Limes

I love limes. I love their bright green color. I love the way they smell when you cut into them. Sometimes I even buy them just as a decoration. And, of course, I love how they taste in a margarita. 

I realize I have become somewhat of an expert on limes.  I always want the ripest ones when I make a margarita. Limes mature from green to yellow, so I squeeze them when they’re between green and yellow. I also like my Mexican hand-squeezer, instead of an electric juicer. The hand squeezer crushes the skin and the skin’s oils mix in to make the juice more complex. 

It matters to me too that it is freshly squeezed and not store-bought. I have found that freshly squeezed lime juice actually mellows a bit so I don’t hesitate to keep it in the refrigerator for a couple of days after squeezing.

I guess that's why we made sure there was a lime on our Sal de Margarita hand-embroidered bags.

The Sal de Margarita spirit

We love every one of our Sal del Mar bags that we have designed over the past six years since we started Sal del Mar. Each of our bag designs have been hand-embroidered by a group of women in the small village in the Sierra Madre, Occidental, Mexico who benefit from the sale of Sal del Mar. What is amazing is that no matter how many they make, each one has been embroidered with special care and displays their artistic talent and craftsmanship.  The detail and colors are so exquisitely done. We think it captures “the margarita spirit.” 

We celebrate our Sal de Margarita... and on Monday celebrate National Margarita Day! 

Our Favorite Margarita

April is almost over and that means Cinco de Mayo is just days away. We know that there are a lot of Margarita recipes out there but we think you should try one that our friend, David Haynes, served us recently. It is also a perfect recipe for a crowd because you can make up large batches in advance and then just have the guests serve themselves by adding the tequila to the shaker to make up their individual drinks.

David Haynes

Osvaldo Vazquez Campa

We caught David sipping his Naranja Margarita at our local Coco stand in San Carlos, Sonora, Mexico. He was served one of Osvaldo Vazquez Campa's famous Marisco y Coco.  It is a thrilling event to watch Valdo chop the top of the coconut with his huge machete, pour the water into a plastic bag, tie with a rubber band and add a straw to drink it. He then adds your choice of fresh fish to the hollowed out coconut.  We had a shrimp coco made with Clamato juice, shrimp, lime juice, shreds of coconut and what Valdo called black salsa (better known to us as soy sauce!)

If you can't find a coco stand, try David's Naranja Margarita with homemade tortilla chips sprinkled with Sal del Mar and salsa. 

David's Naranja Margarita (recipe for one cocktail)

Sal de Margarita
l lime wedge
1 1/2 oz. of white tequila
1/2  oz. Cointreau
2 oz. fresh orange juice
1 oz. lime juice
Grand Marnier (optional)
6 to 10 ice cubes

Spread Sal de Margarita on a small plate. Moisten half the rim of a martini glass with lime and then dip into the Sal de Margarita to crust just half the rim.

In a cocktail shaker, combine the tequila, Cointreau, orange juice and lime juice. Cover and shake it a lot (tiny ice crystals should appear) until frothy and cold. Strain into the Sal de Margarita-crusted glass. Add a "floater" of Grand Marnier to top and serve.

David's Naranja Margarita (recipe for a pitcher of Margaritas)

2 cups fresh squeezed orange juice
1 cup lime juice
1 1/2 cups white tequila
1/2 cup Cointreau
Grand Marnier (optional)

Use Sal de Margarita to crust the rims of martini glasses. Make the pitcher of the ingredients. When ready to serve stir and add to a cocktail shaker half full of ice. Shake and strain into the Sal de Margarita rimmed glasses.  Add a "floater" of Grand Marnier. Repeat for remaining margaritas.

Sal de Margarita

Just 16 days 'til Cinco de Mayo

We  are getting ready for Cinco de Mayo and are thinking back almost 3 years ago when we presented our first Sal del Margarita gourmet sea salt design to our customers. We are really proud of the design and the intricate hand-embroidered bags, made by the women of Sabinito, a small village in the Sierra Madre Occidental. They help support their families with the money they receive and take such pride in their work.  

Sal del Mar and our embroiders have developed a fantastic partnership. 

The salt inside is perfect for crusting the rim of a margarita glass and the salt and packaging make it a unique gift to take to a Cinco de Mayo party as a hostess gift this timeof year.

The Art of Salting A Margarita Glass

      For Margarita lovers...

Cinco de Mayo, Margaritas and More ...

I love Cinco de Mayo. I’ve always celebrated!  It has meant mixing up margaritas, making tacos and guacamole and having a party or going out to Casa Molina, a great Mexican restaurant in Tucson, Arizona. It was a "big deal" around our house, rivaling St. Patrick's Day. 

When I moved to Mexico I heard that Cinco de Mayo was not celebrated here (except in Puebla where the holiday is called El Día de la Batalla de Puebla) since it is a celebration that originated in the Mexican-American communities in the United States to commemorate Mexican heritage and pride. 

But...it isn't just in Puebla. Our town of Alamos celebrates with parades, cowboys in white hats riding down our cobblestone streets, pretty girls dancing, lots of beer and in the arroyo - dancing horses.  The video shows it way better than words. 

Beer seems to be the drink of the day but I am still going to serve up good old-fashioned margaritas (the Grand Marnier is traditional, right?)  Now these aren't the ones that are made with a lot of sugar and imitation lime juice.  This is a truer Margarita that uses the sweet orange liqueur and orange juice for all the sweetness it needs and fresh limes.  So don't substitute!

Moisten the rim of a martini or margarita glass with the cut lime...
Spread Sal de Mar on a small plate
Dip the moistened rim of the glass into the salt until evenly crusted.

Margarita Mixture:
2 oz. Milagro Silver Tequila (or any blanco tequila)
2 oz. Cointreau (not Triple Sec)
2 oz. fresh lime juice
1 oz. fresh orange juice

Garnish:
Lime slices
1/2 oz. Grand Marnier

Add margarita mixture to a cocktail shaker.  Add ice and cover. Shake thoroughly to chill the mixture. Strain into into a Sal del Mar crusted glass with or without ice. Garnish with a slice of lime and the splash of Grand Marnier. Makes one cocktail.

Salud!