Servings: about 6 / Prep Time: 20 minutes / Cook Time: 30 minutes / Chill Time: 1-2 days
This sparkling fall sangria is here just in time to kick off the cooler weather and the holiday season. It’s a step up from your typical fresh fruit sangrias, because the pears and apples are roasted to develop a deeper, kind of caramelized flavor. They bring a warm, comforting note to the sangria, and it’s so delicious!
This recipe uses one bottle of white wine, orange liqueur, and brandy (apricot, pear, or apple brandy all work!)for the boozy components. I chop two pears and one apple, toss them all in brown sugar, then toss them on a baking sheet with a couple of cinnamon sticks to roast. Combine everything, let it chill out in the refrigerator for a couple of days, then stir in some fresh orange juice right before serving. Strain out the fruit, divide between glasses, then top with ginger beer!
Ingredients for Roasted Pear & Apple Sangria:
- 2 Anjou or Bartlett Pears
- 1 Honeycrisp, Cosmic Crisp, or Fuji Apple
- 3 tbsp. Light Brown Sugar
- 2 Cinnamon Sticks
- 1 bottle (750 ml.) Dry White Wine (like Italian Pinot Grigio)
- 1/4 cup (2 oz.) Orange Liqueur (like Cointreau or Grand Marnier)
- 1/4 cup (2 oz.) Apricot Brandy (or apple or pear brandy)
- 1/2 medium Orange
- Ginger Beer, Club Soda, or Sparkling Wine (like Cava), to top each glass
- Time + Patience (only about 2-3 days :))
What is Sangria?
Sangria is really just a form of punch that originated in Spain. It should consist of wine, fruit, and whatever other fun ingredients you feel like tossing into it. Because it is a Spanish concept, the fruits usually vary by what is in season in Spain. Clearly other cultures have adapted this concept, and transformed sangria to fit their own seasonal fruits and flavors.
Sangria can be made with red wine or white wine, and it’s totally up to you to decide your preference! There is no right or wrong way to make it, as long as there’s wine and fruit. 🙂 And there’s no wrong way to drink it, either. Strain it, leave the fruit in, add some sparkling water (or wine), or ginger beer (like in this recipe.) As long as you like it, that’s all that matters!
When we lived in North Carolina, we were about an hour south of Raleigh. Raleigh is home to a lot of great bars and restaurants, and is home to Ashley Christensen, who won the James Beard award for Outstanding Chef in the U.S. in 2019. Her amazing diner, Poole’s, was truly one of our favorite places to eat when we were in Raleigh. It’s just the epitome of absolute comfort food, and I LOVED it. She wrote a cookbook based on the recipes from Poole’s, and included a Baked Apple Sangria in the book. The recipe is awesome, but I wanted to create my own version of a baked fruit sangria, and scale it down to fit my Friendsgiving Supper Club Series that’s centered around recipes that make 6-8 servings.
I wrote a super similar recipe for a fall sangria about three years ago, and it consistently blows up around late August through November each year. It’s so easy and delicious, but I wanted to step it up a little for 2020 (because 2020 sure could use all the love it can get.)
So this recipe uses almost the same ingredients, but steps it up by baking the fruits with brown sugar and cinnamon sticks first. You’re going to love it!
Directions
Step One: Prep the Pears + Apple. Preheat the oven to 375º F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Core 2 Pears and 1 Apple, then chop remaining fruit into 1/2″ – 1″ pieces. Toss the chopped fruit with 3 tbsp. Brown Sugar.
Step Two: Roast. Spread the fruit onto the prepared baking sheet. Add 2 Cinnamon Sticks to the baking sheet, and bake at 375 F for 30 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes.
Step Three: Make Sangria! Transfer fruits, cinnamon sticks, and any baked brown sugar left on the parchment paper to a large pitcher. Pour in 1 bottle (750 ml) Dry White Wine, 1/4 cup Orange Liqueur, and 1/4 cup brandy.
Step Four: Let it Chill. Cover the pitcher with plastic wrap or a tightly fitted lie and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, up to three days.
Step Five: Add Orange Juice + Strain. After the sangria has chilled, squeeze 1/2 medium Navel Orange into the pitcher. Stir the ingredients together thoroughly, then strain therough a fine mesh sieve into a clean pitcher.
Step Six: Serve! Fill six cocktail glasses halfway with ice. Divide sangria amongst the glasses, then top with preferred amount of ginger beer. (Or cava!) Garnish with an orange slice or orange peel, and enjoy!
