I want to scream it from the rooftops: I love daiquiris!

This cantaloupe daiquiri is the perfect way to celebrate summer! Freshly juiced melon, lime juice, rum and maraschino cherries - it's refreshing and cool and a fantastic cocktail to have during happy hour! Isn't the color amazing too?! I howsweeteats.com #cantaloupe #cocktail #daiquiri #lime #rum #summer

Have you ever seen a more gorgeous one?

This cantaloupe daiquiri is almost too gorgeous to be REAL.

This cantaloupe daiquiri is the perfect way to celebrate summer! Freshly juiced melon, lime juice, rum and maraschino cherries - it's refreshing and cool and a fantastic cocktail to have during happy hour! Isn't the color amazing too?! I howsweeteats.com #cantaloupe #cocktail #daiquiri #lime #rum #summer

And when I say REAL, I do mean the real daiquiris. Real, real ones.

The legit daiquiris.

Not the frozen sugary version that looked so tempting in our 90s youth.

A few years ago I made this grapefruit version and they are incredible. Even though I’m a grapefruit freak and would gladly consume one everyday of my life, those drinks are so fabulous that I think they could convert a non-grapefruit lover. For real.

This cantaloupe daiquiri is the perfect way to celebrate summer! Freshly juiced melon, lime juice, rum and maraschino cherries - it's refreshing and cool and a fantastic cocktail to have during happy hour! Isn't the color amazing too?! I howsweeteats.com #cantaloupe #cocktail #daiquiri #lime #rum #summer

And even though I’m getting sort of burnt out on summertime drinks and while I’m very into summer hanging around for a bit, my cocktail game is ready for the cooler weather and freshly picked apples and cinnamon rims. I can’t help it!

So in thinking about what I HAVEN’T turned into a cocktail in the last few years of this Thursday series, cantaloupe was at the top of the list.

It’s a fruit that we eat constantly – I buy one nearly every week. It makes for the best snack and is easier to cut up than a watermelon.

But the only things I’ve done? A coconut cantaloupe lassi. And some salsa.

Like, what?

How is that ALLLL I’ve done with cantaloupe when we have some in our house 99% of the time for about four or five months straight?

This cantaloupe daiquiri is the perfect way to celebrate summer! Freshly juiced melon, lime juice, rum and maraschino cherries - it's refreshing and cool and a fantastic cocktail to have during happy hour! Isn't the color amazing too?! I howsweeteats.com #cantaloupe #cocktail #daiquiri #lime #rum #summer

That was a disappointment.

But. Also an opportunity!

A chance for some cantaloupe deliciousness to find its way into my kitchen without too many ingredients.

This cantaloupe daiquiri is the perfect way to celebrate summer! Freshly juiced melon, lime juice, rum and maraschino cherries - it's refreshing and cool and a fantastic cocktail to have during happy hour! Isn't the color amazing too?! I howsweeteats.com #cantaloupe #cocktail #daiquiri #lime #rum #summer

Lime, rum, a bit of cherry juice? Pretty sure I can make those work ALL the time.

This cantaloupe daiquiri is the perfect way to celebrate summer! Freshly juiced melon, lime juice, rum and maraschino cherries - it's refreshing and cool and a fantastic cocktail to have during happy hour! Isn't the color amazing too?! I howsweeteats.com #cantaloupe #cocktail #daiquiri #lime #rum #summer

Here’s the cool thing about this drink. The cantaloupe flavor is very very VERY mild. It’s a little bit tart, almost slightly creamy with no cream and has just the slightest hint of melon flavor. Not too strong. Not too weird.

This cantaloupe daiquiri is the perfect way to celebrate summer! Freshly juiced melon, lime juice, rum and maraschino cherries - it's refreshing and cool and a fantastic cocktail to have during happy hour! Isn't the color amazing too?! I howsweeteats.com #cantaloupe #cocktail #daiquiri #lime #rum #summer

P.S. can we talk about THIS COLOR! It’s so stunning. I want to wear this color. Decorate my house in this color. It seems like this orange hue is reserved for our fall produce, but this melon-y orange is screaming summer to me right at this moment. Never have seen something so refreshing!

This cantaloupe daiquiri is the perfect way to celebrate summer! Freshly juiced melon, lime juice, rum and maraschino cherries - it's refreshing and cool and a fantastic cocktail to have during happy hour! Isn't the color amazing too?! I howsweeteats.com #cantaloupe #cocktail #daiquiri #lime #rum #summer

Cantaloupe Daiquiris

A cantaloupe daiquiri is the most gorgeous cocktail for summer! Ingredients like fresh, ripe cantaloupe juice, rum and maraschino cherry juice are shaken to refreshing perfection! 
5 from 27 votes
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Ingredients

  • 3 ounces fresh cantaloupe "juice" or puree
  • 2 ounces white rum
  • 1 1/2 ounces simple syrup
  • 1 ounce maraschino cherry juice
  • splash of lime juice
  • splash of seltzer

Instructions 

  • To make the cantaloupe "juice," blend 2 cups cubed cantaloupe melon in a blender until pureed and smooth. Strain the mixture through a mesh strainer that is sitting on a bowl, pushing any extra liquid out with a spoon.
  • Add the rum, cantaloupe juice, syrup, cherry juice and lime juice to a shaker filled with ice. Shake for 30 seconds then pour into a frosty glass. If you’d like some bubbles, splash some seltzer on top! Garnish with a wedge of lime and a few melon balls.
  • Note: for simple syrup, combine equal parts sugar and water. For instance, bring 1/2 cup of each to a simmer in a saucepan while whisking. Turn off the heat and let it cool to room temperature!
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I appreciate you so much!

This cantaloupe daiquiri is the perfect way to celebrate summer! Freshly juiced melon, lime juice, rum and maraschino cherries - it's refreshing and cool and a fantastic cocktail to have during happy hour! Isn't the color amazing too?! I howsweeteats.com #cantaloupe #cocktail #daiquiri #lime #rum #summer

And surely it’s more than our daily serving of fruit.