Flavor of the Month: Zinfandel Ice

'Tis pity wine should be so deleterious, for tea and coffee leave us much more serious”

~ Lord Byron

After following Bake at 350's Flavor of the Month parties for several months, I now have a blog and am actually participating.  It probably sounds silly to say that I am nervous, but I have the greatest respect for Bridget and her baking.  Have you seen her cookies?  They are absolutely stunning.  I find myself just staring at the photos and drooling.  I have often wondered if I could be her next door neighbor.  I would gladly be a guinea pig for her creations.  Then again, that would also make it really hard to lose baby weight.  Oh well.

Back to this post... without further adieu (and just a few butterflies), may I present my contribution to this month's theme of Boozy... Zinfandel Ice.

When my husband and I were first married, we kept ending up with bottles of Merlot.  I can't remember why.  Maybe they were house-warming gifts.  Maybe they were wedding gifts.  Whatever the reason, we had quite a bit of wine in the house.  However, our tastes run toward the sweeter end of the spectrum.  Give me a Riesling or an Asti and I am a happy woman (add a hot bubble bath and an hour of quiet and I am even happier).  But Merlot... I can only drink it on a rare occasion.

[Pink Tea Warning:  Wine Aficionados should stop here, lest I offend.  Enjoy your glass of wine for its pure flavors and pretend you never heard of anyone turning it into a dessert.]

One day I came across a recipe for a Merlot Ice in my Southern Living Cookbook.  It was delicious, simple, and a great use of merlot.  While thinking about this month's challenge, I got to thinking about that old recipe.  However, I don't have any Merlot in my house right now (and there is a foot of snow outside, so I am not planning on picking any up).  But I do have a number of other wines, and since necessity is the mother of invention, the recipe has been reinvented based on my snow-bound pantry (and wine rack).

Ingredients:
3/4 cup White Zinfandel
1 cup water
1/4 cup sugar

Direction:
Boil the water and add to sugar, stirring until dissolved.  Allow to cool slightly.  Add wine.  Pour the liquid into a shallow pan, cover, and freeze until firm.  Once ready to serve, let stand for 5 minutes.  Scrape the mixture with a fork until fluffy crystals.

Yields 2 servings

This is such an easy recipe to customize with different wines.  Use a little more sugar with a drier wine and less sugar with a sweeter one.  You may also want to vary the amount of water depending on how full-bodied the wine is.  I am dying to try this with a Shiraz as well.

Keep in mind that the alcohol is not cooked out in this case.  My friend and I forgot this once and then wondered why we were feeling a little light-headed.  Have I mentioned that I can be a bit ditzy at times?

Hope you enjoy.  Let me know what versions you try. Pin It