Juicing Cutie Mandarins have been the biggest delight in my juicing experience. But making Cutie Rita Margarita with these little mandarins has literally blown my mind. The flavor, the color, and the sweetness are just enough to make this a new classic. How restaurants don’t offer this is beyond me, because it’s good. If you like my other juice-inspired Rita Margaritas then you’re going to love this one too.Â
Juicing Method
When it comes to juicing mandarins this can get a little tricky since they’re kinda small. I prefer to use my slow fresh press juicer because I can quickly peel the mandarins and juice them. I usually make mandarin juice with a bit of ginger, but when I don’t have ginger I then use the juice to make margaritas. Another option to make mandarin juice is with a manual juice press or even a lemon squeezer. For these margaritas, I used my manual juice press to twist the juice out of these little cuties. It does take a bit longer to do because of the size of the fruit and if you’re doing it manually. But 2 mandarins should be enough juice to make this drink.
Other Agave Options
I personally love agave but haven’t bought it in a while. An alternative to using agave is honey, which is my favorite or even making homemade simple syrup. For the honey substitute, you simply use it 1 for 1 to replace the need for agave. But to make the simple syrup you just use equal parts of water and sugar, preferably ½ a cup of each. You then heat up in a saucepan over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. You only need a little for this recipe, so don’t feel pressure to make a lot.
Ingredients for Cutie Rita Margarita
- 1 shot of Mandarine Juice
- 2 shots of Tequila of your choice (reposado preferred)
- 1 shot of Orange Liqueur (Cointreau, Grand Marnier or Triple Sec)
- ½ shot of Lime Juice
- 1 tbsp Agave (optional)
- Ice
Decor Ingredients
- Margarita salt or kosher salt for rim
- ½ lime to wet the cup rim
- Sliced mandarine for cup rim
Recipe for Cutie Rita Margarita
- You will need about 2 mandarins cut in half, and 1 Lime cut in half.
- With a citrus juicer, press and twist the juice out of the mandarins, the lime and then put the juices to the side.
- Get your cocktail shaker or mixing cup and add the tequila, orange liqueur, lime juice, agave, and your shots of mandarine juice.
- I personally add some ice to the cocktail shaker to really get the drink going.
- For decor, use half lime to rub the rim of your margarita glass.
- Then on a small plate put a few shakes of salt on it to dip your lime rubbed glass to get salted.
- Lastly, add 5 ice cubes, pour your margarita in, and enjoy responsibly.
