Bursting with fresh watermelon and mint flavours, plus a touch of lime, this is a cocktail sip of summer.

If you love summer cocktails like this Peach Whiskey Smash and Minty Cucumber Lime Sangria, you’re sure to love these watermelon mojitos as they make delicious drinks on a hot day!

A classic mojito is made with rum, lime, mint, sugar and soda water. But, I’ve put an easy riff on it with the addition of summery watermelon. It’s a super refreshing cocktail and it’s easy to make for yourself or guests.

Why you’ll love this watermelon mojito recipe

• It’s easy to make!
• Uses fresh, in-season summer ingredients
• Easily adaptable

Ingredients needed to make these cocktails

Watermelon: fresh, ripe watermelon is the key to this watermelon mojito!

Mint: fresh mint leaves are muddled together with the watermelon for tons of flavour

Sugar: just 1/2 tsp sugar is needed to help muddle the mint and watermelon; alternatively you could use simple syrup

Lime juice:  fresh lime juice works best in this recipe

Rum:  white rum works the best in this recipe; you want a light rum that still lets the watermelon flavour shine

How to make this summer cocktail

Step 1: To make the lime sugar, mix together the lime zest, sugar and a pinch of salt on a plate. Rim your cocktail glass with the lime sugar.

Step 2: To the cocktail glass add the watermelon cubes, fresh mint, lime juice and sugar and muddle together, squashing everything to release their juices (you can use a muddler or wooden spoon to do this). Once the watermelon is fairly well broken down add the rum and ice and stir. 

Step 3: Top with a splash of sparkling water or club soda and garnish with watermelon wedges and/or a sprig of mint.

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Expert tips

• If you prefer to strain the cocktail instead of making it in the cocktail glass you’re using, simply muddle everything together in a cocktail shaker first. Then, add the rum and ice and shake. Strain into a glass with ice and then top with a splash of sparkling water.
• Make sure to use a ripe watermelon as this will make it easier to muddle in the cocktail glass.

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Common questions

How do I make a big batch of this cocktail?
Times the recipe by how many drinks you want to make. Add those amount of ingredients (watermelon chunks, fresh mint, lime juice and sugar) to the bottom of the pitcher and muddle together. Once the watermelon is fairly well broken down add the rum and stir. You can add ice to the pitcher and then pour into cocktail glasses with ice and top each glass with a splash of sparkling water.

Can I puree the watermelon first?
I have not tested the recipe by using watermelon puree. I do prefer the muddling method as when you muddle with the fresh mint it brings out much better flavour for these watermelon mojito cocktails.

How to store these cocktails
These mojitos are best enjoyed as soon as they’re made! If you want to make a pitcher (see notes above), store the large pitcher of mojitos in the fridge WITHOUT ICE for 1-2 hours before serving. Add ice before serving.

More summer cocktails to make from the blog

Strawberry Bourbon Smash Cocktail with Fresh Basil

The Best Sparkling Blackberry Vodka Drinks Recipe

Strawberry Lemonade Rosé Punch

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Refreshing Watermelon Mojito Cocktail for Summer

If you're looking for a refreshing cocktail for a hot summer day, try this Watermelon Mojito! Make it in 5 minutes using 5 key ingredients.

Course Drinks

Cuisine American

Keyword mojito

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 5 minutes minutes

Servings 1 cocktail

Author Jess

Ingredients

For the lime sugar

• zest half
• 1 tbsp sugar
• pinch of salt

For the watermelon mojito

• 1/3 cup cubed watermelon
• 6 fresh mint
• 1/2 oz lime juice
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 2 oz white rum
• sparkling water or club soda
• watermelon wedge and/or fresh mint to garnish

Instructions

• To make the lime sugar, mix together the lime zest, sugar and a pinch of salt on a plate. Rim your cocktail glass with the lime sugar.
• To the cocktail glass add the watermelon cubes, fresh mint, lime juice and sugar and muddle together, squashing everything to release their juices (you can use a muddler or wooden spoon to do this). Once the watermelon is fairly well broken down add the rum and ice and stir.
• Top with a splash of sparkling water or club soda and garnish with a watermelon wedge and/or fresh mint.

The post Refreshing Watermelon Mojito Cocktail for Summer appeared first on Cooking in my Genes.

