Rambutan Rum Drink -Tropical Sand

So whenever I go to the Asian market I make a point of buying some random ingredient usually a fruit of vegetable and working it into the menu for the week. This week I saw this:

They are called Rambutans and look like a cross between something from Dr Seuss and a Tribble from Star Trek. Either way neat looking. Here is a close up of one. Pretty red fuchsia colored and then with lime green spikes.

Rambutan

They are a tropical fruit and when you cut into then have a pearly inside which is the fruit you eat and it has a woody almost almond like pit which you do not eat.

See the pearly inside of the rambutan

Upon tasting one I decided it would be excellent in a rum drink. Side note: My spell check keeps thinking Rambutan is not a word and that I am trying to spell ambulant, which means mobile which you certainly will not be if you drink too many of these. 

How to make Rambutan Rum Drink I am calling Tropic Sand

Tropic Sand  makes two 

3oz Goslings Black Seal Rum 

4 Rambutan 

1 cardamon pod 

10 oz ginger beer

1 teaspoon honey

For garnish 

1 Rambutan per drink 

brown sugar 

How to make a Tropical Sand:

1. Pour 3 oz of Goslings Black Seal Rum into a heavy glass that your immersion blender fits into.

2. Smash cardamon pod and place in rum. Let extract for 5 or so minutes.

3. Harvest the flesh but not the woody seed of the rambutans and place directly into the rum.

4. When all rambutans peeled remove the cardamon pod. 

5. Add the honey and then blend with the immersion blender until the rambutans are totally pureed.

6. Rim two martini glasses with brown sugar and then pour the fruit and rum mixture between the two glasses. 

7. Add ice cold ginger beer on top and garnish with a fresh rambutan.

8. Serve. For fun I took a bit of rambutan peel and twined it around the stem of the glass.