard cider.  And while I’m not a fan of typical sangria, I think this hard cider sangria recipe looks fantastic. While it calls for red, yellow and green apples, I wouldn’t worry too much about using all three unless you are having company and really want to impress.  Put whatever you have in there, which for us is usually a fuji.  Don’t have a navel orange?  Use a couple clementines instead.

We are having people over for chili and treats on Halloween (click the link for a recent chili recipe I posted).  This will be the perfect drink to serve.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup quartered and thinly sliced unpeeled green, yellow and red apples (or whatever color you have on hand)
• 1 navel orange—quartered and thinly sliced crosswise (you can also use clementines)
• 1 cup apple juice, chilled
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup apple brandy (I like Apple Jack)
• One 22-ounce bottle hard apple cider, chilled (Angry Orchard is my current favorite)
• Ice

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a pitcher, combine the apples with the orange, apple juice, lemon juice and brandy. Just before serving, add the hard cider. Serve in tall glasses over ice.
2. Drink (duh).

Enjoy!  I’d love to hear what you think!