Picture this: you’re on a camping trip to Banff, and you’ve been hiking all day. Finally, you get to the top, exhausted and parched. Your hiking buddy whips out a flask filled with… no, not cold water, but a chilled watermelon cucumber cocktail.
LIFE. SAVER!
Honestly, wouldn’t that be the best thing ever?
Whenever you’re thirsty and feeling like a fresh, fruity drink, this recipe will be there for you. Whether it’s for happy hour, a family holiday or a bridal shower, this drink will get the party going. Cheers!
Recipe Ingredients
- Watermelon - Seedless watermelons are preferred as we don’t want any pesky seeds in our straw! Also make some wedges for garnish.
- English Cucumber - These sweet and seedless cucumbers are ideal for this cocktail. Regular cucumbers are a tad bitter, as they’re filled with loads of seeds. Keep some slices aside for garnish.
- Limes - We will squeeze two large limes to make lime juice.
- Honey - I am a huge fan of this watermelon cucumber cocktail because it’s not overloaded with artificial syrups. It’s naturally sweetened by the watermelon and cucumber, so drizzle as much or as little honey as you please.
- Vodka - A cup of vodka to make this fruit juice a little more interesting!
- Ice - We’ll need ice because, well… who would ever want to drink a warm cocktail?
- Fresh mint - Pick some fresh mint leaves for garnish.
Step-by-Step Instructions
This recipe is so easy to follow that you can probably do it with your eyes closed! (Though, for safety’s sake, you probably shouldn’t.)
Step One: Cut the watermelon into cubes of about 2 inches. You should have 6 cups of watermelon to make 4 servings.
Step Two: In a blender, puree the watermelon. There should be no more solid chunks of watermelon. Ensure a smooth consistency.
Step Three: Pour watermelon puree into a pitcher. Pour it over a sieve so that it can catch any chunks that haven’t been blended. Press on the solids using a rubber spatula.
- Pro tip: The watermelon cucumber juice from above takes a few extra minutes to throw together, but it's well worth the effort. So fresh tasting and naturally sweet!
Step Four: Next, peel the English cucumbers, discarding the skin. Cut into chunks. Puree the English cucumbers, again making sure there are no more solids left. Pour this into the watermelon puree and use a sieve to catch any pulp.
Step Five: In a bowl, squeeze the lime juice and squirt some honey, stirring to mix. Stir the lime juice and honey into the watermelon and cucumber juice.
- Pro tip: Make this cocktail a day in advance so the lime juice flavors develop in the juice.
Step Six: Splash 1 cup of vodka in and stir the cocktail. The lime juice and vodka would have made the juice slightly bitter, so add in more honey if desired.
Step Seven: Chill the watermelon cucumber cocktail in the refrigerator. To serve, put ice in drinking glasses and fill it with the cocktail mix. Garnish with a watermelon wedge, cucumber slices, and a fresh mint leaf.
- Pro tip: Before serving, stir the watermelon cucumber cocktail in the pitcher again to recombine the juice.
Add-ins & Tricks
This cocktail / cooler is really versatile - it’s so easy to switch it up and adapt it to your liking. With a few simple add-ins, this thirst quencher can go from good to great.
Make it a fizzy cocktail with club soda:
To make this watermelon cucumber cocktail fizzy, add club soda. Once you’ve filled the glass with ice and cocktail mixture, pour club soda into the glass. Do this only before serving to get the most bubbles and gasses.
Have kids at the party? Turn it into a mocktail:
You see, this drink is essentially a fruit juice cooler and vodka. So if you’re wanting to serve an alcohol-free version (a.k.a. a mocktail), just swap the vodka out for sparkling water and club soda, and voila: a watermelon cucumber mocktail!
Add fresh mint leaves to the cocktail:
Mint will definitely make this cocktail go down easy! Simply blend a bunch of mint leaves and mix them into the juice.
Looking for another summer beverage recipe? Check out this recipe for a fruity red sangria. Why not pair it with this summer berry salad recipe, while you’re at it?
Watermelon Cucumber Cocktail Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 cups cubed seedless watermelon
- 1 ½ large English cucumbers peeled and cut into chunks
- 2 large limes freshly squeezed
- 3 tablespoons liquid honey
- 1 cup vodka chilled
- ice
For Garnish
- watermelon wedges
- cucumber slices
- fresh mint
Instructions
- In a blender, puree watermelon. Process until smooth and there are no more chunks.
- Set a large fine-mesh sieve over a pitcher. Pour watermelon puree through a sieve, pressing on solids with a rubber spatula; discard solids.
- Now repeat Steps 1 & 2 with the English cucumber. Puree English cucumber in your blender and pour through a sieve into watermelon juice.
- In a small bowl, stir together lime juice and honey. Add to watermelon and cucumber juices, along with vodka.
- Stir the cocktail in a pitcher until well blended. Adjust sweetness with more honey if desired.
- Keep the Watermelon Cucumber cocktail mixture refrigerated until ready to serve.
- To serve, fill four glasses with ice and top each with cocktail mixture. Garnish with a watermelon wedge, cucumber slices and mint.
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