This Festive Holiday Sangria Recipe Will Take the Edge Off

The holidays are a festive time of goodwill and celebrations — a time for family to gather together and share their love for one another. It’s a time when everything should look perfect and everyone should be content and you should always have a smile plastered on your face.

Well, okay ... Let's be real — the holidays are stressful and a lot of pressure. They're a time when unreachable perceptions put on the season can almost strangle you. But there is a way to take a bit of the edge off this season, and it’s called Sangria. Specifically, Bobby Flay from Food Network’s festive holiday sangria is just the right concoction for this time of the year, and is a perfect beverage for those family get-togethers that have you a bit uptight.

And the best thing is that it ain't too hard to make. So head to the store, pick up the ingredients and prepare to let your mind take a break for a little while. You can thank us in January.

Boby Flay's Holiday Sangria Recipe:

Ingredients

1 cup sugar
2 cinnamon sticks
1 cup cranberries, fresh or frozen and thawed
2 bottles fruity red wine
1/2 cup orange-flavored liqueur, such as Cointreau
1 Gala apple, cored and thinly sliced, a few slices reserved for garnish
1 slightly under-ripe Bartlett pear, cored and thinly sliced, a few slices reserved for garnish
1 small orange, halved and thinly sliced, a few slices reserved for garnish
1 tangerine, halved and thinly sliced, a few slices reserved for garnish

Directions: Combine the sugar with 1 cup water in small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook until the sugar has dissolved, 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the cinnamon sticks and let cool to room temperature.

Put the cranberries in a bowl and add the simple syrup along with the cinnamon sticks. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours. Strain, discarding the cranberries and cinnamon sticks.

Combine the wine, liqueur, and the apple, pear, orange and tangerine slices in a container with a tight fitting lid. Sweeten to taste with cranberry-cinnamon syrup. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours before serving. Garnish with fruit slices and serve. And watch as the stress fades away.

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