Monday, June 1, 2009

Best. Drink. Evar.

I hate to sound like I suffer from superlatives, but I would encourage you to try this drink recipe below before you claim I'm exaggerating.

This is one of those dangerous drinks, where the different components are so perfectly in balance that you can't really taste the alcohol. But the drink is also exceedingly complex and delicious, even though it contains only three ingredients.

I'm referring to a Watermelon Cosmopolitan. In my case, I made my own watermelon-infused vodka, which I think was the key to the drink's success. I'm sure you could also make this with a store-bought watermelon vodka, but I do encourage you to try to make your own. Not only is it very easy to make, you also get the bonus of alcohol-soaked fruit!

The drink was so good, when I offered a taste to my mister, he took the whole thing. High praise coming from a guy who usually prefers to sip scotch or a good microbrew.

Watermelon Cosmopolitan
1 part watermelon-infused vodka (recipe below)
1 part Triple Sec
1 part cranberry juice

Shake over ice. Strain into martini glass.

Watermelon-infused vodka
I used the rind of leftover watermelon, so I had a lot of the green part of the fruit that was soaking in the vodka. This gave my vodka a lovely cucumber vibe, in addition to the melon flavor.

Rind of one watermelon, with some red still attached.
750 ml bottle of your favorite vodka
1 gallon drink cooler, such as Coleman jug or glass Sun Tea jar

Take rind of leftover watermelon, that still has a little bit of red fruit on it. Peel waxy dark green skin off of rind and discard. Cut remaining rind and fruit into 1/2 to 1 inch pieces. Add to jar. Top jar with bottle of vodka. Save vodka bottle.

Let fruit and booze marinate for about a week, shaking every day or so. Strain vodka back into its original bottle using a funnel. You may wind up with a bit more liquid than you started with. If this happens, just pour the rest off into another container. Refrigerate until ready to use.

If you wish, you can keep the watermelon for eating later.