I just finished my last "real" final (I have one take home exam left to do), and I decided that this afternoon is celebration time! I have a 2-part celebration plan: a) This blog post. b) the First Friday Pub Run
a) I have been wanting to do this taste test for months now. I am a pretty big fan of Bethenny Frankel (founder of the SkinnyGirl cocktail brand), and I recently saw a Hungry Girl episode on Cooking Channel where Lisa Lillien made her version of a low-cal margarita. My question: which tastes better? Hungry Girl or Skinny Girl? My bets are on Bethenny, but we'll see...
b) I did the First Friday Pub Run for the first time last month and it was a BLAST! It's like a pub crawl...only you actually run/jog from bar to bar. Sounds crazy, I know. But even for a horrible runner like myself, it was a lot of fun. For the most part, people just want to go out to bars, and the running part is just an excuse to do something different and dress like a moron (80s workout gear, anyone?).
Ok so, now for the recipes:
HG's Magical Low-Calorie Margarita
PER SERVING (entire recipe, 1 margarita): 115 calories, 0g fat, 55mg sodium, 2g carbs, 0g fiber, <0.5g sugars, 0g protein -- PointsPlus® value 4*
Ingredients:
3/4 cup Sierra Mist Free (or Diet Sprite Zero, or your other fave no-cal lemon-lime soda)
*1.5 oz. tequila
1 packet (two 5-calorie servings) sugar-free powdered drink mix, lemonade (like the one by Crystal Light)
2 tbsp. lime juice
Optional: lime slice for garnish and salt or no-calorie sweetener for rim of glass
Directions:
If desired, run some lime juice along the rim of the glass and dip into a dish of salt or sweetener. Mix all ingredients together. Pour over 1 cup of crushed ice. Optional: Garnish with lime slice. Enjoy. Serves 1!
| The Skinnygirl™ Margarita |
| The margarita you love, only 100 calories. Makes one serving |
| 2 oz of Clear Premium Tequila (count 1, 2 while you pour, no need for measuring) Tiny splash of Orange Liquor (I used Triple Sec...it was about 75% cheaper than the cheapest bottle of Liqueur) Juice of 4 Fresh Lime Wedges |
| To serve on the rocks, combine all ingredients over a glass of ice and garnish with a lime wedge |
Here's a compare and contrast:
Strength: Skinny Girl is REALLY strong, and doesn't make a lot of volume. I had to make 2 batches just to fill my little wine glass plus ice. Basically there are 3 shots of tequila plus triple sec in one 8 oz. drink. Hungry Girl's recipe used one shot for the entire recipe and filled two glasses. That makes Skinny Girl's margarita 6 times stronger. Um...whoa.
Sweetness: If you like sweet drinks, HG is the margarita for you. It made my saliva glands kick into gear on my first sip, because it was really sweet and really tart. Skinny Girl's margarita isn't very sweet at all.
Overall: After doing this taste test, I decided that the ultimate low calorie margarita would be a combination of both of these. Sweeter than Skinny but stronger than Hungry. So guess what...I came up with my own recipe! This is my first official HealthEasy recipe, and I think y'all will really enjoy it! I found it to be the perfect combination of alcohol and sweetness, plus I added my own little twist :-)
HealthEasy Marg
Ingredients:
1.5 oz. (1 shot) of clear Tequila
Splash of Triple Sec
A little bit of lime zest**
Juice from 1 lime
1/4 tsp lemonade powdered drink mix
Splash of diet lemon lime soda
Combine all ingredients in a drink shaker, shake, and pour over ice. Optional: run a lime wedge around the rim of your glass and dip into salt/sugar, garnish with lime slice.
**This is optional. Use as much as you want or none at all! It just adds a little more lime flavor, and I had fresh limes, so I figured why not add some zest? It ended up sinking to the bottom of the drink, but just having it soak in there is enough to add flavor
I hope y'all like it!
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