Tips for making the Best Sangria:
- Use seasonal fruit. Fruit that is in season will have a sweeter, juicier, more “fruit like” flavor. The wine in the sangria will absorb the fruit flavors, so the more delicious the fruit – the more delicious the sangria.
- Don’t use a fancy wine. Save the good wine to enjoy on its own. For sangria, an inexpensive bottle is perfect. (Usually $5-10). You can also use box wine, as long as you like to drink it on it’s own and don’t just use it for cooking. 🙂 Yes, the quality of wine isn’t crucial, but you don’t want to use really gross wine, because obviously that will just make really gross sangria. You know how you use cheap bubbles for mimosas? Kind of the same concept.
- Don’t use really old wine. By this, I mean don’t use white wine that has been sitting in your refrigerator or on your wine shelf for years. The white wine we want for this particular recipe should be young and fresh. A pinot grigio is perfect for this, because it’s light, refreshing, and relatively subtle with flavor. I recommend using a pinot grigio that is no more than three years old for your sangria!
- Also, don’t use white wine that has been open for more than 5-6 days. White wine has a little more flexibility here, as it can keep in the refrigerator for about 5-6 days. If you’re ever making red sangria though, red wine doesn’t last much longer than two days once it’s been open. Sangria isn’t picky, but I would recommend using some wine that’s relatively fresh.
This white wine sangria is really good for fall brunches, or for sipping in the cool weather outside by the fire. Whip up some jalapeño artichoke dip, pistachio-encrusted goat cheese bites, or oven-roasted tomato bruschetta to snack on, too! Or check out some brunch recipes here if you are going that route!
If you make this roasted pear and apple sangria, I would love to see it on Instagram! And as always, feel free to reach out to me directly if you have any questions or need any troubleshooting!
Cheers!
xx Sara
Baked Pear & Apple Sparkling Fall Sangria
Equipment
- Large, rimmed baking sheet
- Spatula
- Large glass pitcher
- Fine mesh sieve
- Bar spoon (or large spoon)
Ingredients
- 2 Anjou or Barlett Pears
- 1 Apple (like Honeycrisp, Cosmic Crisp, or Fuji)
- 3 tbsp. Light Brown Sugar
- 2 Cinnamon Sticks
- 750 ml (1 bottle) Dry White Wine (like Italian Pinot Grigio)
- 1/4 cup Orange Liqueur (like Cointreau or Grand Marnier)
- 1/4 cup Apricot Brandy (or apple or pear brandy)
- 1/2 medium Orange
- Ginger Beer, Club Soda, or Sparkling Wine (like Cava), to top each glass (1-2 ounces per glass)
Instructions
- Prep the Pears + Apple. Preheat the oven to 375º F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Core 2 Anjou or Barlett Pears and 1 Apple, then chop remaining fruit into 1/2″ – 1″ pieces. Toss the chopped fruit with 3 tbsp. Light Brown Sugar.
- Roast. Spread the fruit onto the prepared baking sheet. Add 2 Cinnamon Sticks to the baking sheet, and bake at 375 F for 30 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes.
- Make Sangria! Use a spatula to transfer fruits, cinnamon sticks, and any baked brown sugar left on the parchment paper to a large pitcher. Pour in 750 ml (1 bottle) Dry White Wine , 1/4 cup Orange Liqueur, and 1/4 cup Apricot Brandy.
- Let it Chill. Cover the pitcher with plastic wrap or a tightly fitted lie and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, up to three days.
- Add Orange Juice + Strain. After the sangria has chilled, squeeze 1/2 medium Navel Orange into the pitcher. Stir the ingredients together thoroughly, then strain through a fine mesh sieve into a clean pitcher.*
- Serve! Fill six cocktail glasses halfway with ice. Divide sangria amongst the glasses, then top with preferred amount of ginger beer. (Or cava!) Garnish with an orange slice or orange peel, and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Tried this recipe?
Make sure to follow on Pinterest @aflavorjournal and on Instagram @aflavorjournal
Comments & Reviews
Hello! Where did you get the cocktail glasses? I love them! Thanks!
Hi Tena! I got them at West Elm!
Hi, how many would you say this served? Thanks!
Hi Taylor! This serves about 6-8, depending on how big your glasses are & how much ginger beer you want to top it with! I love to use smaller glasses (or wine glasses!), and fill them with ice, 3/4 of sangria, and 1/4 ginger beer. I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions!