Watermelon and Tea Martini

First, brew one of your favorite light aromatic teas . Any delicately flavored aromatic herbal or green tea should work nicely. We used an herbal orange-lemon grass tea. The slight bitterness of the tea when combined with the delicate sweetness of the fresh watermelon created a balanced well rounded flavor. Once brewed, chill the tea mixture.

For the watermelon juice: Cut one watermelon in half, saving one half in case you need more juice later or for another recipe. Cut the halved watermelon into medium sized chunks while removing the rind and place chunks into a food processor or blender. Process the watermelon thoroughly or until it looks like a watermelon slushy. Strain the watermelon mixture through a fine kitchen strainer or sieve into a bowl. If you don’t have a strainer you can use cheese cloth or a paper towel, this will reduce your yield slightly due to the cloth absorbing some of the juice, but works well. One half of a 5-6″ diameter seedless watermelon yielded 16 ounces of juice.

Serving: Start by chilling a classic martini style cocktail glass by filling it with ice or placing it in the freezer for a few minutes.

In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, mix in the above quantities (or equivalent ratios) of vodka, fresh watermelon juice, and tea. Shake the cocktail mix for at least 10-15 seconds in shaker to ensure the mix is extra cold and well combined.

Pour into a chilled glass and garnish with a rose petal if you really want to make a statement. Enjoy!