Frozen Pisco Sours

Elsie and I both came back from our trip to Chile completely in LOVE with pisco sours. They seemed to be on the menu everywhere we went. Most places had their own take on this classic cocktail, which usually involves pisco, lime or lemon juice, egg white, and bitters. Pisco is a type of brandy produced throughout Chile and Peru. It's not a spirit that I see often where I live, so I think that was part of the appeal as well. Vacation drink!

Our very favorite pisco sour that we had turned out to be quite different. The owner of this tiny beach restaurant we were at for lunch one day told me that they had the very best pisco sour. So of course, we had to try that. And you know what, she was right! It was amazing although totally different from any other we had sampled before. It was very lime-y with little bits of lime zest floating throughout it. It was served in a sugar-rimmed margarita glass and was basically the consistency of a slushy. I know that probably sounds VERY strange to anyone who drinks pisco sours often, but it was SO delicious and the absolute perfect beach-side cocktail. So this version of a pisco sour is very much inspired by that one. :)

We are also stoked to be working with Vitamix again this year. We found out that they now offer their blender in a copper tone, and I about died of happiness. Ha! I know it might seem silly to be so excited about the color of your appliance, but look at this way: I've spent quite a bit of time and money giving my kitchen lots of TLC. We installed a new tile backsplash as well as painted all our kitchen cabinets since moving in. So it's absolutely awesome for one of the appliances that I always have sitting out on my counter top, in full view, to be so pretty! Makes me even more excited to wake up and make our morning smoothies. :) Right now, you can find these beauties exclusively at Williams-Sonoma.

But this post isn't about smoothies. It's about a super frothy and amazing tasting cocktail that will make you so ready for summer to start.

Frozen Pisco Sour, makes one.

1 1/2 oz. Pisco
2 tablespoons sugar
juice from one lime (about 3/4 oz.)
zest from one lime
1 egg white
1 to 1 1/2 cups of ice

In a blender combine the sugar, lime juice, and lime zest. Blend until the sugar dissolves. Add the pisco, egg white, and ice. Blend until combined and very frothy.

This is a very simple cocktail to make, but I've also got some additional notes for you to consider. First, as I mentioned, pisco isn't a spirit that I see often where I live. So I was only able to buy a Peruvian pisco. I suspect that the majority of the pisco I had in Chile was, well, from Chile. I'm not an expert, but I was reading more about pisco online and most sources seem to indicate that Chilean pisco tends to be sweeter than Peruvian. I mention this simply because if you end up buying a Chilean pisco, you may consider scaling back the sugar in this recipe a little. But just give your pisco a sip and see what you think. :)

Second, you can see in the photos that I peeled my lime wedge and let the blender do the zesting for me. If you go this route, take care as you peel to try to avoid as much of the white pith under the green exterior as you can. This part can be a bit bitter, so you don't want tons of it in your cocktail. If you don't feel confident with your peeling skills, just zest with a box grater or zester if you have one.

And the third thing I want to mention is regarding the egg white. Egg white is a pretty common ingredient in cocktails, especially older/classic cocktails. As air gets incorporated into the egg white, either by the blender like in this recipe, or from shaking a cocktail, it makes the egg white very frothy and will impart this texture to your drink. If raw egg white just isn't something you feel comfortable consuming though—no worries. I made this cocktail without the egg white as well, and it's still very, very tasty. It will just make the consistency a little denser and more like a slushy (think frozen margarita).

You could definitely double or triple this recipe and blend all at once if you are making these for a small group. I garnished mine with a sugar rim and a lime rose, but you could add a lime wedge or wheel or a sprig of mint to dress it up a bit instead. Add a dash of Angostura bitters to the top if you like, totally optional though. Thanks for letting me share a new favorite cocktail with you all! xx. Emma

Credits // Author and Photography: Emma Chapman. Photos edited with A Beautiful Mess actions.