Now that the weather is finally warmer, I thought it would be a good time to share this refreshing virgin cocktail. I do love a good (real) cocktail and happy hour is my favorite time of day (coffee time being my other). But sometimes a non-alcoholic drink hits the spot. In the case of mojitos, rum is the main ingredient. Unfortunately, rum is high in fructose and some people with IBS may not be able to tolerate it.
I came up with an alternative that tastes just as refreshing as the original, but without the excess fructose (or alcohol for that matter). If you do want a low-FODMAP alcoholic version, vodka would go very nice. Just remember that alcohol can be an irritant to the gut and Monash recommends consuming it with food.
I love cosmopolitans, but they require sweetened lime juice. So a while back I came up with my own homemade version of sweetened lime juice, since the bottled kind is made with high-fructose corn syrup. (I’ve also come up with a cosmo recipe that you can fine here: Low-FODMAP Cosmopolitan Cocktail.) Anyways, I found that the sweetened lime juice worked really well in mojitos. Thus, my recipe for Virgin Mojitos was born. Cheers!
Homemade Sweetened Lime Juice
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup water
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 cup lime juice (fresh or bottled works fine)
Instructions
- Combine the water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in the lime juice. Let cool, transfer to a glass storage container, cover, and refrigerate until chilled. This mixture will keep in the fridge for up to a week.
Virgin Mojito
Ingredients
- 10 fresh mint leaves
- 1.5 oz. Homemade Sweetened Lime Juice (see recipe above)
- Ice
- 4 oz. chilled sparkling water or club soda
Instructions
- Muddle the mint with the sweetened lime juice in the bottom of a short glass tumbler. Add the ice and top with sparkling water or club soda.
Hello! Think I might try this homemade lime juice as I go through so much of it! Can I use stevia instead of sugar? Thank you!!
I’m sorry, I don’t know. I haven’t tried this recipe with stevia.