Whole chunks of juicy pomelo blended with demerara simple syrup, tequila and Grand Marnier make a refreshing margarita, perfect for the National Margarita Day celebration.
As I’m puttering about the kitchen, cooking and baking and cleaning up after myself, I either listen to music or podcasts that don’t take a whole lot of concentration to follow. One of my favorites is Spilled Milk, presented by Molly Wizenberg and Matthew Amster-Burton, where they cook and eat food, and, as they say, we listeners don’t get any. I always learn something from those two and enjoy a few laughs as well. For instance, in the podcast Classic Cocktails, I learned that many bars are using different sugars, like muscovado or demerara, in their simple syrups, which add depth of flavor along with the necessary sweet component in cocktails. Some bars amp that up by making what they call “rich” syrup instead of simple syrup by doubling the amount of sugar instead of using the normal 1:1 sugar/water ratio. Intriguing!
That program came back to me when I read that crunchy demerara sugar is great to sprinkle on pomelo and I decided to use it to make my simple syrup for pomelo margaritas. It was an excellent choice and I may never make plain white sugar simple syrup again.
Which brings me to the point of this post, the National Margarita Day celebrations, organized and hosted by Heather of girlichef! Make sure you scroll down to the bottom and check out all the great drinks and tasty treats we are sharing today!
Ingredients
For the margaritas:
3 cups or 450g pomelo, thoroughly cleaned of white pith
6 oz or 180ml tequila
3 oz or 90ml Grand Marnier
3 oz or 90ml demerara simple syrup or to taste
Ice to fill rest of blender
For the demerara simple syrup:
1 cup or 230g demerara sugar
1 cup or 240ml water
Optional: flakey sea salt for glass rims
Method
To make the simple syrup, warm your water and sugar in a small pan on the stove, stirring until all the sugar has dissolved.
Peel your pomelo by feeling for the indentation of where the fruit starts at the stem end.
Cut the end off right about there.
Open the hole at the top so you can see where the division of the slices are.
Peel back the thick skin to reveal the fruit inside.
Now separate the pegs or slices and remove the thick membrane from each.
My pomelo was a huge guy, weighing 1.5 kilos or 3 lbs 5 oz. and he was almost as big as my head. After peeling and removing all the pith, he was still just over one kilo or 2.2 pounds - big enough to make two blenders of frozen margaritas.
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| Seriously. Almost as big as my head. |
To blend the margaritas, put the chunks of carefully peeled pomelo in your blender along with the tequila, Grand Marnier and simple syrup.
Run a spare piece of pomelo around the rim of your glasses and dip them in flakey sea salt to coat, if desired.
Pour your pomelo margarita into your prepared glass and garnish with a bit of pith-free pomelo peel and a sprinkle of some of the loose pomelo pips, if desired.
Enjoy! If you’ve never tried pomelo, it tastes like a cross between an orange and a grapefruit, with a milder bitterness than grapefruit.
How are you celebrating National Margarita Day? Might I suggest some of these delicious options?
Margaritas:
- Blood Orange Margarita from Sidewalk Shoes
- Blood Orange Margarita from The Not So Cheesy Kitchen
- Caramelized Grapefruit Margarita from girlichef
- Cinnamon Orange Margarita from Sweet Life
- Cool Margarita Mule from Peaceful Cooking
- Iced Coffee Margarita from Kudos Kitchen by Renee
- Mango Margarita from La Cocina de Leslie
- Minty Papaya Margarita with Chile de Arbol Spice from Nibbles and Feasts
- Pomelo Margaritas from Food Lust People Love
- Winter Pomelo Ginger Margarita from Muy Bueno Cookbook
- Blood Orange Margarita Jello Shots from The Spiffy Cookie
- Pink Cadillac Margarita Cupcakes from Cindy's Recipes and Writings
- Salted Margarita Shortbread from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
- Strawberry Lime Margarita Cupcakes from Wishes and Dishes
- Strawberry Lime Aide Margarita Popsicles from Simply Healthy Family
