My Favorite New Tequila Drink
© Brian Malik
The Benson Cocktail from Cure in New Orleans gets its color from arugula.
I’m about to turn 30, and I think someone is trying to tell me to celebrate by drinking tequila. Piece of evidence #1: In the past week, four bottles of tequila have arrived on my desk out of the blue. #2: Patrón sponsored last night’s Best New Chef party, and the stellar cocktails reminded me that tequila is good for way more than margaritas (and shots, of course). #3: Today, we tested a killer tequila-based drink from Neal Bodenheimer of Cure in New Orleans. He developed it to go with this crab roll, which was served recently at a party thrown by Mad Men actor Bryan Batt, but in the magazine, we paired it with wine instead. Nicely balanced between sweet and tart, with a slight peppery edge thanks to muddled arugula, it’s dangerously easy to drink but still tastes grown up. It's so perfect for leaving my twenties behind, I'm considering making it by the pitcherful. Click below for the recipe.
The Benson Cocktail
10 MIN
Makes 1 drink
I like to joke that people in New Orleans only ever eat vegetables if they’re in cocktails, like the pickle-filled Bloody Marys you see all over the city come brunch time. Here, Neal gives me further proof of my theory with his terrific tequila cocktail that gets its pretty green color from muddled arugula.
2 slices of seedless cucumber, cut 1/3 inch thick
5 arugula leaves
Ice
1 1/2 ounces silver tequila
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
1/2 ounce Simple Syrup
2 thick strips of lime zest
1 ounce cava (Spanish sparkling wine)
Pinch of coarse salt
In a cocktail shaker, muddle 1 slice of the cucumber. Add the arugula and gently muddle. Fill the shaker with ice and add the tequila, lime juice, Simple Syrup and lime zest. Shake 20 times, then strain into a chilled martini glass or coupe. Pour in the cava and add the pinch of salt. Garnish with the remaining slice of cucumber. —Neal Bodenheimer
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