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I'm sharing my favorite eats, drinks, and sweets for Cinco de Mayo this year!
Many of you Sweeties in my newsletter asked for me to give round ups of my favorite recipes, so I figured why not do that for every holiday or occasion I can think of?
When we think of Cinco de Mayo's menu, it's like dipping our toes into summer. Grilling, cold drinks, tacos. But before we get into the goods, you know I have to teach you a little something.
Like what even is Cinco de Mayo about? And why is it so popular in the States?!
What is Cinco de Mayo?
Cinco de Mayo is a holiday that celebrates the Mexican army’s May 5, 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the French-Mexican War, also known as Battle of Puebla Day. It's a relatively minor holiday in Mexico. And no, it doesn't celebrate Mexican Independence Day, just the Battle of Puebla.
While it seems kinda silly that the U.S. gets so hyped up about a holiday that is so minor in its country of origin, I like to think of it as a celebration of culture and heritage. A semi-mainstream holiday where we get to learn more about Mexican culture.
Enjoy these recipes and let me know your favorite Mexican dishes in the comments!
Drinks
This easy paloma recipe uses fresh grapefruit juice and club soda for a refreshing citrus sipper that's perfect for Cinco de Mayo.
This easy, light and refreshing pineapple agua fresca is made from blended pineapple, water and sugar! It’s the perfect non-alcoholic tropical drink to cool down with!
With only 4 ingredients, this spicy Passion Fruit Margarita is the perfect way to celebrate passion fruit while it's in season! It's a well-balanced, vibrant drink for relaxing and enjoying.
A mangonada is a vibrant and delicious drink made with juicy mangoes, chamoy, and chile-lime seasoning. It's the perfect balance between sweet, sour, spicy, salty, and umami. Try making your very own version at home.
Classic West Texas ranch water is a refreshing, easy cocktail to make and we're putting a smoky twist on it with mezcal and a touch of tajin.
This grapefruit margarita recipe is made with sparkling grapefruit juice, tequila, triple sec, lime juice, and a splash of pomegranate juice for added sweetness and tang!
Cantaritos are a popular Mexican cocktail recipe made with tequila, citrus fruits, salt, and bubbly grapefruit soda. Each one is sweet, tangy, and incredibly refreshing!
This is not your average Strawberry Margarita. You roast the strawberries with a little sugar, making them completely juicy and jammy to use in your cocktail.
This Tamarind Mezcal Mule combines smoky agave-based mezcal with tamarind syrup before the glass gets topped off with ginger beer.
Savory Dishes
These super easy vegetarian enchiladas are filled with a simple lightly spiced creamy mixture of black beans, corn, and creamy cheese. They're topped with a delicious red sauce and tons of melty, bubbly cheese. They come together in 30 minutes for a great weeknight dinner for the family!
Mexican Street Corn Sweet Potato Fries are inspired by one of my favorite foods - Elotes! These Mexican Street Corn Sweet Potato Fries have a delicious crema with lime juice, topped with cotija cheese, and cilantro.
If you're looking for a little variety in your tortilla repertoire, blue corn tortillas are a great option. They have a slightly sweet flavor, they're gluten free, and have a beautiful color that will set them apart from your average white corn or flour tortilla. Plus, they're perfect for tacos, burritos, nachos, and quesadillas.
Loaded with black beans, corn, avocado and smoky, spicy honey chipotle chicken, drizzled in a tangy cilantro lime dressing, it's the perfect hearty salad for your Cinco de Mayo celebration.
If you're looking for a delicious and easy-to-make Mexican dish, look no further than carnitas street tacos! These street tacos are made with crispy slow cooker pork carnitas, topped with onions and cilantro, and they're perfect for serving at parties or as a main course. Plus, they're really easy to make - anyone can do it!
This quick and easy 4-ingredient guacamole comes together in about 5 minutes! What’s great about this recipe is that you can serve it as is, or use it as a base and pick your add-ins!
This fresh and vibrant mango habanero salsa packs a punch! The sweetness of a fresh juicy mango, herbaceous cilantro and onions, kissed with spicy habanero is absolutely delicious.
Perfect for the warmer months, this instant pot birria recipe makes for the most flavorful, tender beef for birria tacos in no time without heating up your kitchen! Use the shredded beef to make juicy, drippy, pan-fried birria quesa-tacos dipped in that savory birria broth.
Pozole Rojo is a rich Mexican stew, made with pork and hominy, and loaded with fresh toppings. The perfect bowl of comfort for any time.
These Air Fryer Shrimp Tacos are the perfect light, fresh, and easy Mexican dish. The shrimp are tossed in a sweet and smoky dry rub and take less than 10 minutes to cook in the air fryer.
Sweets
An easy, creamy, decadent mango margarita cheesecake recipe with swirls of mango coulis, a shot of tequila, and all your favorite margarita flavors.
Tres Leches Paletas are a frozen treat with the flavors of the popular Latin American tres leches cake. This recipe is made with three kinds of milk, just like the original dessert, and flavored with almond extract. Your Cinco de Mayo party isn’t complete without them.
Chocoflan is a Mexican dessert that combines chocolate cake and flan. It is also referred to as 'Impossible Cake', because the layers reverse during the baking process.
These colorful Mexican Paletas, made with four ingredients are easy to make and refreshing on hot summer days.
These margarita macarons are a classic macaron shell filled with a tequila lime buttercream; a delicious, lightly boozy treat!
Pack these delicious homemade cupcakes with sprinkles and watch them spill out when you take a bite!
Juicy chunks of watermelon infused with margarita cocktail ingredients make for a refreshing, tequila-spiked summertime treat.
Chocolate Tres Leches Cake take the popular Latin American dessert and makes it more decadent with a malted chocolate milk bath.
Fresas con Crema or Strawberries and cream is a fruity and refreshing traditional Mexican dessert made with fresh strawberries in a creamy, sweet and tangy sauce. This easy no-bake dessert recipe is made with 5 ingredients in only 10 minutes!
Ever wish you could have your margarita and eat it too? Well look no further than these boozy margarita cupcakes topped with tequila lime frosting!
Eden Westbrook is the recipe developer, writer, and photographer behind Sweet Tea and Thyme. A classically trained chef, Eden has inspired home cooks into the kitchen with cultural comfort foods, easy family-friendly eats and sweets, and glorious spreads for date night and entertaining since 2015.
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