Two authentic taste of Mexico: Guacamole & Mojito

Here are two new recipes (to me, at least) for two old Mexican goodies, inspired by recent trip to Isla Mujeres:

Guacamole: I sued to make guacamole dip with minced avocado and tomatoes (equal amount) and some chopped coriander, plus jalopeno and fresh lime juice of course. Well, the ratio matters a lot. The “real” guacamole, the one served with almost all local foods in Mexico would have the following recipe:

Four ripe avocado, mashed.  One tomato, minced. Two jalopeno (yes, it got to be spicy!). Fresh lime juice (One large) lime. Salt.  NOTE: Almost everywhere we had guacamole, it came with a small colorful bowl of minced onion and tomatoes topped with a lot of fresh lime juice and salt. The dip and salad went perfectly well together.

The method is simple: Just mix everything! And remember, to prevent guacamole from going dark keep at least one avocado’s seeds in it.

Mojito: I should admit that what I discovered over there in the island was that just throwing some sweetened water, brandy, mint, and lime in pitch full of ice would not do justice to real mojito!  What really matters in making a good mojito is the syrup used as the basis of the cocktail, and of course we make that syrup right here at home:

Pour 1 cup of water and one cup of sugar in a saucepan and bring to boil then stir for a few minute till thicken. Turn off the heat, throw in a bunch of fresh mint leaves and let it cool for a couple of hours. That’s your magic syrup basis. Keep this in the fridge for whenever you need a refreshing summer drink, at which point you would follow this recipe:

Take a long glass and put two tbsp. of your magic syrup. And 5-6 fresh mint leave and muddle. Now add half a cup of crushed ice topped with two tbsp. brandy, one tbsp. fresh lime juice and more water (or soda, if you prefer). Remember the secret is to have a mint-saturated basis for your mojito. This could be achieved through means other than what I just learned and shared here of course.