Red, White and Blue Sangria {White Wine Sangria}

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Happy Independence Day!  Are you all planning anything exciting?  Family get togethers?  Beach picnics?  Stay at home and avoid the holiday crowds?  No matter what your holiday plans are I have a great 4th of July recipe for you.

What's a summer holiday without a refreshing signature drink?  We all need something nice and cold to sip on during the hot summer months.  This white wine sangria is seriously yummy and is a snap to put together.  And it's healthy since there's fruit involved, right?  Right??

I used a Reisling since I wanted the end result to be nice and sweet.  It was a great compliment to the strawberries! Make this at least a day in advance - two days would be best - and you will be rewarded with a beautiful red-tinged sangria that is loaded with tangy and sweet fruit flavor.

That sounded like a commercial for Starburst.

Of course fruits that are in season are going to have the best flavor, so feel free to switch ingredients to your taste.  Summer strawberries are at their peak, so take advantage! 

White Wine Sangria
1 bottle white wine (not too dry)
1 pint strawberries, cut into quarters
1 pint blueberries
1 pint raspberries
1 red apple, sliced
1 bottle sparkling water (Voss, Pellegrino)

In a large pitcher, combine wine and fruit.  Stir gently and let chill at least overnight.  Serve with a splash of sparkling water.

Nutella Shortbread Bites

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Who doesn't love cookies?  Nobody I know.  There's something so comforting and homey about warm cookies and a glass of ice cold milk that makes everything in the world disappear for just a bit.

For as long as I can remember, my mom and I have made shortbread cookies at Christmastime.  Tiny little bites of shortbread perfumed with almond extract and then rolled in powdered sugar... so delish.  I decided to tweak the recipe and bit and turn it into a chocolatey treat.  It was a great decision, I have to say.

These Nutella shortbread cookies are little bites of Heaven.  Don't believe me?  Make 'em.  I dare you not to love them.  I rolled half of them in powdered sugar, and half of them in a combination of powdered sugar and cocoa powder.  These babies are dangerously yummy.

Nutella Shortbread Bites
| Yields: approx. 48 cookies | Prep Time: 10 mins | Bake time: 15 mins. |
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 c Nutella
1/2 powdered sugar
1/2 c cocoa powder
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 c flour, sifted
1/2 tsp baking powder
Powdered sugar
Cocoa powder

Beat butter and Nutella until light and fluffy.  Sift the powdered sugar and cocoa powder into butter mixture and mix thoroughly.  Add in the egg yolk and vanilla, beating until smooth.  In a small bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder.  Then add to the wet mixture and mix until a soft dough is formed.  (Dough will be a bit crumbly.)  Knead the dough lightly.  Chill for several hours.

To bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Form the dough into teaspoon sized balls.  Note to self: take off your wedding rings prior to ball forming.  Bake for 15 minutes.  While the cookies bake, prepare two small bowls for rolling the hot cookies.  In one bowl pour about a cup of powdered sugar and set aside.  In the other bowl, pour 3/4 cup of powdered sugar and 1/2 cup of cocoa powder.  Stir until completely mixed.

The hot cookies are extremely delicate.  Gently roll the cookies a couple at a time in the powdered sugars, then set the cookies out on a baking rack to cool completely.  Store cookies in an airtight container.