Mint jalapeño limeade

With one post every 3 or 4 months, you just know this has to be good!

We had a lovely Easter day with our brother, sis-in-law, and nephew. We grilled chicken and hot dogs, roasted some Brussels sprouts, made some vanilla ice cream to go with freshly picked dewberries, and hung out in the pool. Read and see more at my sis-in-law's blog, Jackson's Lane! I also made some delicious limeade I wanted to tell you about.

Inspired by an absolutely amazing mint limeade at Latin Bites last week, I decided to try my hand at it. The drink was so delightful - light, refreshing, and so much like a very good mojito that I had to check with the server to make sure it was nonalcoholic! I did some Google searching to find some proportions and came across a suggestion to infuse jalapeño slices as well. Yum. If you remove the seeds from the jalapeños, it's really not at all hot.

So, here's what I did:

Mint Jalapeño Limeade

6 cups water, divided
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup mint leaves/sprigs
1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (about 6-10 limes, depending on size)
1 jalapeño, thinly sliced, seeded (unless you like things hot)
Additional mint sprigs for garnish

Make mint simple syrup:
Bring 1cup water and 1 cup sugar to a boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then remove from heat and add mint leaves. Steep for 15-30 minutes, then strain out the mint and discard.

Combine in a pitcher 5 cups of water, mint simple syrup, lime juice, and jalapeño. Chill for at least an hour.

Serve in tall glasses filled with ice, garnish with mint sprigs.

Note: if you don't like too much jalapeño flavor, then take out the slices after chilling the limeade for an hour.

Happy Easter!!