My name’s Daisy and I’m a serial substituter. Whenever I make a recipe, I can’t help but substitute something. I don’t really mean to – it’s just that there’s always a cheaper version, a low fat version, or something left in the fridge to use up. Because of this, I guess it was only a matter of time before I completely bastardised a totally classic cocktail.
I’m always knackered on a Friday night and I hadn’t really thought about supplies for the weekend. I spotted the white rum on the shelf and fancied knocking together a Strawberry Daiquiri or a classic Mojito. Unfortunately we didn’t have any limes… or soda water… so my Emergency Mojito was born.
I decided to replace the lime with an orange; a lemon just seemed a bit boring. Because of this, I went rogue from the recipe in my lovely classic cocktail book. Usually you’d muddle some sugar into a Mojito, and top with soda water. I thought the orange would bring the sweetness, so I skipped the sugar and topped with tonic water.
I used a mix of frozen mint (the leaves shrink a little and go darker, but it retains its flavour perfectly) and some fresh from the garden. Some of you may know I’m really getting into growing my own fruit and veg following a small success last year, so I’m definitely going to be working on some homegrown cocktail garnishes…
- 2 measures Bacardi white rum
- 1 orange cut into chunks
- Mix of fresh and frozen mint
- Small measure of tonic water
- Plenty of crushed ice – I had to put cubes into a sandwich bag and crush em up
The drink was a total success! I think typically a mojito is often too sweet and the natural sugars in this version balanced well and made more sense with the white rum to me. I’m pleased I can record the recipe on here because I want to make this again… I’ll probably sub it all out and end up accidentally making a classic Mojito!
