Drinks & Cocktails

Orange Crush

October 17, 2014

You may remember that a few weekends back my friend Shannon from Bake. Frost. Repeat. came to visit me in Nashville and we ate in a bunch of new spots around town. When we were planning her trip, I asked her what Tennessee’s signature cocktail was for football games and to my surprise (more like shock and horror), they don’t have one! What?! Alabama has several, most notably being the Yellow Hammer, so I took it on as my mission to find a cocktail for those UT fans. Despite my feelings for their football team, no team should be left without a signature cocktail! My version of the Orange Crush was born and I must admit I did a pretty bang up job. It’s a lovely shade of UT orange, it’s absolutely delicious, and goes down dangerously easy. For UT fans, it’s perfect. It’s orange and you’re crushing it. For non-UT fans is perfect. Think of it as you’re crushing the big orange. Now everyone can enjoy this on game day!

Orange Crush

So, how’s it taste?

This cocktail started out with us experimenting between using Sprite and, you guessed it, Orange Crush. While the Orange Crush version had a better color, it was way too sweet. We decided the version with Sprite was most tasty. We clinked our glasses and settled in for some football. The following weekend, I wanted to make the drink again, but wanted to try to make it more of an orange color. At first I thought I might add a few drops of red food coloring, but then I spied my bottle of Eli Mason grenadine and thought that would be better.

Orange Crush

I added two small splashes and it turned the drink to the perfect shade of orange. But how would it taste? HOLY. MOLY. Talk about taking a pretty fantastic cocktail and turning into the bee’s knees with one ingredient. Eli Mason grenadine is the best tasting grenadine I’ve ever had. To be honest, grenadine has always been an afterthought for me and nothing very special. Not any more! It cut down on the acidity from the orange juice and added this touch of sweet, but not too much. Stay tuned for an upcoming post on more tastiness with Eli Mason!

Shannon & Leah

So whether you’re cheering for the big orange or wanting to crush the orange or you don’t give a crap about football, I hope you enjoy this cocktail! Cheers!

Yield: 1 serving

Orange Crush

Ingredients:

1 oz. vodka
1 oz. triple sec
orange juice
lemon-lime soda (I use Sprite)
grenadine (I use Eli Mason)

Directions:

1. In a glass, add the vodka and triple sec with 3-4 ice cubes. Fill the glass to about 3/4 full with orange juice. Top with a big splash of lemon-lime soda and a small splash of grenadine. Stir and drink!

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  • Shannon+@+Bake.+Frost.+Repeat.. October 17, 2014 at 10:21 am

    Can I just tell you that this drink is perfect for those 11am-12noon games that UT has been having this season. And my heart is all warm and fuzzy that you would even do a post involving UT and orange. 🙂
    You will be making (and drinking) these during the game NEXT week, right? 😉
    Oh, and GO BIG ORANGE!!

    • Leah Short October 17, 2014 at 7:14 pm

      Fo sho! I mean it’s got OJ in it, sounds like breakfast to me! 😉 Of course I’ll be drinking this game a week from Saturday…while I’m watching the Tide CRUSH that big orange! 🙂

  • Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice October 17, 2014 at 3:07 pm

    This orange crush sounds like the perfect way to start out the weekend! Love how easy this is, too. Yum!

  • Kelly - Life Made Sweeter October 17, 2014 at 4:06 pm

    This orange crush is such a pretty cocktail! Love that you made a drink for UT fans, it sounds fabulous and perfect way to kick start the weekend 🙂

  • Christin @ Blue Crab Martini October 17, 2014 at 6:02 pm

    What a fabulous drink!! I liked it so much that I’m featuring it on my blog’s weekly Facebook “Friday Happy Hour”. Your pictures are gorgeous and I know my readers will love this drink too.

    Have a great weekend!

    Here’s a link to my FB page if you want to see the post: https://www.facebook.com/bluecrabmartini

    • Leah Short October 17, 2014 at 7:11 pm

      Thanks, Christin! So nice of you feature it for Friday Happy Hour! Cheers!

  • Dannii+@+Hungry+Healthy+Happy October 20, 2014 at 10:45 am

    This sounds like my perfect cocktails!
    I didn’t know you were in Nashville. I shall be travelling around the states next year and Nashville is top of my list!

    • Leah Short October 20, 2014 at 1:13 pm

      I am! You’ll have to let me know when you’re here and we can meet up for a cocktail or two!