Cucumber-Chile Margarita

Found the recipe in this month's (August 2013) New Mexico Magazine, made them, LOVED them! This drink is originally from the Pueblo Harvest Cafe in the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque. If you find yourself there, I suggest you get the blue cornmeal-coated onion rings to have with your drink, they are memorable! Serve these gorgeous drinks with a bottle of Tabasco green jalapeno sauce on the side for those who like a hotter experience. Food.com software does not differentiate between chile powder and chili powder, so make sure you are using pure CHILE powder, not the pre-mixed stuff you might use to make chili.

• Ready In: 10 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• Salt for Rims

• 2  teaspoons red chili powder (not "chili" powder, which has extra ingredients, we use ground ancho)
• 1  teaspoon coarse salt, such as kosher salt (we use mesquite-smoked salt)

• Drinks

• 2  large limes
• 11 -12  ounces English cucumbers
• 2 -3  tablespoons  fresh minced  jalapenos (more to taste, we use 1 very large jalapeno for two drinks)
• 1⁄2 cup  simple syrup
• 1  cup  premium silver  tequila, such as Patron

• Finish and Garnish

•  ice cube
•  cucumber, slices (optional)
•  thin round lime slice (optional)

Directions

1. On a saucer, stir together the ground chile and salt.
2. Slice limes in half and rub one of the halves around the rim of four cocktail glasses. Dunk the wet rims of the glasses into the chile/salt mixture to coat.
3. Squeeze the lime halves into a small pitcher.
4. Halve cucumber and cut 4 thin rounds from the center to garnish the glasses. Peel remaining cucumber halves and chop coarsely. Place cucumber, jalapeno, and simple syrup in blender jar and puree. Pour into a pitcher and add the tequila.
5. Fill salt-rimmed glasses halfway with ice. Add margarita mixture and garnish before serving.