Tuesday Happy Hour - In Honor of the Orange Bowl

by Sarah J. Gim, Posted Jan 3rd 2006 @ 5:59PM

mandarin orange martini Sure I love the holidays, and all the hype leading up to the New Year is very energizing, but really now, by 12:01 am on New Year's Day, I am so over all of it. The only thing that keeps me sane in that first week of the New Year? College bowl games.

I know we typically do Happy Hour on Fridays here at Slashfood, but I couldn't resist a couple of cocktails in honor of the Orange Bowl tonight in which Bobby Bowden faces off against Joe Paterno. Oops! I meant no. 22 Florida State plays no. 3 Penn State.

Sure you could pour yourself a 1:3 mix of vodka and orange juice and call it a Screwdriver, but that's too easy. These are the two winning-est coaches in college football, for garsh sake!

Make a Cosmic Orange with 3 parts orange vodka, 1 part Triple Sec, and a splash each of orange juice, lime juice, and cranberry juice. You can garnish with an orange slice or a twist, but come on, there are no garnishes in football! (Never mind that you're drinking it out of a martini glass.)

If you're having a little viewing party, then it might be easier to just throw together a Grand Mandarin in something perfect for the occasion, a giant punch BOWL. Combine ½ cup orange juice, ½ cup Grand Marnier, ½ cup Absolut Mandarin and 2 bottles of Champagne or sparkling wine (presumably leftover from New Year's Eve). Throw in some orange slices and chill.

Filed Under: Vegetarian, Vegan, Happy Hour, Ingredients, Drink Recipes
Tags: appetizers, cocktails, cosmo, cosmopolitan, drinking, drinks, football, fruit, happy hour, hors doeuvres, juice, liqueur, liquor, martini, orange bowl, screwdriver, southern states, vodka