One great thing about warmer weather is taking the cooking outdoors again! But the heat from the BBQ, the smoke and the weather may get the chef and the guests quite thirsty for a cool and refreshing drink. Here are my favorites! First a Malibu Barbie. Take a large shot of Malibu Rum (white bottle?) and pour over a full tumbler of ice. Add pineapple juice til filled to the top....ahhhhh Another great solution for cool frosty drinks for a crowd where you need no bartender? Take a large plastic bowl-with a good fitting lid (one that can withstand the freezer) Check to see how many ounces it holds- this is important!

Say you have a 48 ounce container....and a good shot is ONE ounce- you can now make12 light drinks. Why? Well, because normally it is 3 to 1 parts for a great drink. For those of you that prefer yours a bit stronger- 10 drinks! Now, whichever you choose- pour in the amount of liquor you want to use-for the number of servings you are making. Add the appropriate amount of mixer and put into the freezer over-night.

The alcohol does not let it freeze solid...so it remains scoopable like a slurpie! Oh yeh, cold, frosty and easy to serve many guests at a time! Use an ice-cream scoop to fill a pretty glass, add a umbrella straw and enjoy. (See recipe below)

Long Beach Iced Tea

6 oz of Rum. 6 oz of Vodka, 6 oz of gin and 6 oz of triple sec
12 oz of cranberry juice
3 oz of Sweet and Sour mixer

Mix all together in a large pitcher and serve over full glasses of ice..or freeze as directed above. (Make sure your container is large enough, in this case at least 36 ounces)

OK- another great BBQ drink is any cheap white wine and ginger ale over crushed ice- add a sprig of mint and its a beauty! Yet another one is "Mexicola"! Start with 2 ounces of a good tequila and add the juice of half of a lime. Top it off with a cola drink of your choice!

Last one in the series of 5 is another great tequila drink. Mexican Buck Shot. Mix one and one half ounces of tequila, 1 tablespoon of lime juice, 1 ounce of orange juice the fill the glass with Ginger Ale.

Now go have a Bar-B-Q and make me a drink!