Almost a month ago, my husband and I had the opportunity to travel to North Dakota to visit friends Jenny at Prairie California and her husband Mark (Also known as @sunflowerfarmer on Twitter!). I took away so much from our trip to North Dakota. Jenny is as fabulous cook and always on top of the latest trends. North Dakota was beautiful and we enjoyed learning about the agriculture, the German Russian heritage and the way of life on the prairie. However, one of my favorite memories is sitting in Jenny's kitchen for hours chatting away.
As we were chatting, she whips out a copper mug and asks if I ever had a 'Moscow Mule' before. I had heard of them but never actually have one. Before I could answer, she's already whipping one up!
Jenny slides the copper mug across the counter and I take a sip of one of the most light, refreshing drinks I've ever had.
That's when I fell in love.
From the cute little mug to the light, barely there flavor of lime to the refreshing taste of ginger, Moscow Mules are the perfect drink for the summer. I think I enjoy this drink so much because whenever my Poppa would visit, we always had to have Vernor's Ginger Ale in the house. He would sit down with a glass full of ice and a can full of Vernor's. He'd always ask if I'd like a glass too! It was one of those things we didn't keep at the house all the time but was a nice treat to look forward to.
So, you're probably wondering, what's in a moscow mule? I have yet to find any of my friends that know so that's what struck this blog post in the first place. Jenny uses: Cock & Bull Ginger Beer, (supposedly this is the best!), premium vodka, fresh squeezed lime juice.
I've adapted Jenny's tasty recipe to a lighter version with less calories that doesn't sacrifice any flavor and still has that spicy ginger flavor that I love!
1.5 oz (1 Shot) Premium Vodka
2 Lime Wedges
Ice Cubes
1. Fill copper mug with ice.
2. Pour in shot of vodka.
3. Top with ginger soda.
4. Squeeze lime wedge.
5. Garnish remaining lime wedge.
6. If preferred, give it a good stir!
So why the copper mug?
Supposedly, cold copper increases the fizziness and the carbonation of the ginger beer. Ginger beer is a lot like ginger ale or ginger soda.
I believe it.
Or maybe I want to believe it because the mugs are so fun.
Moscow Mules first became popular in the 1950s during the vodka craze. You can find a little fun history on the drink here.
You'll enjoy this recipe by itself or you can experiment with other flavors. For example, Jenny over at Prairie Californian came up with a Cran Apple version.
Enjoy!
I love a good Mule! And you're totally right; they're a perfect summer drink! Let me know when you're mixing up a batch and I'll head across the state line. :)
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