10/14/2016

Author CeCe Osgood Shares the Secrets of a Scrumptious Margarita
Thank you Monique for letting me post a little ditty to celebrate my new chick lit cozy mystery series. The first book in the series is MARGARITAS & MURDER: A Sunny Truly Mystery.

The main character, Sunny, is an apprentice private investigator in Austin, Texas. I chose Austin for the setting of the book because I lived there for many years, and it’s where I tasted my first margarita.

When I was in college in Austin, my pals and I always enjoyed Friday night gatherings at a Tex-Mex restaurant that served okay food, but fantastic margaritas. They were super limey, ice-cold and refreshingly delicious when served with spicy tamales, sour cream enchiladas or cheesy nachos. But as good as those margaritas were, the best I’ve ever had was just recently at a friend’s house. She often vacations in a lovely town in Central Mexico and brought back a terrific recipe for margaritas.

The first thing she told me was to get a top-notch (expensive) tequila because then you wouldn’t get a headache if you over imbibed. (FYI: I was staying at her house that night so no drinking and driving as that is never a good idea.)

Here is my friend’s recommendation for a great tequila: Gran Centenario Plata. I had never of it before, so the writer in me wanted to do a little research.

Gran Centenario Plata (owned by Jose Cuervo) is 100% blue agave silver tequila. Growing up in Texas, I’d heard of blue agave, but I couldn’t really tell you what it is.

A digression: Agave is also the name of a character in Greek mythology and means “illustrious.” She was the daughter of Cadmus, the founder and king of the city Thebes – the major rival of ancient Athens. Agave was a follower of Dionysus, the god of the grape harvest, wine and intoxication.

Returning to the subject of tequila, I found another factoid. Unlike other plata (silver) tequilas, the Gran Centenario Plata rests for 28 days in French Limousin oak barrels. Intrigued, I looked it up and it turns out that the oak trees come from a region in France called Limousi. Duh. I had imagined something more flamboyant.

Still, I wondered why the Limousi oak barrel was so important. Then I read that the storage in these oak barrels softens the tang of the alcohol giving it a smooth finish, and it is the smooth finish that makes this tequila so superior. And expensive. I have had my share of cheap tequila burning like a slice of hot pizza in my mouth, so yeah, smooth is better.

Now, how about that recipe?
First, of course, is to fill your blender with ice.
Then pour in:
6 oz. tequila
2 oz. triple sec
The juice of six limes
Then add Simple Syrup to taste.
(To make simple syrup: add one cup of sugar and one cup of water in a saucepan. Heat until dissolved.)

I’ve gotten to where I don’t care much for salt on the rim of my glass, but if you do, sprinkle the salt, kosher for a lighter taste, into a shallow plate.

Moisten the rim of your glass with a cut lime (or lemon) wedge. Notch the wedge for it to slip easily around the rim. Then turn the glass upside down and dip it into the salt. Sssh, here’s a secret. If you prefer a less salty taste, mix sugar into the plate of salt, say 50-50, and then dip the moistened rim into it.

This recipe is for lime margaritas. For fruity drinks, simply blend the fruit first, then add the ice and other ingredients and blend until smooth.

For this Texan, enjoying a scrumptious margarita with spicy cheese nachos topped with thin slices of avocado is divine.
(There’s a legend in Texas that if you drink too much tequila you might see God. That’s never happened to me, but then I don’t drink more than one or two margaritas. If it does happen to you, do let me know, and please say “howdy” for me.)

Margaritas & Murder: A Sunny Truly Mystery is FREE on Amazon – Friday Oct. 14 thru Tues. Oct. 18. (Pacific Standard Time USA)

AMAZON
AMAZON UK

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

CeCe Osgood’s debut novel, THE DIVORCED NOT DEAD WORKSHOP, was awarded a Crowned Heart for Excellence by InD’tale magazine. It’s a chick lit romantic comedy about a dating workshop during a cruise to Cabo. www.myBook.to/TDNDW

Her new work is the Sunny Truly Mystery series. The first book is MARGARITAS & MURDER, which is FREE on Amazon from Friday Oct. 14 thru Tuesday Oct. 18, 2016. (Pacific Standard Time USA).
The second book in the series, MERLOT & MURDER, is also available on Amazon. www.myBook.to/MerlotCozy
Find CeCe Osgood here: WEBSITE    FACEBOOK….TWITTER