Strawberry Basil Mojito... and a giveaway!

*The giveaway has now ended.

I was contacted a couple weeks ago by the publisher of a book entitled DIY Cocktails: A Simple Guide to Creating Your Own Signature Drinks, asking if I would be interested in reviewing it for my blog.

(PS I know there are many bloggers out there whose in-boxes are brimming with emails like this, but me... not so much.)

I responded, "Sounds great, I will give my honest opinion though - if you're still interested, here's my address."

And... then I ever heard back.

So imagine my surprise when I get home from work on Friday evening to find a copy of the book on my doorstep!

Which was extra great because as I've said before, I'm not much of a drinker - so if I'm gonna do it, 95% of the time it's on the weekend.

Saturday afternoon I thumbed through, checking out all the photos and recipe titles, and the Strawberry Basil Mojito jumped out at me.  (Much like coconut and chocolate peanut butter, you can always entice me with a recipe that has fresh strawberries.)

The recipe definitely did not disappoint, and honestly neither did the book.  What I like about it is the fact that along with the recipe they give you the ratio of ingredients that should be in the drink- like '3 parts strong, 2 parts sweet, 1 part sour' etc.

This is an especially handy tool for people (i.e. me) who need Cocktails for Dummies because they have no idea what goes well with what.

For this one I just followed the recipe exactly as it was printed, but it's nice to have the option to customize your beverage with different ingredients using the ratios as a guide.

Hence the name "DIY Cocktails" I suppose?  (Ah ha!)

I also specifically looked up Sangria, another of my favorite adult beverages, and they have a lot of tips for putting flavors together.

All in all... this Cocktail Dummy gives the book two thumbs up.

So while I was feeling sassy on mojitos, I decided it would be fun to do a giveaway of the book (sponsored by yours truly by the way - I'm just barely cool enough to get one copy of the book for free so let's not push it.)

If you are interested in entering the giveaway, please leave me a comment below telling me your favorite cocktail... and make sure you leave me a way to contact you if it's not in your Google profile!

To get extra entries, you can also:

• become a follower of V&B, and leave me another comment telling me you became one or you already are
• follow Vittles & Bits on Twitter and leave me a comment that you did or that you're already doing so
• "like" Vittles & Bits on Facebook and leave me a comment that you did or that you're already a fan
  
  

You'll get one entry for each of the above.  I will choose the winning comment randomly - which means Pam you can enter the giveaway too (that's my mother-in-law :).  The giveaway ends this Sunday, May 15 at noon, EST and I'll announce the winner later that day.

So get to it.

And if you're not interested in entering, I'm not hatin' ... but give the Strawberry Basil Mojito a try anywho.  It has fruit & green things in it so technically it's good for you.

At least that's what I like to tell myself?

Strawberry Basil Mojito

• 3 basil leaves, torn
• 3 small strawberries, sliced
• 1 1/2 oz. white rum
• 1 oz. simple syrup (see note below)
• 1/2 oz. lime juice (from 1/2 medium lime)
• 4 oz. club soda

Muddle basil, strawberries, and simple syrup at the bottom of a highball or Collins glass.  Add rum and lime juice, then fill with ice.  Top off with club soda.

*To make a simple syrup, you can place 1 part sugar with 1 part water in jar or coverable bottle and shake vigorously until sugar is dissolved.  If making in advance, you can also boil water, then add sugar & simmer until dissolved.

Recipe from DIY Cocktails, by Marcia Simmons & Jonas Halpren

Note: While I did receive a copy of the book, I did not receive any other compensation to write this post- the opinions are my own.