Cucumber Mint Martini

Going thru the fridge again, looking to use up some stuff I wondered what kind of drink I could make with a cucumber, besides just putting it in some water. Came across the cucumber mint martini, and I love it. Guess the flavor combo has been a thing for me lately, but whatever. It's so refreshing, cool, and a perfect porch sipper. Admittedly, I was skeptical of a skin-on cucumber purée in a drink, expecting it to be a bit chewy or lumpy but it was pleasantly not that way at all. It's not very sweet and goes down like a proper summer cocktail should. 

Annoyingly this does take a minute, so it's more of a Saturday sipper rather than an after-work quick pour. Worth it though, I promise. Here it is, adapted from this recipe:

1 cucumber, ends removed, washed and chopped (skin on)

4-5 mint leaves

1 oz. lime or lemon juice

1 oz. simple syrup (optional; can substitute 2 Tbsp. of sugar)

1.5 - 2 oz. vodka or gin 

Put the cucumber, mint, lime juice and syrup in a blender - an immersion blender works fine - and purée until smooth. Use a fine-mesh strainer to pour through into a shaker, discarding the pulp. (I have a small 3" strainer similar to this that works perfectly.) Add the vodka or gin and shake with ice. Serve in a martini glass with fresh mint leaves and/or lime slice. 

Notes:  Superfine sugar works best for drinks if you opt for it over syrup. I used vodka and lime juice but the gin and lemon are potentially more tangy options; mix 'n' match as you like.

Found Spritzer

Grabbed a new-to-me Found Sparkling Water from a cooler at a cafe because the cucumber mint flavor sounded great to pair with my lunch. Looks like they've got other tasty options too: elderflower,  watermelon basil,  lemon. Great flavor indeed, but irked at the sugar content. It's sparkling water,  people! That should mean NO sugar and NO sodium. Ugh.

If I can just get past that irritation and lump it in the "tonic-like" category and use it as a mixer,  I think I can like/use the product. (After all most tonics are riddled with sugar.) Still feels like a let-down though, and makes me want to give my fave folks at La Croix some flavor combo ideas.

Local Three Kitchen & Bar

A colleague and I met up for happy hour at Local Three Kitchen & Bar last night. Great ambiance,  decent patio,  and all the food is locally sourced. Had a great redfish and fresh succotash, and a wonderful gin cocktail called "Yeeha, Jester's Dead." Made of cucumber-infused Ford's Gin and a squeeze of fresh lemon and grapefruit juices, garnished with a sprig of fresh dill.
Loved it! Had several cocktails with dill in them recently... inspired to experiment with it in the home bar. Would definitely go back for that cocktail alone,  but probably sooner rather than later as I understand the menu changes regularly...