Matcha Mojitos

I don’t normally drink many alcoholic beverages, but when I do mojitos are my drink of choice. I like that mojitos taste light and crisp without tasting overly sweet, and I also like that the ingredients used to make these cocktails are not the least bit fussy or hard to get.

There’s really nothing to making a mojito, which makes it perfect for a Monday evening wind down. It’s typical to use a muddler to mash up the mint and lime wedges of this drink, but since I don’t have one of those I’ve taken a shortcut to extract the flavors out of the ingredients. In the first step of the recipe I use hot water to create a smooth honey simple syrup. I then use the residual heat from the water not only to brew my matcha but also to help wilt and release flavor from the mint leaves. It’s an untraditional method that does a great job of melding all of this mojito’s refreshing flavors together.

The matcha in this recipe will give the mojito more body and a gentle bitterness which is balanced by the sweet honey. As always, an added benefit of the matcha is that it will give you a bit of extra pep to get you through the rest of your day (or evening). Matcha Mojitos are the drink to have when your day has been tireless and exhausting. Smooth and crisp with just a bit of edge to it, this simple cocktail is a refreshing finish to any hot and busy summer day.

Matcha Mojito

Makes 1 drink.

Ingredients:

2 tsp honey

1 Tbsp hot water

1 tsp matcha powder, sifted

1 sprig of mint (5 leaves)

1 lime, cut into 4 wedges

6-7 large ice cubes

3 Tbsp rum, chilled

6 Tbsp club soda, chilled

Equipment:

large glass

sifter

spoon or muddler

Directions:

1.)  Pour the honey into a large glass (the one that you plan on serving with), then add 1 Tbsp of hot water and stir until you get a thinned honey water. Add the sifted matcha, then mix with spoon until the matcha is thoroughly incorporated and there are no lumps.

2.)  Squeeze the juice from each lime wedge into the mixture, then throw 2 of the wedges into the mixture (discard the other 2). Add the mint leaves to the matcha honey mixture, then slightly crush the leaves and lime wedges with the back of the spoon.

3.)  Add the rum, then mix again. Add the ice cubes, then top off with club soda and give the Matcha Mojito one last mix before serving.

<< PREVIOUS POST NEXT POST >>