Prickly Pear Margarita Recipe

Prepare fruit

Wear gloves or handle carefully: remove the outer spines and skin from the prickly pears and rinse. Chop the peeled fruit into chunks until you have about 2 cups.

Place the chopped prickly pear flesh in a blender with 2 tablespoons granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice. Blend on high until smooth, about 30–45 seconds.

Taste the puree; if it's very thick, add up to 2 tablespoons water and blend again to reach a pourable syrup-like consistency. Strain the puree through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl to remove seeds and fibers, pressing with a spoon. Yields about 3/4 to 1 cup puree. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Rub the lime wedge around the rim of a rocks or coupe glass. Dip the rim into coarse salt or Tajín to coat. Fill the glass with fresh ice if serving on the rocks; set aside.

In a cocktail shaker, add 1 cup ice, 3 oz tequila, 1 oz triple sec, 1 oz fresh lime juice, 1 oz sweet and sour mix, and 2 tablespoons prickly pear puree.

Shake vigorously for 10–15 seconds until the shaker is cold and frosty.

Double-strain the cocktail (using the shaker strainer and a fine mesh if available) into the prepared glass over fresh ice for an on-the-rocks serve, or strain into a chilled coupe for a straight-up pour.

Garnish with a lime wedge or a thin prickly pear slice on the rim. Serve immediately.

Sweetness and tartness can be adjusted: add more sweet and sour mix or simple syrup for a sweeter cocktail, or more lime juice for extra tartness. If using bottled prickly pear syrup instead of fresh puree, reduce or omit added sugar in the puree step.

To batch: multiply the Margarita Mix ingredients by the number of servings and keep the puree separate until serving to preserve color and texture; stir or shake lightly before serving.