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Real Watermelon Jello Shots

"Real" Watermelon Shots

BBQ time means watermelon. But when the majority of those attending are adults, well, it just makes sense to make Jello shots. However, those little cups get messy and then there is all the trash that comes with it, so we found another way to make Jello shots without all the plastic trash and to make it look cute. Plus, it wasn’t that much work! Just a lot of gelatin.

"Real" Watermelon Shots

Katie will probably kill be for the above picture, but to be fair, she knew a picture was about to be taken. Just proof that we did, in fact, eat them, and I will say they were delicious!!

The below picture is just to give you a sense of how we filled the melons (you’ll need that for later when you look at the recipe.) So clear out the fridge and make some! We’ve been talking about doing this to all kinds of fruit for a Jello shot “fruit platter” with lemons, limes, oranges, and strawberries. How fun would that be?!

"Real" Watermelon Shots

“Real” Watermelon Jello Shots

Gather
1 large watermelon
4 3-ounce boxes of watermelon Jello
2 1-ounce boxes of unflavored gelatin
4 cups of vodka (plain or watermelon flavored)
4 cups of water

With a large knife, carefully split the watermelon in half, lengthwise. It will now be in two halves. Scoop out the fruit, leaving the rind and less than a 1/4 inch of fruit. Set fruit aside for snacking later. Place watermelon rind in a glass baking dish with sides. It will act as a bowl for the Jello shots. Keep it in place with paper towels, so it won’t tip.

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Add gelatin and watermelon Jello to a large bowl. Add boiling water and whisk until gelatin is dissolved. Add 4 cups of vodka and stir until combined.

Pour mixture into one half of the watermelon until it is filled to the top. If using a large watermelon, you may only need one half. If a small watermelon, you might use both halves.

Place is refrigerator and chill for at least 4 hours or until gelatin is hardened. Once hardened, remove from fridge and slice into 1-inch pieces. You can cut them once again so they look like wedges. Refrigerate until the party.

 

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Cocktails, Food

(Alcoholic) Italian Soda

(Alcoholic) Italian Soda - Roni's Blog

It’s been a long week. And despite the pour weather forcing us to stay inside, I decided it was time to crack into the liquor cabinet. Why not? It’s almost summer (and supposedly spring). I figured I might as well practice some of my summer drinks. Must be prepared for the pool opening and cocktail hour.

I’ll be honest, I’m not a really good bartender. I couldn’t tell you what’s in half the drinks they serve at the bar, and when I do get something other than a craft beer, it usually consists of only two ingredients (rum and coke or vodka and soda). So I’m branching out so that this summer, we’re a little less bored with pitchers of Sangria. Although, I do make a mean Mojito if I do say so myself. Pitchers of those usually go over pretty well.

So we tried something new, called an Italian Soda. I used to have Italian sodas in the upstairs coffee house bar at the bookstore as a kid. These had no alcohol though, just simple syrup and seltzer, often a rose or yellow color depending on the flavor I chose. So to make it a little more adult, we added some vodka. And believe me, this one is easy to make. No seventeen ingredient drink and certainly less complicated than the real Italian sodas I used to drink.

(Alcoholic) Italian Soda

Ice
Vanilla Vodka
Ginger Ale

Fill a small tumbler half with ice. Add 1 1/2 oz of vanilla vodka. Fill the rest of the glass with ginger ale. Stir and serve.

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