Mexican Happy Hour // Beer Margaritas
Happy Hour is my favorite time or meal, if you will, of the day. I would much rather have a bunch of different yummy nibbles and wine earlier in the evening aka Happy Hour than one giant meal. Then, this thought came to me the other day… What does Covid mean for the future of cheese boards? Will we ever be able to eat off of the same cheese and appetizer spread again? Sadly, I don’t know, but don’t you fret – I have the answer and it is just in time for Cinco De Mayo festivities.
I hosted a social distanced Mexican Happy Hour for my family with individual appetizer platters to celebrate both of my future sister-in-laws birthdays. I kept it super simple and basically just put everything Mexican Trader Joes has to offer on a platter for each couple. That included:
- Mini Chicken Tacos
- Black Bean and Cheese Taquitos
- Chipotle Shrimp (an addition from my chef of a brother, Michael)
- Jicama Sticks
- Yellow and Blue Corn Tortilla Chips
- Elote Corn Chip Dippers
- Guacamole, Pico De Gallo and Salsa
Each couple having their own platter meant that we could maintain our distance and weren’t sharing any germs fighting over who get the last taquito. Trader Joes has so many great and yummy options perfect for this occasion. You can find both the Mini Chicken Tacos and Black Bean and Cheese Taquitos in the frozen section and they are both really good!
While each couple seemed to enjoy and demolish their Mexican appetizer platter, the highlight of the evening was Megan’s Beer Margaritas. I know I rave about her Skinny White Claw Margaritas, but these Beer Margaritas are the real OGs. You guys – I won’t even tell you how many I had. We broke them in for the Spring/Summer and they are here to stay. Hurry and whip up a batch for Cinco De Mayo. Here’s what you need:
Ingredients
- 4 12 oz bottles cold light-flavored beer (we use Corona)
- 1 cup (8 oz) tequila
- 1 12 oz frozen limeade concentrate, thawed
- lime wedges
- kosher salt, for rimming glasses (if desired)
Directions
In a large pitcher, combine the beer, tequila and limeade. Rub a lime wedge around the rim of each glass and dip it in the salt. Pour the margarita into the glass over ice and garnish with a lime wedge.
On the margarita subject, because I just recently started making them at home, I hadn’t bought tequila in years. But, after I polished off the old bottle of Patron in our liquor cabinet making Megan’s Skinny Margaritas, I needed to get more. To my surprise, tequila is expensive! It probably isn’t expensive on a per drink basis given we usually just drink one shot at time, but it definitely makes my grocery bill seem a lot larger. Anyways, Laura found a great option! I asked her what kind of tequila was in their margarita bandit delivery (because they were so delicious) and she shared this Campo Azul tequila she found at Trader Joes for $12.99! I highly recommend the Campo Azul; I can’t tell the difference between it and Patron (in my margaritas at least) and it definitely beats the Patron price point.
Happy Cinco De Mayo! Pretty convenient it falls on a Taco Tuesday this year. Check out these delicious chicken tacos if you don’t know what you are doing for dinner yet. I am already looking forward to hosting my next social distance happy hour – individual cheese boards!
