Cranberry Pomegranate Sangria

Mondays are bad enough, but when you have a food hangover, they’re even worse.  But, the food hangover was well worth it! Thanksgiving dinner, part I went off without a hitch, and we now have enough left overs to feed an army – serioulsy.  So many leftovers. OMG.

All the essentials – butter, sangria, turkey, and mustaches

But I’m anxious to share some recipes with you that I really think will add some zing to your t-day dinner!

In the last few  years, I’ve come to realize that cocktails are equally as important as Turkey & Stuffing on T-day, so I tried to think of a festive signature bevvie to serve alongside the usual beer & wine. And let me tell you, this Cranberry Pomegranate Sangria was a HIT!  I will say that it sat for over 24 hours, which I believe it what made it as tasty as it was.  Sangria really is it’s best when it has time to chill and let all the flavors meld together.

So THAT means that you still have time to:

1) go get your ingredients

2) find a big old pitcher to put it in

3) give it at least 24 hours to chill to perfection

Cranberry Pomegranate Sangria
*Adapted from Food Network (Bobby Flay) & Deep South Dish

INGREDIENTS

2 bottles of red wine of your choice
(I used Shiraz)

2 cups cranberry juice

1 cup brandy

1/2 cup triple sec

1/2 cup simple syrup

1 cup OJ

1  bottle of sparkling pomegranate juice
(Trader Joe’s has a really nice one or you could use pomegranate flavored seltzer water or even just sprite if you can’t find either of those!)

1 bag of cranberries

3-4 oranges, sliced

1) Combine all ingredients except the sparkling juice in a large container.  Let chill in the fridge for at least 4-6 hours, but as I said, overnight is best.

2) Just before ready to serve, add the sparkling juice to the container (or you can pour a little bit in each glass and then fill the rest of the glass with sangria)

*please note that I actually doubled the recipe for the large container pictured above

Such a fun and festive beverage, not just for Thanksgiving but Christmas too!  Trust me, if there was any leftover, I’d totally be pouring myself a tall glass when I got home 🙂