Cucumber Yum Yum Cocktail

I have yet another obsession to confess…cocktails made with cucumber.  I am not sure what it is about them that make me go nuts, but they do.  If I see one on a menu, I can’t resist.  More often than not, they are not sweet, but just extremely fresh and clean tasting.  I especially love a good cucumber drink made with Hendrick’s Gin – which is also made with cucumber.

We had some friends over for a drink the other night before going to dinner, and I decided I wanted to have one “special” cocktail.  I went to epicurious and searched on cucumber and cocktail – and this is what came up – published in Bon Appetit.  The title sold me right away.  Yum Yum did the trick – and boy was the title correct.  I did adapt it slightly below – it was a little too sweet for me at first – but once I cut down on the honey, it was perfect.  It was slightly sweet, had a slight citrus flavor – and it sang of spring.  Just putting it up to my nose, I knew it would be the perfect cocktail.  Go ahead, it is time to toast spring – if not for the weather, at least for this terrific cocktail.

Ingredients

• 12 1/8-inch-thick slices English hothouse cucumber, divided
• 10 fresh raspberries, divided
• 1/4 cup gin
• 1 tablespoon acacia honey
• 2 tablespoons (scant) aquavit*
• 2 tablespoons (scant) fresh lime juice
• Crushed ice

Preparation

Using muddler or handle of wooden spoon, mash 10 cucumber slices and 8 raspberries in cocktail shaker. Add gin, honey, aquavit, and lime juice. Shake vigorously 20 times. Fill 2 old-fashioned glasses with crushed ice. Strain cucumber mixture into glasses, dividing equally. Garnish each drink with 1 cucumber slice and serve.

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