Pears | 20something cupcakes

It’s not a secret that I love sangria.

It’s not a secret, and it’s really not that exciting. Us ladies, we like sangria. Not rocket science. Heck, most dudes I know will polish off a glass (pitcher?) or two if it’s put in front of them. Daniel certainly will, and that’s because of more than the fact that I make it so damn often, in every flavor combination I can dream up to go with every season, every type of menu, every type of, well, everything.

Yes, Daniel will polish off a pitcher of sangria because he likes it – quite possibly as much as I do.

But don’t get it twisted…he likes beer even better. You’d be disgusted to know how many beers he can throw back in a sitting. Let’s just say we don’t have enough pitchers in the house to make a fair comparison. So what happens when I concoct a beverage that combines the the best of both worlds?

Other than the obvious result – a super-crunk Daniel – “mangria” is born.

Ladies, don’t be fooled by the name – I think you’ll love this cocktail, too. Even if you don’t like beer, I think you’ll be into this. I mean, why didn’t we think of it sooner? The beer is a perfect vehicle to get a good sangria going. Blue Moon and citrus, as we all know, are already pretty much going steady, and the pear-vibe adds another crispy-sweet dimension. I used the Winter Abbey Ale – because hey, it is winter after all, and why not get totally seasonal here, what with the citrus and the pears? I’ve made it with the regular version as well, which is a bit lighter and less caramel-ly and just begging to be made on a hot summer day.

Some of you may have learned by now that I like to drink as I cook.

Usually, no one gets hurt. The food is always delicious, and sometimes I even like to think that the wine helps the cooking to flow together more perfectly. This time, however, our precious baby cobblers fell victim to my ways.

We had extra pears, and extra-hungry people – it’s how our family rolls – so I decided to double the recipe, or more precisely, to multiply it by 1.5 since that’s how many extra pears I had.

There is a lesson to be learned from this: Drinking and re-calculating recipes do no go hand in hand.

Lucky for me, the only ingredient I really screwed up here was the butter. I think I added a whole extra stick to my cobbler topping, and somehow, these sweet little bowls of mapley-pear goodness turned out okay. The whole family seemed to think that they turned out even better – don’t be fooled, they’d had lots of wine, too – and everyone happily ate them up, as well as the leftover {extra-buttery} dough. I mean, it’s butter – how bad can it be?

The cobblers did still taste good, but without my mishap I know they would have been perfect, with a much crunchier and crispier topping. My favorite thing about the recipe was the fact that it calls for individual ramekins. Sure, you could easily use one big dish for a cobbler, and it would be equally as delicious – but I find the miniature portions to be so much more adorable. The pear and maple flavor combination was also a winner, and I loved the heavy hand with the nutmeg. It’s truly a perfect recipe for fall, and it all comes together in a snap – perfect for a dinner party.

I’ll definitely be making these again, only next time I’ll be sticking to the recipe.

{Because we all know the wine isn’t going anywhere}

For the recipe, please check out Josie’s beyond-fabulous blog – it’s one of my all-time favorites!