Did everyone try to sneak some of their Mom’s vodka slush from the ice cream bucket in the freezer while they were growing up? This is another oldy, but a goody.

Let’s be honest, you could essentially make any cocktail in large quantities and freeze it, so just let this inspire you to create your own summer slush cocktail.

Original Recipe:

9 cups water

2 cups sugar

Boil until the sugar is completely dissolved and let cool.

Add 2 cans of frozen juice concentrate and mix until incorporated. This is where the fun comes in. The traditional flavor my Mom used to make was lemonade and orange juice. I like to branch out and mix up the flavors each time.

2 cups of alcohol – The alcohol is typically vodka or gin, but I’ve used limoncello before. Consider using a flavored vodka that compliments your juice choices.

Freeze. Allow about 24 hours to freeze before serving.

Flavor ideas:

Margarita: 1 limeade, 1 lemonade with tequila and a splash of Cointreau or orange juice

Mojito: 2 limeade, a large bunch of mint leaves, add the frozen juice, mint and a couple ladles of your sugar water to a blender and blend until the mint is pureed – pour back into your container of sugar water, add rum (or for a Bootlegger use 1 limeade, 1 lemonade, mint and vodka)

Cosmopolitan: 1 cranberry, 1 limeade with citron vodka and a splash of cointreau

Berry Lemonade: 1 berry blend, 1 lemonade, citron vodka or limoncello, fresh raspberries

Gin Blend: Increase your water to 12 cups, 1 limeade, 1 lemonade, 1 orange juice, 3 cups of gin

To Serve:

Scoop the slush into a glass and top with a little soda. We usually keep the soda a mild flavor like: Sprite, 7 Up, Fresca or Squirt. A flavored bubbly water works well, too.

Tips:

I don’t use 2 cups of sugar… there is already a lot of sugar in the frozen concentrate and I find it gets too sweet. Try using 1 cup of sugar or even a sugar substitute.

This will attract bees. If you’re drinking outside, consider a cup with a lid or use Ball mason jars with lids and reusable straws like I did.

I like to make my slush early in the morning so I can mix it during the day while it’s freezing. This will keep it from turning into a solid chunk that you have to scrape every time you want a drink.

If it’s been several hours and your slush isn’t starting to freeze around the edges, your ratio of alcohol to water is too high. Try adding a little juice or a can of soda to the mix.

When we used to rent a lake cabin for a week every August, making a bucket of slush was the first thing I did after we unloaded the car.

I like to throw in a handful of fresh berries. Raspberries are really good because they break up when you mix the slush.

The last time I made this slush, I was short on time so instead of making the sugar water I used a 2 liter bottle of 7 Up. It worked really well.

Cheers! Stay cool.

What juice flavor combinations would you try?

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