Fall recipes: Prickly pear margarita

October 7, 7:50 AMPhoenix Drinks ExaminerMark Nothaft

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 After diamondback rattlers, speedy roadrunners, towering saguaros and glorious sunsets, one of the most intriguing natural wonders to spawn from our desert, has to be prickly pear cactus and its amazing fruit. After all, how can a once desolate and inhospitable space produce such a nourishing, flavorful bit of wonder?
The Aztecs and Native Americans used prickly pears for everything from food and medicine to toys and dye for clothing. Today we still eat the cactus paddles, and integrate the fruit in a decidedly delicious variation on our favorite cocktail – the margarita. Widely available now through spring in Phoenix, the juice of the fruit imparts and unexpected twist to margaritas and delivers true Sonoran essence in the glass. Use 100 percent blue agave tequila, top-shelf orange liqueur and fresh fruit juices and create a work of art. Try it out this weekend and wow your guests. Cheers!

Prickly pear margarita

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces tequila
• 4 ounces orange liqueur
• 8 ounces fresh lime juice
• 4 ounces orange juice
• 4 ounces prickly pear juice/four dark red prickly pear fruits (directions below)
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon grenadine (optional)
• Bar/kosher salt
• lime wedges and shredded prickly pear for garnish
• Ice

Directions:

(For prickly pear juice) Remove skin of fruit by slicing from top to bottom and peeling away the skin (store bought fruit will already have the spines removed). Dice fruit and place in small bowl with sugar. Stir vigorously and let stand for 20 minutes. The goal here is to extract juice. Place fruit in wire mesh strainer and extract juice, pressing fruit against strainer. (For margaritas) Combine tequila, orange liqueur, grenadine and all three juices and stir. Moisten the rim of a margarita or red wine glass with a lime wedge and dip into bar salt. Fill glass with ice and pour. Garnish with lime wedge and shredded prickly pear.