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05th May 2020

Night in guide: How to spice up your evening

Brian Dillon

Staying in is the new going out. But there are ways you can spice things up and make sure your night in is super exciting and eventful.

Through what you cook, what you watch, what you indulge in and what you decide to do, you can create a night in that truly stands out from the rest.

We have teamed up with Old El Paso to give you a weekly night in guide to create the ultimate fiesta at home. Think delicious Mexican food, delightful Mexican cocktails and the best entertainment.

Night in guide: The ultimate fiesta at home

The Lovin team have been pretty hooked on Pose on Netflix. Set in the Harlem ball scene in the 80s, it is the perfect mix of heart and glamour. It will have you snapping your fingers and shedding a tear all in the same episode.

If you’ve already seen that, then we would definitely recommend Unorthodox, which follows the story of a young Hasidic Jewish woman who flees her life and her arranged marriage in Brooklyn to start a new life in Berlin.

 

Night in guide: The ultimate fiesta at home

Cocktails, anyone? Since you’re throwing the ultimate fiesta, we think some Mexican Margaritas are in order.

For 12 servings, you’ll need 325 ml orange-flavoured liqueur, 250 ml lime juice, 30 ml to 45 ml icing sugar, if desired, one litre of ice cubes (crushed), two limes (cut into wedges), 125 ml of coarse salt (if desired) and 150 ml of tequila.

Then, follow these steps:

Step 1: Place orange liqueur, lime juice, icing sugar and ice into a blender or food processor. Cover and blend until smooth.

Step 2: Spoon into non-metal freezer container. Cover and freeze until almost firm, approximately 120-150 minutes. If mixture freezes completely, let stand at room temperature about 30 minutes.

Step 3: Into blender or food processor, spoon orange liqueur mixture; blend until slushy.

Step 4: Rub rims of glasses with lime wedges; dip in salt to coat.

Step 5: Place 125 ml slush in each salt-rimmed glass; add 15ml to 30 ml tequila. Garnish with lime wedges.

mexican margaritas

Night in guide: The ultimate fiesta at home

If you’re getting tired of you’re bog-standard zoom quiz, then oh boy, I have a way you can spice it up.

Something we’ve noticed people doing is pulling up their friends’ old Facebook posts and quizzing the group on who said it. Although we would be overcome with horrific embarrassment, we also think that it’s a guaranteed way to provide moments of absolute hilarity.

Night in guide: The ultimate fiesta at home

The guys over at Old El Paso have some deliciously exciting dishes for you to whip together at home for the ultimate Mexican-themed night in. This week, we fancy ourselves some Grilled Beef Fajitas with Spicy Salsa, cooked in just 20 minutes!

For this, you’ll need one pack of 8 Old El Paso™ Flour Tortillas 10’’, one Fajita Seasoning Mix, 600g rump steak (finely sliced), a few cherry tomatoes with the stem still attached, a large onion (finely chopped), one pepper (cut into fine strips), one jalapeno green chilli (again, finely chopped), two limes, two tbsp of honey and olive oil.

Here are the steps you’ll need to follow for some super tasty and satisfying Grilled Beef Fajitas with Spicy Salsa:

Step 1: Preheat the BBQ.

Step 2: Place the tomatoes on the BBQ, remove them when the skin starts to turn black.

Step 3: Mix beef with olive oil and the Fajita Seasoning.

Step 4: Brown half the meat (300g) on the BBQ for four minutes. Repeat this step with the second half.

Step 5: Add the chopped onion and pepper and leave for one more minute. Add the juice of one lime.

Step 6: Grill the chilli separately on the BBQ. Mix it with the tomatoes, 2 tbsp of honey and 2 tsp of lime juice to create a deliciously spicy salsa.

Step 7: Heat the tortillas as indicated on the pack or place them on the BBQ for 10 seconds.

And then it’s time to roll ’em up and dig in!

 Make your own guacamole to go on the side! Simply mash two avocados, pour in half a jar of Old El Paso™ Restaurante Make Your Own Guacamole, and mix together. You can also add in chillis to give it that extra bit of spice if that tickles your fancy.

Night in guide: How to spice up your evening

Night in guide: The ultimate fiesta at home

Once you’ve had your fix of delicious Mexican goodness, it’s time for something devilishly sweet to finish it all off. And we think you should definitely try these super simple one-minute brownies.

You’ll need 2tbsp cocoa powder, 2tbsp flour, 1/4 cup milk, 1tbsp maple syrup, 1/4 tsp baking powder and chocolate chips.

Warm up the milk, put it into a jug with maple syrup and peanut butter and mix together. Add the cacao powder, flour, baking powder, chocolate chips, and fudge pieces to the mix. Mix that together and pour about half into a cup. Microwave that for one minute before topping it off with some icecream.

one minute brownie

I don’t know about you, but that sounds like a pretty fun and delicious fiesta at home.

Keep an eye on our Instagram this week, where some familiar faces will be hosting their own fajita night! Make sure to check out Old El Paso for more fantastic Mexican recipes.

And head here to find out how you can win your very own Fajita Friday hamper for the ultimate night in.

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