Pom-Cherry Cocktail

All those beautiful pomegranates sitting in displays every time I go through the store.  They've been calling to me.  We got them less than once a year when I was little.  Probably due to the fact they they were scarce in our little town, but also because they were a pain to de-seed.  Lately, posts have been going around about a super easy way to seed them.  I mean like in a matter of minutes.  Well it works!  I just sliced around the middle instead of straight through and then pried it in half to preserve the seeds.  Then you push on the bottom to loosen a little before tapping with a wooden spoon.  Now, if you happen to push too hard and break off a piece, you can still successfully use the spoon technique on that piece to get the seeds out.  Believe me, it happened twice.  

I have been doing a lot of baking for other people the past few weeks and it gets a bit stressful.  Especially since I am also starting holiday baking as well.  Croutons and cranberry sauce and such.  Enter the antioxidant loaded cocktail!  Take a moment to relax in between batches of whatever...  If you can't find fresh pomegranates, you can always use a cherry for a garnish.

Pomegranate Cherry Cocktail
serves 2

¼ cup vodka
½ cup pomegranate cherry juice (or ¼ cup each pom and cherry juice)
1/3 cup simple syrup or to taste
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
¼ cup pomegranate arils
½ cup crushed ice
sugar 

Rim two 4-6 oz. cocktail glasses with sugar and set aside.

In a cocktail mixer, combine vodka, juices and simple syrup.  Add ice and shake to mix.

Add a couple tablespoons pomegranate arils to each glass and pour the drink over top.

Enjoy!


(Please drink responsibly.)