Red Cinnamon Pear Sangria
With Thanksgiving coming up this week the holidays have officially started. Some may go by the presence of christmas music on the radio, some by the color of a Starbucks cups, others by decorations in the stores. No matter if or when you decide it is the holidays, it is time for a delicious holiday Sangria recipe.
Sangria is a spanish drink that commonly consists of wine, fruit, sugar and some other alcohol like brandy. I personally don’t like to add any sweetener because well 1) I’m a dietitian and 2) fruit is sweet enough! Red wine is my favorite type of wine so let me start you off the week with my red wine version of holiday sangria. I also have a white wine recipe, coming up shortly.
We had a “Friendsgiving” (or “Franksgiving” as my friend Nicole calls it…) this past weekend and besides the 10 sides I wanted to bring I also wanted to spice up our cocktail menu. Sure we would have beer, wine and Spiked Seltzer but doesn’t everyone want to feel fancy once in a while? In walks sangria looking all fine. Besides you all know how much I love Whine About It, so we needed to raise a glass to wine and Buzzfeed Matt and have a glass (or 2) of Sangria. Here’s my red wine recipe, enjoy and consume responsibly!
- 1-1.5L bottle red wine
- 1/4 cup orange liqueur, such as Triple Sec (optional)
- 3 large pears, chopped (seeds and stem removed)
- 3-4 cinnamon sticks (plus more for garnish)
- 5-6 clementines, sliced
- ½ cup apple cider
- seltzer or club soda, as needed
- ice cubes, as needed
- For rim of glass (optional): water, brown sugar and cinnamon
- Mix wine, liqueur, pears, cinnamon sticks, clementines and apple cider in a large pitcher with a long spoon until well combined.
- Place covered in refrigerator for at least 6-24 hours or until ready to serve.
- Wet the rim of each glass with water, then dip on a plate with brown sugar and cinnamon.
- Pour sangria into wine glass and top off with seltzer, club soda, and/or ice cubes.
Stay tuned for my white wine sangria later today! And if you are on my email list (it’s free, sign up here –> http://eepurl.com/bFm9F9 ) I will be sending you a newsletter that has a FREE shopping list for all of my holiday side dishes so you can have a table full of “sassy approved” dishes for Thanksgiving and any other holiday party you have coming up.
Enjoy the week! Let me know what will be on your Thanksgiving menu this year in the comments below!
xoxo,
Sassy
Nicole
November 23, 2015 at 10:36 amFRANKSGIVING…get it right.
Laura Ligos, MBA, RDN
November 23, 2015 at 11:38 amoh hey! you commented 😀 ….lemme update it a bit
solaonitiri
November 23, 2015 at 3:52 pmI make sangria for my family during the holidays and this is the recipe I’m using this Thanksgiving. I can’t wait to give it a try!
x Sola | http://www.lifestonedadventures.com
Laura Ligos, MBA, RDN
November 23, 2015 at 4:15 pmAwesome! I hope you enjoy it 🙂 Happy Thanksgiving!
EminSpandex
November 23, 2015 at 7:27 pmI usually don’t like sangria because of the added sweeteners, but this looks amazing! I may have to try it and see if I still think it’s too sweet 🙂
Laura Ligos, MBA, RDN
November 23, 2015 at 8:44 pmYes, I’m not a fan of sweet sangria either. Use a cabernet or a merlot to make a more dry concoction. Enjoy!