Prickly Pear Margarita

The prickly pear cactus grows throughout the deserts of the southwest United States. Juice and syrup can be produced from its edible, fuchsia-coloured, pear-shaped fruit. And, or course, cocktails can be produced from the juice or syrup.

Recently, my sister-in-law celebrated a special birthday, and at my brother's request, I reproduced a cocktail she had enjoyed during a holiday in Arizona – the Prickly Pear Margarita.

The only hard part about making one is getting hold of prickly pear syrup, but an online search revealed many sources of supply. I placed an order and five days later I had my syrup and testing began.

Here's the recipe I came up with: to a cocktail shaker half full of ice, add 1½ oz. of tequila, ¾ oz. lime juice, ½ oz. triple sec, and ½ oz. prickly pear syrup. Shake sharply for 30 seconds and pour into a Margarita glass. Allow a few pieces of ice to slip into the glass in order to dilute the drink, as it's quite concentrated otherwise. Or you can blend the ingredients with ½ cup of crushed ice if you like frozen Margaritas.

If you don't happen to have any prickly pear syrup handy, you could experiment with other fruit syrups – blueberry, blackberry, or pomegranate, for example. Or try using a one-inch cube of peach sorbet instead to make a Peach Margarita.

The Prickly Pear Margarita is a good example of how switching up one ingredient in a familiar cocktail recipe can produce new and interesting results. Don't be afraid to experiment: you can always drink your mistakes.