Farmer’s markets are bursting with an array of seasonal food and I seriously cannot wait to dig in.

I’m definitely ready to cook allll the things with What’s In Season for August; so, come on over for all of the August recipe inspiration plus an update on my summer adventures and vegetable garden!

This past month Scott and I have been on a variety of summer day-trip adventures. One of our goals this summer was to get out and explore Alberta more; so far we’ve done just that!

We headed out to the Turner Valley Region for lunch at the Chuckwagon Café and then a tour of Eau Claire Distillery. The Chuckwagon Café was bumping so we sat at the counter for a classic diner experience. We both enjoyed burgers, fries and gravy; the gravy was something everyone told us we MUST have and it did not disappoint!

Next, we walked right next door to Eau Claire Distillery, makers of my favourite gin; the Parlour Gin. We took a tour of the facility and learned a bit more about the area; many of their ingredients for their gin, vodka and other spirits are harvested from surrounding farms.

We also enjoyed some time on the patio in the beautiful sunshine and tried a cocktail too.

We’ve also been golfing a few times since the weather has been pretty fantastic!

In between summer adventures, we’ve been cooking a lot at home, trying new summer recipes. Can we just talk about noodle salads for a moment!? I’m seriously digging these Spicy Peanut Noodles with Garlic Chili Oil from Half-Baked Harvest and Ambitious Kitchen also has this Peach, Corn & Arugula Pasta Salad that’s on my list to make this month. I find they’re so perfect for summer weather because most can be served at room temperature and many of the recipes involve minimal cooking.

Another fav dish we’ve been making from the blog is my Chickpea Taco Bowls which involves pretty minimal cooking too and lots of fresh vegetables! Perfect for #tacotuesday and can easily be meal-prepped for August.

So, let’s get in the kitchen and make all of the delicious things with What’s In Season for August!

Peaches – Peach & Prosciutto Summer Focaccia

Plums – Plum Tarts

Spinach – Mojito Smoothie

Strawberries – Easy Strawberry Jam

Tomatoes – Roasted Tomato, Arugula & Halloumi Salad with Pesto

Watermelon – Watermelon Mason Jar Salad 

And of course I can’t forget a garden update! We’ve enjoyed out first batch of radishes and planted another. Our carrots and beets are coming along nicely so we should be able to harvest those in the next couple weeks.

And, we’ve also been successfully growing jalapeños! I’m also trying to grow potatoes this year and that is a process for the patient ones.

But, I recently heard that you should wait until either 2 weeks after the first frost (let’s hope that’s still far away) OR once the plants flower, 2 weeks after that. So I’ll keep you updated on those spuds!

Until the next cooking adventure,
Jess

The post What’s In Season – Monthly Favourites appeared first on Cooking in my Genes.

I can hardly believe it’s the beginning of July but I am in full summer-enjoyment mode!

June went by in a flash; I cooked and photographed a ton of recipes plus planned out my summer recipe calendar. There are SO many recipes coming to the blog that I’m excited to share with you PLUS I’m sharing my favourite recipes to make in July!

We finally setup our vegetable gardens in our backyard and I’m so excited to start to see the vegetables grow. I love being able to pop outside to grab herbs to use when I cook and I can’t wait to see the radishes, beets and carrots grow too! We’re also growing tomatoes, zucchini and kale.

Cooking seasonally is something I try to adhere to so I’m really looking forward to taking a cue from our gardens’ once they start really grow.  For weekly meal planning ideas the FeedFeed has a wicked weekly meal planner which provides wonderful ideas based on the season. Two of our favourite dishes we made this past month were a One Pot Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes & Oregano and a Classic Greek Salad. Both of the dishes were perfect for weeknights too!

The weather in Calgary was just perfect in June as well so I was able to enjoy lovely walks at the park near our house and on St. Patrick’s Island (one of my FAV spots in Calgary!)

And, we also went for a lovely paddle on Lake Windermere on the Canada Day long weekend; it was the perfect way to celebrate our beautiful country!

So, as we head into the throws of summer here is some recipe inspiration for July:

Blueberries: Summer Berries on Toasted Sourdough

Cucumbers: Minty Cucumber Lime Sangria

Peppers & Zucchini: Roasted Summer Vegetable Salad

Radishes: Watermelon Mason Jar Salad

Raspberries: Raspberry Rosé Popsicles

Strawberries: Summer Fruit with Whipped Cream

I’m spending time in Ontario this month, enjoying time in the sun and by the lake and many meals with family and friends.

