Sunday Afternoon Cocktails - Mojito

Every weekend, my husband and I try to have a relaxing cocktail before dinner. We haven't kept it up every weekend, but it's nice to have that one hour where we just enjoy some conversation and a drink. Last weekend, we watched the Eagles v. Cardinals playoff game and enjoyed Mojitos. We also had honey barbeque chicken wings, and chips and salsa. Though it was heartbreaking to watch the Eagles lose, we enjoyed the cocktails. Maybe we enjoyed them a little too much - I had a couple to experiment with different sweetening methods.

Before I post the recipe, here is a little history on the Mojito. Cuba is the birthplace of the Mojito. This drink is generally served in a highball glass, on the rocks. Rum is usually the alcohol of choice when making a Mojito, but flavored vodkas are sometimes substituted. Now, on to the recipe!

Mojito
various recipes found all over the web

Ingredients

1 oz of rum (any kind will do, I used Bacardi Silver label)
.5 oz lime juice
1 tbsp granulated sugar
mint sprigs
chilled club soda (I used seltzer because we didn't have club soda)
ice

Directions

Combine the leaves off two mint sprigs, lime juice and sugar in a highball glass. Crush the mint using a muddler (If you don't have one, you can also use the back of a spoon. It doesn't work as well, but gets the job done.). Pour in the rum and fill the glass with ice. Pour the chilled club soda over the ice. Garnish with a lime wedge and mint sprig, if desired.



Review

Yum-O! Who wouldn't love this drink? It is so refreshing and good tasting. I went through a couple variations and have concluded the best way to sweeten the drink would be with simple syrup. The granulated sugar does not really dissolve well, so the drink isn't as sweet as it could be. Some other recipes I found also suggested powdered sugar. To me, the drink did not taste right using that, though. If you don't know how to make simple syrup, click here for a tutorial from The Hungry Mouse. The next time we make mojitos, I think we will also add a little rum. One ounce just wasn't very strong in comparison to the other ingredients.