It's Derby Day!

While I don't normally follow horse racing all that closely, I do like to watch The Kentucky Derby. And the fact that the derby has its own signature drink doesn't hurt. To celebrate this year's derby, I decided to try a Mint Julep. The official web site of The Kentucky Derby even has the official Mint Julep of the Kentucky Derby.

I start out by boiling equal parts water and sugar together for just a couple of minutes. Set aside to cool.

Here is my pot of "Kentucky Colonel" mint. Some claim that this is the only mint to use for authentic Mint Juleps.

Once the simple syrup has cooled, add several clean mint leaves and allow to steep.

Since the Kentucky Derby's web site specifies Early Times Kentucky Whisky for the recipe, my husband stopped on his way home and bought some.

Alas, I have no silver mint julep cups, and was not about to go buy some, so glass will have to do. I did place them in the freezer for a couple of hours so that they could chill.

Our ice maker is broken and refuses to give us any crushed ice at the moment, so I put some cubed ice in a plastic bag and beat it with a hammer.

And here we have our Mint Juleps. Yummy.

I even have my hat while I blog and watch a couple drink their Mint Juleps on the TV.