Katie's Famous Mojitos

This is what your mojito might look like

We drank mojitos the other day in honor of my birthday...nothing like a minty, fresh cocktail to celebrate another year! This is the recipe I used, passed along to me by my friend Katie. She used to work at a fabulous Puerto Rican restaurant in Seattle, and, no joke--her mojitos were once declared the best in Seattle by "The Seattle Post-Intelligencer."

First you need to make mint-infused simple syrup. Make a batch of standard simple syrup by combining equal parts sugar and water (I used a cup of each, which made a good-sized batch of syrup--it will keep for a few days in the fridge) and cooking on the stovetop until the sugar is dissolved. While it's cooling, add a small handful of chopped fresh mint leaves. The minty flavor will infuse into the syrup while it cools. Yum.

This is the recipe to make one drink at a time. You might be cleverer than I am and will figure out how to make a whole pitcher at once, but I did it this way because that's what Katie always does, and she rules.

Ingredients:
Ice cubes
Limes
Fresh mint leaves
Mint syrup
White rum
Sprite or 7-Up
Soda water

Directions:
1) Muddle a few ice cubes with 2 lime wedges and a small handful of mint leaves.
2) Pour mint syrup over the top to coat--a generous splash will do 'er.
3) Add 1 1/2 shots white rum and shake (or just swirl, if you're like me and do your drink mixing in a plastic popcorn tub instead of a metal shaker)
4) Pour mixture into an ice-filled tall glass.
5) Add 1/2 Sprite and 1/2 soda water to the top of the glass.
6) Give it a little stir with the straw, and enjoy!

This is how my mojitos actually looked, in mismatched  glasses and half-drunk.