Summer speaks to me of sunshine, warm evenings, and cocktails. We cannot control the weather, but a summery drink never fails to cheer any evening. I adore margaritas, though admittedly I rarely think about making a cocktail at home which is a shame because they are so simple to make. Some margaritas are unsweetened and, though charring the limes does add a caramelised note, I love the sweet-sour combination of honey and lime here. The biting tang of salt from the rim of the glass is a necessity for me though my husband prefers without – try both and choose!

Serves 2        Preparation: 10 minutes + cooling

Ingredients

3–4                    Limes
120ml                Tequila
60ml                  Triple sec
                           (orange liqueur)
2–3 handfuls      Ice cubes
50g                    Honey
1–2 tbsp           Salt

Tip:  Char the limes and make the honey syrup in advance to allow for chilling.

Method

1.     Halve the limes and char on your BBQ grill or in a hot cast iron grill pan until the surface has blackened (about 5 mins). Remove and leave to cool before juicing the limes, straining, and chilling the juice in the fridge. Reserve a couple of lime skins for later.

2.     Make a simple 1:1 honey syrup using 50ml of warm water to dissolve the honey and then chill in the fridge.

3.     Add the salt to a shallow dish or saucer. Run the used lime skin around the outside rim of 2 glasses and dip into the salt or roll the outer edge of the glass in the salt, avoiding getting salt on the inside of the glass (this will wash back into the drink making it too salty). 

4.     Make the margarita by combining 60ml of the chilled lime juice, tequila (I used silver tequila), triple sec (I used Cointreau), and the honey syrup to taste (I used 50ml) and mix with a large handful of ice for at least 30 seconds. Use a cocktail shaker if you have one.

5.      Strain into the prepared glasses, adding more ice if you like.