Picture this: You’re sitting at an open-air bar with the sky painted in hues of pink and orange as the sun sets while you’re having a glass of Cranberry Mojito in your hand. Before you even take a sip, you’re noticing a refreshing blend of mint and citrus, with a hint of cranberry sweetness in the air. Your first sips showers your taste buds with the tartness of cranberries dancing on your tongue with a sweetness of the syrup bringing a bright contrast. The subtle warmth of the rum is met with the zesty lime juice, smooth and mellow, weaving through the flavor layers together like the sky above you in different colors.

Ready to mix it for those warm summer evenings that will make the world pause for a second?

Note: While this is a typical Mojito recipe for the holiday season, you can enjoy it at any time of year if you’re a cranberry lover!

How to Mix a Cranberry Mojito

Your simple ingredients:

1.5 to 2 oz White Rum (45 to 60 ml)
1 oz Cranberry Syrup(30 ml)
0.5 oz Lime Juice (15 ml)
2-3 oz Soda Water to top off (60 to 90 ml)
Ice cubes
Fresh mint leaves
Fresh cranberries (for both the cranberry syrup and garnish)
Lime, both juice and slices for garnish
Optional: Sugar for rim

Alternative Ingredients:

Rum – Vodka, gin, Captain Morgan rum
Cranberry Syrup – Raspberry syrup, blueberry syrup, pomegranate syrup, store-bought fruit-flavored syrup
Lime Juice – Lemon juice, a mix of lemon and orange juice
Soda Water – Citrus-flavored sparkling water, ginger ale, club soda, seltzer water
Sugar (for syrup) – Honey, agave syrup, artificial sweeteners
Mint Leaves – Basil, thyme
Garnish – Orange slices, lemon slices, assorted berries

Step-by-Step Instruction on Mixing

Step 1: You can either buy a ready-made cranberry syrup from the grocery store or make your own cranberry reduction by taking a saucepan and combining a handful of cranberries, sugar, and water. Bring it all to a boil and let it simmer until the cranberries burst and the mixture overall thickens, then strain the syrup and let it cool off.

Step 2: Place your glass in the fridge before starting to mix – when ready, muddle mint leaves and add fresh lime juice to it – this will release the lemons’ and mint’s aroma.

Step 3: Add ice cubes to the glass and pour a shot or white rum, before adding a splash of your store-bought or homemade cranberry syrup – this will give you this beautiful red tone and a sweet-tart flavor that will give the drink a nice balance.

Step 4: Top your drink off your cranberry mixture with a soda water for some extra fizz and garnish it with fresh cranberries, lime wedges, and a sprig of mint.

Expert Tips

When muddling the mint, be careful since you only want to release the essential oils; if you shred it, it will turn bitter.
The secret to any good cocktail is the balance between the flavors without overpowering one another, so make sure to always do a small taste test before adding more to it – if it’s too tart, add syrup, while if it’s too sweet, add more lime juice or liqueur.
Chill all your ingredients including the glass to give it a fresher taste.
To get a more aesthetic look, layer your ingredients: muddled mint and lime, ice, rum, cranberry syrup, and soda.
Experiment with different sizes of ice cubes, as crushed ice is more refreshing but melts faster, meanwhile, big ice cubes melt slower and keep your drink chilled longer without diluting it.

What to Serve with Cranberry Mojitor

When pairing your cocktail, you want something that will complement tartness and sweetness of your cocktail without overpowering it, here are some suggestions:

Appetizers

Cheese platter
Bruschetta
Shrimp cocktail

Main Course

Grilled seafood or seafood tacos
Grilled chicken or roasted chicken dishes
Caprese salad
Stuffed bell peppers

Dessert

Fruit sorbet
Key lime pie
Tiramisu

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is a Cranberry Mojito?

A cranberry mojito is normally a festive twist for the holidays based on the classic Mojito recipe, which normally includes rum, mint, lime, sugar, and soda water – whereas, here you add cranberries and cranberry syrup.

How do you make a Cranberry Mojito?

If you want to make a cranberry mojito, you will need rum, fresh mint leaves, lime juice, soda water, and cranberry syrup or fresh cranberries – first you muddle the mint leaves with the lime juice and some sugar, then you add the ice and rum to it, on top of that you layer the cranberry syrup and top it off with soda, before you garnish it with lime slices and some additional cranberries.

How to make a Cranberry Mojito Mocktail

To make your mojito punch, use the same ingredients but omit the rum and either add more soda water or a cup cranberry juice to it, which will give it that pretty pink hue and delicious flavor.

What are some variations of the traditional Mojito recipe?

There are various different mojito variations where they include all the basic ingredients but have different additions, such as strawberries, blueberries, or mangoes for a fruity twist – usually in the form of syrup and some fresh fruit garnishes.

Can Cranberry Mojito be made in large batches for parties?

Yes! You can prepare all the liquid ingredients (besides the soda!) together in a large pitcher and prepare the muddled mint leaves with lime juice separately – when you’re ready to serve it, simply add the muddled mint and lime juice to the glasses first, followed by the pitcher mix, and top it off with soda at the end – if you add the soda into the pitcher, you will lose the fizz and freshness overtime.

Cranberry Mojito Recipe | Best Spring Cocktail

Anna Dykeman

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Your simple ingredients:

1.5 to 2 oz White Rum 45 to 60 ml
1 oz Cranberry Syrup 30 ml
0.5 oz Lime Juice 15 ml
2-3 oz Soda Water to top off 60 to 90 ml
Ice cubes
Fresh mint leaves
Fresh cranberries for both the cranberry syrup and garnish
Lime both juice and slices for garnish
Optional: Sugar for rim

Alternative Ingredients:

Rum – Vodka gin, Captain Morgan rum
Cranberry Syrup – Raspberry syrup blueberry syrup, pomegranate syrup, store-bought fruit-flavored syrup
Lime Juice – Lemon juice a mix of lemon and orange juice
Soda Water – Citrus-flavored sparkling water ginger ale, club soda, seltzer water
Sugar for syrup – Honey, agave syrup, artificial sweeteners
Mint Leaves – Basil thyme
Garnish – Orange slices lemon slices, assorted berries

Instructions

You can either buy a ready-made cranberry syrup from the grocery store or make your own cranberry reduction by taking a saucepan and combining a handful of cranberries, sugar, and water. Bring it all to a boil and let it simmer until the cranberries burst and the mixture overall thickens, then strain the syrup and let it cool off.
Place your glass in the fridge before starting to mix – when ready, muddle mint leaves and add fresh lime juice to it – this will release the lemons’ and mint’s aroma.
Add ice cubes to the glass and pour a shot or white rum, before adding a splash of your store-bought or homemade cranberry syrup – this will give you this beautiful red tone and a sweet-tart flavor that will give the drink a nice balance.
Top your drink off your cranberry mixture with a soda water for some extra fizz and garnish it with fresh cranberries, lime wedges, and a sprig of mint.