Autumn Sangria

When I have a large crowd over, I like to have a House cocktail. It saves having a stocked bar, which I don't like to have with lots of teens around -- and almost all of the children in our family are teens now. (You never know when one of them will get a stupid idea.) So I create a House adult beverage (and we always have beer) that, usually, the women enjoy before the meal. In the summer I often make Sangria, either white or red, or another fruity drink.

For Thanksgiving, I wanted to create a Sangria that had a more autumnal or winter taste. I saw a recipe in a magazine recently, but when I went looking for it I could find nothing more than a memory. But that's o.k. Sangria isn't rocket science. I used dried fruits instead of fresh peaches and berries as I would in the summer, because I wanted a heavier taste. And I use a decent bottle of wine (one I would drink), but not something expensive, because it won't taste like it did straight out of the bottle.

Autumn Sangria

1 bottle merlot
1 c. orange juice (a quality orange juice)
1/4 c. honey
6 prunes
1/4 c. raisins and dried cherries -- or another favorite dried fruit
4 cinnamon sticks
1 apple, sliced
apples, oranges, sliced (optional decoration)
ginger ale

Combine wine with juice, honey, fruit and cinnamon sticks. Refrigerate, covered, at least 8 hours, as long as a few days. Strain liquid into a pitcher and add more apple and orange slices if desired -- it's really just decoration. Serve over ice (or straight up if you like) with a splash of ice cold ginger ale.

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