Mango and Passion Fruit Mojito

I don’t often drink alcoholic beverages because I don’t like the taste of most. However, I do sometimes enjoy a cocktail on a hot day, in the form of Margaritas, Mojitos and Piña Coladas. They are some of my favorite drinks and I love trying different flavors and variations of each of them. I made a Mango and Passion Fruit Mojito for this recipe.

It’s been challenging to find many of my favorite ingredients from Colombia in my neck of the woods. But about a year ago, a couple of Latin markets opened close to my house which has made it a bit easier to find certain favorites. For instance, when I visit the grocery store now, I can buy fresh passion fruit instead of frozen pulp and there is nothing better that a tall glass a fresh jugo de maracuyá (passion fruit juice) on a hot summer day. Last week I made a large batch of this juice and while drinking it, the idea of a Mojito came to my mind and while my first inclination was to use just passion fruit, I found a couple of mangoes in my fridge and came up with this lovely yellow concoction.

What I really love about this refreshing Mango and Passion Fruit Mojito is that it’s equally wonderful served as a mocktail, leaving out the rum and replacing it with additional sparkling water or sparkling lemonade.

Buen provecho!

Ingredients

• 1 large ripe mango, peeled and diced
• 2 cups of passion fruit juice
• ¼ cup fresh lime juice
• ½ cup sugar, or to taste
• Mint leaves
• 2 cups of sparkling water
• 1 cup of rum, or to taste
• Ice

Directions

1. Place the mango passion fruit juice, lime juice and sugar in a blender. Blend until smooth.
2. Add the rum, a few ice cubes and some mint leaves. Then top off with the sparkling water, mix gently and serve.