Tip
Cantaloupe juice and sparking water makes a tasty non-alcoholic alternative.
Melon Mimosa
This is a fun riff of the OG/OJ mimosa. You can definitely make it work with an off season melon by adding a little honey while blending, but a peak season melon will really make this a next-level cocktail.
for the cantaloupe juice:
1 medium cantaloupe
for the mimosa:
4 ounces Lillet Blanc
4 ounces cantaloupe juice
Champagne or other sparkling wine
1. To prepare the cantaloupe juice, cut off the top and bottom of the cantaloupe with a sharp knife. Stand the melon on a flat surface and remove the outer rind, following the natural curve of the melon in a downward motion, taking care not to cut off the fruit. Once the cantaloupe is peeled, cut it in half and discard the seeds.
2. Rough chop the melon into small pieces and place in a blender starting with 1 cup of water.
Blend on the highest speed, gradually adding more water until the consistency is more of a juice than a smoothie.
3. To prepare the mimosa, combine the Lillet Blanc and cantaloupe juice.
4. Measure 2 ounces of the cantaloupe mixture into each of four champagne flutes.
5. Top each flute with champagne.
From JACK’S WIFE FREDA: Cooking from New York’s West Village by Maya and Dean Jankelowitz. Recipes by Julia Jaksic. Published by Blue Rider Press, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. Copyright © 2016 by NoamBennyLLC. Photo: Henry Hargreaves