30 Frozen Drinks To Turn Any Day Into A Vacation
You and your trusty blender are about to be BFFs. 😎
Come summertime, we'll take any chance to break out our blender and turn all our fave cocktails into frozen, slushy delights. Call us frozen drink opportunists, but really, what's better than a batch of frozen margaritas or piña coladas? When it's hot out, we say nothing. Join us as we lean in to summer with these refreshing frozen cocktail recipes that will turn any day into a vacation.
Our biggest pro tip: We highly recommend freezing (or buying frozen versions of) any and all of your favorite fruits to make you an expert-level frozen drink mixologist. Mixing in frozen fruit with fresh fruit will ensure your drinks stay slushy and cold, while adding body and plenty of flavor. Future you will be so happy you thought ahead when you have plenty of frozen pineapple, strawberries, watermelon, and peaches for all the frozen watermelon margaritas or the layered ombre lemonade drops you'll be craving.
It's also not all about fruit (though we're certainly not stopping you from adding it in to any of the recipes here). Our boozy s'mores milkshakes, our Baileys coffee slushies, our boozy sour watermelon slushies (Sour Patch watermelons don't count as fruit), and our red wine milkshakes are all proof summer flavors expand beyond the product stand.
We've also tested and reviewed all the best blenders out there that will guarantee the smoothest frozen drinks possible—once you've got one, the sky's the limit with what cocktails you can create.
Need more easy breezy summer time drink inspiration? Check out our best summer cocktails, our fave big batch party drinks, and all our fun summer shots too.
Frozen Strawberry Margarita
This fruit-forward margarita works best with frozen strawberries, so you can make it year-round! We love adding fresh basil for some sweet anise-y flavor, but other fresh herbs like mint or even cilantro can kick up the flavor of this sunny cocktail.
Get the Frozen Strawberry Margarita recipe.
Boozy S'mores Milkshake
Want a buzz but not the sting and taste of alcohol? We got you. Boozy milkshakes are about to be your new best friends. It doesn't get much better than this Baileys and vanilla vodka-based one inspired by everyone's favorite summer dessert—s'mores.
Get the Boozy S'mores Milkshake recipe.
Frozen Watermelon Mules
There's really nothing like a crisp and spicy, ginger-lime Moscow mule. What's even more refreshing? Adding watermelon!
Get the Frozen Watermelon Mules recipe.
Frozen Sangria Margarita
This drink alternates frozen swirled layers of two of our favorite drinks—red wine sangria and tequila margaritas—for the perfect boozy summer sipper.
Get the Frozen Sangria Margarita recipe.
Layered Ombre Lemonade Drops
They take the idea behind classic faves like frozen margaritas and strawberry daiquiris to the next level with colorful, bright layers. They’re quick, simple, and best of all, only need 5 ingredients (plus fresh fruit garnishes, if you like) 😍.
Get the Layered Ombre Lemonade Drops recipe.
Frozen Piña Coladas
A classic summer drink, this tropical vibe in a glass is easy enough to order out, but when you want the perfect combination of sweetness, creaminess, and slush factor, making it at home is tops. We've landed on the ideal blend of pineapple, coconut, rum, and effort that will help you reach piña colada paradise.
Get the Frozen Piña Coladas recipe.
Boozy Sour Watermelon Slushies
For when you just can't get enough of arguably the best Sour Patch Kids flavor—watermelon! Feel free to infuse any of your favorite flavor of the candy in vodka too—you really can't go wrong.
Frozen Blue Moscato Margaritas
The bright hue of this margarita is achieved with blue curaçao, an orange liqueur that was created on the island of Curaçao in the Caribbean. We love garnishing these with blueberries in the summer (particularly to keep with the bright blue theme), but use whatever fruit you like.
Strawberry Frosé
You don't need to go to a bar to enjoy frosé. With a good blender, it's super easy to make it yourself. Our favorite addition? Strawberries. They add the perfect amount of sweetness and body to the summer cocktail.
Get the Strawberry Frosé recipe.
