Cucurbit Cooler

• for the drink
• 1 tablespoon grated Japanese or English cucumber
• 1 tablespoon watermelon (I scooped it right out)
• 2 tablespoons lime-citrus-cilantro syrup (recipe below)
• 1 1/2 -2 ounces vodka
• 11/2 teaspoon lime juice (I used 1 juicy wedge of a Tahitian lime)
• 1 ounce sparkling water
• for the lime-citrus-cilantro syrup
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup water
• 2 long peels of lime (from the circumference of a larger variety such as Tahitian)
• 1/4 cup fresh tangerine or Clementine juice
• 1/3 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves

1. Add grated cucumber and scoop of watermelon to an old-fashioned glass. Gently smush watermelon into cucumber with a pestle, and add ice cubes to glass. Add syrup, vodka, lime juice and top with soda. Stir to combine. Enjoy! Note: If you like your poolside cocktails to be deliciously sneaky, go with 1 1/2 ounces of vodka. If you like to know you are drinking something delicious but sneaky, go with 2 ounces.
2. Combine sugar and water and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. When sugar has dissolved, add lime peel and tangerine juice. Reduce to a simmer. Cook until thickened, 20 minutes. Add cilantro and boil for 1 minute. Strain mixture through a sieve into a wide glass container to remove solids. Transfer to a glass container with an airtight lid. Allow mixture to cool slightly, cover and refrigerate until cold, preferably overnight.

drink, grated japanese, watermelon, limecitruscilantro syrup, vodka, lime juice, water, syrup, sugar, water, lime, fresh tangerine, cilantro

Taken from food52.com/recipes/13250-cucurbit-cooler (may not work)