BATIDAS (Tropical Cocktails)

"Batida" is a typical Brazilian popular aperitif and drink.  It is made from white rum (cachaça), sugar and juice from a freshly crushed fruit, and served  with crushed ice in small glasses (50 cc or 2 oz).  Sweet drinks go down easily and quickly, and one may suddenly find him or herself quite drunk. 

Some people prefer using vodka to cachaça.  It tastes slightly different but equally excellent.  Batidas are drunk like any other cocktail, yet are traditionally served with a heavy meal - feijoada (black bean and pork stew) and churrasco (barbecued meat).  The drink is made in large batches and served from a pitcher.  Any tropical fruit can be used for batidas - from pineapple to lime, ground cashew nuts to coconuts.  The basic recipe is always the same - fruit juice, some sugar and one liter of cachaça, white rum or vodka.  The quantity of fruit juice is usually about 1/2 liter, yet stronger flavors need less fruit juice.  Similarly, sweeter juices should have less sugar.