A Frozen Margarita That Is Also Blue
Think of it as the frozen Margarita version of Picasso’s blue period.
Over the course of the summer, we have covered Margaritas, frozen Margaritas, and Margaritas that are blue (and also, unlike many blue drinks, actually good).
So as we close out the season, I felt compelled to note that you can also make a cocktail that combines all three elements. Yes, you can make a frozen Margarita that is blue (and also, unlike many blue drinks, actually good). Think of it a little like the frozen Margarita version of Picasso’s blue period.
Cocktail snobs have tended to turn up their noses at blue cocktails and frozen drinks, sometimes with good reason. But this drink is proof that a drink can be frozen and blue and genuinely delicious.
In terms of structure, this drink essentially follows the Columbia Room’s excellent frozen Margarita spec, except with blue curaçao in place of dry sherry.
To the extent there is a trick here, it’s to use high-quality blue curaçao. You can of course try your luck with the sticky, saccharine cheap bottles you used to color jungle juice at college parties. But I would strongly recommend moving up the value chain with Giffard’s excellent offering.
As I have noted in the past, Giffard makes many class-leading fruit liqueurs, and their blue curaçao is no exception. Yes, it’s a little more expensive than your bargain bottle of sweet blue liqueur. On the other hand, not only is it not awful, it’s actually pretty tasty, especially if used carefully and sparingly.
The other trick to a frozen Margarita is to properly calibrate the sweetener, the off-setting sour element, and the amount of ice. You can’t just add ice to a conventional Margarita recipe and call it a day. You need more sweetener to account for the ice, and that, in turn, means you need more citrus to balance out the increased sweetener.
You also need to measure the ice. The Columbia Room’s frozen sherry Margarita recipe calls for 1 ½ cups of crushed ice. The exact weight of a cup and a half of crushed ice will be slightly different for different people, depending on the size of the crushed ice shards, so for those who prefer a little more precision — and I know that includes some readers of this newsletter — this typically comes out to roughly 225 grams of ice when I weigh it. Alternatively, you can use seven one-and-a-quarter-inch ice cubes from Tovolo molds. Measuring is necessary, and you won’t get good results by randomly dumping ice into your blender, but it is not necessary to be obsessive.
Like all frozen Margaritas, this drink can be easily batched by multiplying the ingredients.
Most conventional blenders will make 3-4 of these at a time, making an ideal amount for a small gathering. And remember that when serving you are not bound by the ingredient multiple: If you make a triple batch (all ingredients x3) you can pour somewhat smaller servings for, say, five people, which makes it great for small gatherings.
A Frozen Margarita That Is Blue
1/16th tsp (or a small pinch) salt
1 ½ cups (or about 225 grams) crushed ice
1 ½ ounces agave syrup
1 ½ ounces fresh lime juice
1 ounce Giffard Blue Curaçao
2 ounces 100 percent agave blanco tequila (such as Espolon)
INSTRUCTIONS
Combine all ingredients in a blender.
Blend on high for about 10 seconds or until smooth.
Pour blended mix into a tall glass and serve with a straw.