Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Sharing my roots as I am FREAKING OUT!

Ok so things are WAY crazy over here with getting as much done in the next 2 weeks before DH goes to NC. WAY, WAY, WAY too much to get done. I DID however make it to sit 'n knit tonight (a girl must have her priorities straight no?).

Anywhoooooo, I thought that I would share my Mojito recipe with you all as that is my FAVE drink to cool me down after working hard (and help me relax - a little rum will do that). My parents came from Cuba to the USA in 1961 when they were just 18 and 21 years old with a 3 month old son! No jobs, no english but lots of hopes and dreams of finding freedom in the USA. Thanks to Uncle Sam and their hardwork they afforded my brothers and I a very comfortable life. I can't think of any two people that I admire more.

Anyhow, I am very proud of my Cuban roots and try to hold on to as much of it as I can. I try to impart all the sacrifices and hardwork that my parents went through to afform me my freedom to my son. I expose him to my culture as much as possible.

In keeping my culture alive, I keep my Mojito recipe going. Yeah, ain't I altruistic? tee hee ;-)

So, anyhow, here it is and I hope it brings you as much refreshment, relaxation and enjoyment as it has me for years and years.

Traditional Cuban Mojito

1/2 cup of sugar
1 sprig of fresh mint leaves
1/2 cup of freshly squeezed lime juice
3/4 cup of white rum (cuban preferred)
Crushed ice
Seltzer water

1. Thoroughly crush the mint leaves into the sugar. The crushing releases the mint oils and adds to the flavor. Take your time on this step. It'll make a difference in your drink.

2. Add the lime juice and the rum. Mix until the sugar is mostly dissolved. This is your "drink base".

3. Fill a glass with crushed ice. Add your drink base about 1/4 to 1/3 of the way up the glass. Can change this to suit your taste. You'll need to experiment a bit with this.

4. Fill the glass up with the seltzer water.

5. mix thoroughly and enjoy!

7 comments:

Jennifer said...

seriously - i sooo cannot wait to make these!! thank you so much for sharing and i will definitely pass this recipe on to some trusted sources w/ the history explained so they can pass it on as well :)

amylovie said...

I LOOOVE mojitos. Thanks for the recipe.


Amy

Anonymous said...

This might be sacralige, BUT blanco tequila is ALMOST as good as white rum in mojitos. I know I know, but when we were at Cabo Wabo, they hab Wabojitos which were mojitos with blanco tequila. Oh so very good. But the orginal is still the best!

Sourire11 said...

Thanks so much for posting the recipe!!! I love that the drink has history... can't wait to try it!

Suzie said...

Yummm. that sounds sooo good.

Cathi said...

How did I not know that you're Cuban? One of my great loves was (well, still is) the son of Cuban immigrants. Thanks for sharing your recipe- I super love mojitos.

Melody said...

Now i'm thirsty! Thanks for the recipe and tips.. Love me a good mojito!