Red Wine Milkshakes
How much red wine you choose to pour in the blender is entirely up to you—we usually just eyeball it. A fruit-forward red wine like Zinfandel is best for vanilla ice cream, but feel free to experiment with semi-sweet sparkling red wines too, like Lambrusco or Brachetto D'acqui.
Get the Red Wine Milkshakes recipe.
Frozen Watermelon Mojito
Summer calls for a cold, refreshing drink in hand at all times, and we think this frozen watermelon version of the classic mojito is the perfect one. Perfectly sweetened and refreshingly minty, this fruity summer cocktail will be your new go-to poolside drink.
Get the Frozen Watermelon Mojito recipe.
Frozen Dark & Stormy
A classic Dark & Stormy is a spicy, refreshing rum drink all on its own, but blend it up? It's the grown-up slushie we all need come summer. The fresh ginger and ginger beer combo really makes it zing, in the best way.
Get the Frozen Dark & Stormy recipe.
Spiked Seltzer Slushies
If you thought a can of White Claw was perfect on its own, you haven't given it a whirl in your blender. This recipe can be easily customized based on whatever flavors and fruits you prefer. Our favorite combo: lemon-flavored spiked seltzer + frozen strawberries or mango + frozen pineapple.
Get the Spiked Seltzer Slushies recipe.
Baileys Coffee Slushies
This super-boozy Baileys milkshake uses cold brew ice cubes, so it won't get diluted no matter how long it takes you to get to the bottom of the glass.
Get the Baileys Coffee Slushies recipe.
Strawberry Daiquiri
Few things are as refreshing and delightful on a hot day as a frosty frozen daiquiri. Even diehard fans of piña colada will love sipping the intoxicating blend of juicy, red strawberries brightened with lime. For best results, we call for two types of strawberries: fresh and frozen. Using frozen strawberries gives body to the drink without watering down the flavor like ice would.
Get the Strawberry Daiquiri recipe.
Frozen Pimm's Cup
You don’t have to be in the seats at Wimbledon to sip on a Pimm’s Cup–especially when you turn the classic English cocktail into a summery slushie. Our less-proper icy version blends up citrus, cucumber, and a bunch of fresh ginger to make it extra special.
Get the Frozen Pimm's Cup recipe.
Frozen Watermelon Margaritas
Chop up some fresh watermelon and throw it in the freezer the night before you make these margs—this ensures the drinks are perfectly slushy and ICE cold. If you forgot, don't fret! Two hours in the freezer should do the trick.
Get the Frozen Watermelon Margarita recipe.
Spiked Coconut Limeade
Granulated sugar draws the flavorful essential oils out of citrus peels as they sit at room temperature, making an extra-special simple syrup that takes this coconut-y cocktail over the top. Have extra? It's also perfect for flavoring seltzer, other cocktails, or desserts.
Get the Spiked Coconut Limeade recipe.
Sangria Slushies
Hack alert: We love saving leftover red wine by freezing it in an ice cube tray, then blending it up into a slushie. More of a white wine or moscato sangria person? Feel free to swap it in!
Get the Sangria Slushies recipe.
Frozen Caipirinha
A caipirinha, Brazil’s national cocktail, is the perfect introduction to cachaça, the country’s famous spirit distilled from sugar cane. Disney's EPCOT only brings this cocktail around once a year during the Food & Wine Festival, but we scored the recipe so you can enjoy it any day you want.
Get the Frozen Caipirinha recipe.
Mackenzie Filson is a food writer and contributing digital food producer at Delish. Her favorite ice cream flavor is chocolate-pine. If wine was an astrological sign she'd be a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. She's never met a bag of Spicy Sweet Chili Doritos she didn't eat in one sitting.
Camille Lowder is the digital food producer at Delish, otherwise known as our resident queen of recipe galleries. Previously, she attended the Natural Gourmet Institute for culinary school and worked at/managed a number of New York restaurants. She loves anything vegan, foods masquerading as other foods (hello, cauliflower), and a well-used Oxford comma.
