Cantaloupe Jalapeno Margarita With Mint and Cinnamon Tuille Garnish
To celebrate Cinco de Mayo, or better yet, Cinco de Quatro, you need to start with a good stiff drink. And, what says Mexico better than a margarita? If you prefer, you can go with a more traditional margarita. But, we wanted to share a more festive drink today. Cantaloupe Jalapeno Margarita With Mint and Cinnamon Tuille Garnish takes a couple twists from the norm. The most prominent would be the tuille garnish.
For those of you not familiar with tuilles, they are a flat crisp cookie. You would usually find them as a garnish or part of a classic French dessert. But, they make a great visual and textural compliment to our drink here today. Cinnamon and vanilla are major Mexican flavors that are missing from most drinks. So, this cookie brings those elements to play in a surprising way.
Tequila is the elixir that is the base for all margaritas. The movies portray it as an evil liquor that loosens inhibitions and creates havoc in middle class America. Mexicans are stereotyped as always drinking it. But, as this cartoon explains, it may be just what you need to boost your confidence.
So, strap on your Pee Wee Herman shoes and dance to tequila. This is going to be a fun night! Maybe, we’ll even end up doing some Mexican Karaoke. Let’s start with Cantaloupe Jalapeno Margarita With Mint and Cinnamon Tuille Garnish.
Table of Contents
Cantaloupe Jalapeno Margarita With Mint and Cinnamon Tuille Garnish
Ingredients
- For Tuilles:
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large egg whites
- 1/4 Lb melted butter
- 1/2 cup AP flour
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- For the drink:
- 6 to 8 ounces tequilla We prefer a higher grade version.
- 4 oz Grand Marnier (or orange liquor)
- 2 cups peeled and cubed fresh cantaloupe
- 1 each jalapeno, just the flesh, rough chopped
- 4 ounces fresh lime juice
- 2 cups simple syrup (1 cup sugar and 1 cup water, boiled, then cooled)
- 2 cups ice
- 8 each fresh mint leaves
- Fresh lime wedges to garnish and squeeze
- salt for the rim
- Extra mint for garnish
Instructions
- Whisk the eggs and sugar until frothy. Then whisk in the butter. Once the butter has been incorporated, whisk in the rest of the ingredients and mix until a smooth batter is achieved. refrigerate the batter for 4 hours.
- preheat an oven to 350 degrees.
- Put a non stick pad on a sheet pan. Spread the batter in a thin layer in 4 inch straight lines on the pan. Bake 8 to 10 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool 15 seconds. Then, lift cookies off the tray quickly and give them a twist or lay them over something to form a bend. They are pliable for a very short time. Pop them back in the oven to reheat if they get too stiff. Of course, you could also leave them as they are. But, we like a twisted tuille.
- Make the margarita: Put the cantaloupe and jalapeno in a blender and puree. Then add all the ingredients except for the garnishes and salt. Blend until everything is incorporated and larger ice chunks are more like slush.
- Use a lime wedge to moisten the rim of the glasses. Dip the rims into Large grain salt. Pour the margaritas into the glasses and garnish with lime, mint, and the tuille. Enjoy!