I look forward to sharing my summer adventures with you and stay tuned for a summer cocktail and sharing board recipe, both which are perfect for summer entertaining! In the meantime, enjoy this Peach & Prosciutto Summer Focaccia at your next summer get-together!

Until the next cooking adventure,
Jess

The post What’s In Season – Monthly Favourites appeared first on Cooking in my Genes.

I absolutely love this time of year because there is so much fresh produce to choose from to make salads with. When I’m jetting from work to appointments to photoshoots I love to bring easy, meal-prepped salads with me that burst with flavour and are easy to eat on the go.

So, that’s exactly where this Watermelon Mason Jar Salad fits in with a wonderful combination of flavours to brighten your lunchtime!

I absolutely love watermelon on its own as a snack but making it into a savoury dish to enjoy at other meals has been high on my list.

Did you know? Canadians love watermelon! Due to our short local season, we import most of it from the States.  Each year we buy over 300 million pounds of US watermelon! That’s A LOT of watermelon!

Once warmer temperatures appear we generally buy one watermelon per week in our house; my husband and I both LOVE it! We eat watermelon by the slice and now we’ve got this Mason Jar Watermelon Salad on repeat for lunches too.  The salad is very refreshing given that watermelon is 92% water and an excellent hydrator.

And, paired with a hearty grain like farro plus pea shoots and radishes for crunch, the mint and feta, I’m telllllling you this Watermelon Mason Jar Salad is a flavour bomb you don’t want to miss out on!

I like to meal-prep the salad ingredients on Sundays, make us a couple of mason jar salads and store them in the fridge for 2-3 days of lunches.

Don’t have a mason jar? That’s ok! You can easily make this salad in a to-go or meal-prep container, whatever works best for you.

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Watermelon Mason Jar Salad

Perfect to take on-the-go, this Watermelon Mason Jar Salad is filled with watermelon, farro, pea shoots and radishes for crunch, mint and feta, a divine flavour combination! This Watermelon Mason Jar Salad is a flavour bomb you don’t want to miss out on!

Course Lunch, Salad

Cuisine American

Keyword mason jar salad, watermelon salad

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 45 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Jess

Ingredients

• 4 x 26 oz mason jars
• 1 cup uncooked farro
• 2 cups watermelon diced
• 1 1/3 cup radishes sliced in halves
• 3-4 cups pea shoots
• 1 cup feta cheese crumbled
• 1/4 cup mint chopped

Dressing:

• 1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• pinch ground pepper

Instructions

• Bring a pot of water to boil and once boiling, add the farro and cook for 22-25 minutes until the farro is just done (almost a chewy texture). Drain the farro and set aside to cool. *Note the farro cooks just like you would cook pasta and will not absorb all the water like when you cook other grains*
• Next, prep your salad dressing by adding white balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, honey, salt and pepper into a small mason jar or bowl and shake or stir to combine.
• Then, prepare the salad ingredients: dice the watermelon into small cubes; slice the radishes; measure out the pea shoots; crumble the feta and chop the mint.
• To assemble the mason jar salads, divide the ingredients into 4 jars, starting with a 1/4 cup of dressing at the bottom of the jar. Then add in farro, diced watermelon, radishes, pea shoots, feta and top with mint.
• Store in the fridge for up to 2 days.
• When you’re ready to eat the salad, shake the mason jar to combine ingredients and then enjoy!

Notes

Want to use a different grain? Quinoa would also work really well with this recipe too.

You can easily halve this recipe for just two Mason Jar Watermelon Salads by dividing all the ingredient amounts in half.

Or, this recipe also makes a lovely summertime picnic or barbeque salad! Just combine all the ingredients together instead of separating them into 4 mason jars and toss with the dressing when you’re ready to serve.

Want more watermelon recipe inspiration? Check out watermelon.org for a plethora of ideas including how to use the entire watermelon for delicious kitchen creations including using the white of the rind in coleslaws or stirfry or pickle it for a zesty topping!

Until the next cooking adventure,
Jess

Disclaimer: Thank you to the National Watermelon Promotion Board for sponsoring this post.  Thank you for supporting the brands that I support. All opinions are my own.

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