Author Notes: Cucurbitaceae is a plant family that includes cucumbers, melons, and squashes. The sweet, herbal syrup balances nicely with the fresh cucumber and watermelon. Enjoy in moderation (these go down very easily!). – gingerroot —gingerroot
Food52 Review: A poolside drink? Yes! Refeshing? Yes! More-ish? Definitely. This cucumber-watermelon-vodka cocktail with cilantro infusion is certainly a delicious hot afternoon beverage. The longer I left the ingredients to infuse, the better it became (after all, things do get better with age!). I happened to have some ancho chili powder handy, so added a few pinches of that! Divine! – thehappycook —Victoria Ross
Makes: 1 drink
Ingredients
for the drink
-
1
tablespoon grated Japanese or English cucumber
-
1
tablespoon watermelon (I scooped it right out)
-
2
tablespoons lime-citrus-cilantro syrup (recipe below)
-
1 1/2 -2
ounces vodka
-
11/2
teaspoon lime juice (I used 1 juicy wedge of a Tahitian lime)
-
1
ounce sparkling water
for the lime-citrus-cilantro syrup
-
1
cup granulated sugar
-
1
cup water
-
2
long peels of lime (from the circumference of a larger variety such as Tahitian)
-
1/4
cup fresh tangerine or Clementine juice
-
1/3
cup loosely packed cilantro leaves
Directions
for the drink
- Add grated cucumber and scoop of watermelon to an old-fashioned glass. Gently smush watermelon into cucumber with a pestle, and add ice cubes to glass. Add syrup, vodka, lime juice and top with soda. Stir to combine. Enjoy! Note: If you like your poolside cocktails to be deliciously sneaky, go with 1 1/2 ounces of vodka. If you like to know you are drinking something delicious but sneaky, go with 2 ounces.
for the lime-citrus-cilantro syrup
- Combine sugar and water and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. When sugar has dissolved, add lime peel and tangerine juice. Reduce to a simmer. Cook until thickened, 20 minutes. Add cilantro and boil for 1 minute. Strain mixture through a sieve into a wide glass container to remove solids. Transfer to a glass container with an airtight lid. Allow mixture to cool slightly, cover and refrigerate until cold, preferably overnight.
![Cucurbit Cooler 2 Cucurbit Cooler](https://wikirecipes.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/45d0a6d5-1030-4801-bf00-8c025e74308d-IMG_7285.jpg)