Frozen Boozy Arnold Palmer

If you don’t know what an Arnold Palmer is, let me tell you that it is a refreshing, non-alcoholic beverage made up of equal parts iced tea and lemonade. I am not a fan. When I drink iced tea I want to drink it in its purest form. I want to taste every tea leaf that went into the making of that glass of iced tea. I feel the same way about lemonade. I don’t want anything mixed in to alter the fresh, delicious, citrus taste.

But, when I made that big batch of homemade lemonade earlier in the week, I realized that I was going to have to find other ways in which to use it because I'd made A LOT! I started out by trying different flavors of daiquiri; they were quite good. Then I stumbled upon this recipe on Epicurious. It didn’t sound at all good to me, and there were only two reviews, but those reviews were so positive, and considering the amount of lemonade I had left over, coupled the amount of tea that I always have on hand, I figured what could possibly hurt?

I did not have plain vodka, only Maple Bacon and Whipped Cream, so I went with the latter. I was shocked at how delicious and refreshing this cocktail was! I am not kidding you when I tell you that this is my favorite summer cocktail so far this year. I cannot help but think that part of that goodness is owed to the Whipped Cream vodka, but don’t go out and buy a bottle if you have plain vodka on hand. Just know, that to be taken all of the way to heaven, you’re going to need the Whipped Cream variety.

The taste is phenomenal; it is cool, refreshing, and way too easy to guzzle the entire thing. The beauty of this is that you can make it up ahead of time, store each component (the boozy iced tea and the boozy lemonade) in separate containers in the freezer until you’re ready to make these. Or, if you use Mason Jars in which to serve them, like I did here, you can make up individual cocktails, secure the lid*, and shove them into the freezer to hang out until you’re ready to put them on a tray and deliver them to guests who will soon be in your debt. You absolutely must try these. You must!

Frozen Boozy Arnold Palmer

Slightly adapted from epicurious.com

8 black tea bags (I used Luzianne)

5 tablespoons sugar** (optional)

3 1/2 cups homemade lemonade, divided

1 cup Whipped Cream vodka, divided

Lemon wheels (for garnish)

Bring 3 1/2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat and add tea bags and sugar (or not). Let steep 4 minutes. Discard tea bags and let cool slightly (you should have about 3 1/2 cups tea).

Divide 3 cups tea between 2 ice cube trays; chill remaining 1/2 cup tea. Divide 3 cups lemonade between remaining 2 ice cube trays; chill remaining 1/2 cup lemonade. Freeze until solid, 3–4 hours.

Blend lemonade ice cubes, 1/2 cup vodka, and 1/2 cup lemonade in a blender until smooth. Transfer to a spouted liquid measuring cup or pitcher. Rinse blender jar and add tea ice cubes and remaining 1/2 cup tea and 1/2 cup vodka; blend until smooth.

Tilt a large glass to one side and fill halfway with lemonade mixture. While slowly returning glass to upright position, pour in frozen tea mixture to fill glass and create a swirl.

Garnish with lemon wheels.

Ice cubes can be made 3 months ahead. Transfer to resealable plastic bags and keep frozen.

*Be sure to leave at least ½” headspace at the top to allow for slight expansion during freezing. Because of the alcoholic content, this will not freeze solid.

**I did not add the sugar and the cocktail was wonderful. Save yourself some calories here and forget it.

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If non-alcoholic is your goal, try this Strawberry Lemonade. So refreshing!

This post is linked to:

Full Plate Thursday

Thursday Favorite Things
 Funtastic Friday
Best of the Weekend
Pink Saturday
Snickerdoodle Create Bake & Create

Grace at Home

Friday at the Fire Station
Create, Bake, Grow and Gather

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