Watermelon Rum Punch
A tropical summer cocktail layered with aphrodisiac ingredients, this rum punch is a great choice for date night.
Ingredients
- 4 cups cubed watermelon
- 2 cups diced cucumber
- leaves from 2-3 sprigs of mint
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 6-8 oz rum I use Diplomatico Mantuano
- spicy chile bitters I use Hellfire from Scrappy Bitters
Instructions
- place the watermelon, cucumber, mint leaves, and salt in a blender pitcher. If you’re using a food processor you may need to work in batches.
- Start on slow speed until roughly chopped, then increase speed and blend until smooth (1-2 minute) – if your equipment tends to get hot, work in batches to prevent heating the ingredients.
- Strain the puree through a fine mesh strainer. This step is optional but yields a more attractive, stable final product.
- At this point, the juice may be enjoyed on its own, or proceed to making a cocktail.
- For each cocktail, put 1.5-2 ounces of rum into a mixing glass filled with ice. Add 10-12 ounces of juice and 2-4 dashes of bitters. If you have a shaker, shake well. Otherwise, stir. Fill a serving glass with crushed ice (cubes are fine too) and strain the cocktail into the glass. Garnish with a sprig of mint.
Notes
To make this a frozen-style drink, add 2 cups of ice, the rum, and a few dashes of bitters to the pitcher after the first round of chopping to mix the ingredients, then puree until thick and smooth. Rum is optional and can be added to the individual glasses according to taste.
Cocoa nibs are a nice added garnish for the frozen drinks – they look like watermelon seeds and add a textural surprise.