I know what you’re thinking.  “Another martini recipe?!  This woman is obsessed with martinis!”  I will admit I am rather partial to a well-crafted martini- even though in the purest sense (and some might say the only sense), martinis are made with gin (or vodka) and vermouth.  With an olive or a twist.

I don’t know when the martini started being bastardized and became a term for anything alcoholic served in a martini glass.  Perhaps when Sex and the City was on the air and Cosmopolitans were all the rage?  I’m pretty sure that was the era that I began drinking adult beverages in martini glasses- be they apple, watermelon, key lime, lemon drop or South Beach martinis.  Or the scores of other flavored martinis that I have consumed since the early 2000’s.  Hmmm, that was also the time that my kids were toddlers.  NOW it all makes sense.

In any event, in those early (for me) martini years, one of my favorite concoctions was the watermelon martini. We used to have our friends (who also had very young kids at the time) over for barbeques and I would whip up batches of them while the guys were drinking beer by the grill and our kids played together.  My friend Janine declared that they tasted like watermelon Jolly Ranchers and I think she nailed it right on the head.  Although the Jolly Rancher candy won’t make you loopy and loud after you have three or four pieces (it could make you hyper, however).

You will definitely taste the watermelon flavor, but if you make it correctly, it will be rather tart- yes, just like the candy. These cocktails never lasted long at our parties and I still enjoy them all these years later.  

Here’s the recipe- it’s super easy!

Watermelon Martini

2-3 oz vodka

½-1 oz watermelon schnapps (use the smaller amount if you want a less sweet drink)

3 oz Jose Cuervo Classic Lime Light Margarita mix

Pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice.  Shake and strain into a martini glass.  Garnish with a chunk of watermelon.

I am a stickler for the watermelon garnish and will NOT drink one of these without it!  So this is a summertime drink for me.  Do what you have to do (in other words, pay the exorbitant off-season price) if you can’t wait until May for decent produce.  You won’t regret it!