Bring on the Alcohol - Coconut Drinks! RC Week 3

What better way to start out week three, during yet another impending snow storm, than with a little tropical rum drink served in a coconut??  I say there is nothing better!  And this did not disappoint.

Oh, and I hope you don't mind, but my titles were getting a little lengthy, so I am now calling the Recipe Challenge RC.

Our first "recipe" from Bon Appetit is the Luau Coconut.

1/4 cup sugar
2 fresh young coconuts (green skin cut away)
1/4 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk
1/4 cup light rum
1/4 cup gold rum
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons pineapple juice
Ice cubes
2 lime slices (for garnish)
2 maraschino cherries (for garnish)

Bring sugar and 1/4 cup water to boil in small saucepan over medium- high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Cool simple syrup.  Or, you can use ready made simple syrup from Trader Joe's like me!

Cut off top 2 inches of coconuts (wow, this was not easy and I made a good sized mess); reserve coconut water. Mix 1/4 cup simple syrup, coconut milk, light rum, gold rum, lime juice, pineapple juice, and 1/2 cup reserved coconut water in large cocktail shaker. Fill with ice; cover and shake vigorously 20 times. Pour contents of shaker into coconuts, dividing equally (do not strain). Garnish each with lime slice and maraschino cherry. Serve with straw and spoon for scraping out fresh coconut from inside of shell.

Hard to photograph these as they weren't all that pretty.  But, I promise, they tasted pretty damn good!