If you think mojitos are a summer-only cocktail, let these Cranberry Mojitos change your mind! This perfect holiday cocktail is made with homemade cranberry simple syrup, lime, rum, and plenty of mint!

Overhead view of two cranberry mojitos with red and white straws, limes, and cranberries with recipe title at top

It's officially the holiday season!!! Thanksgiving has been celebrated and I finally allowed myself to listen to Michael Bublé and light my peppermint and winter wonderland candles, while Chris and I assembled our Christmas tree.

We also did quite a bit of Black Friday shopping online. Er, one for you and one for me was my basic philosophy. Oops? Maybe that's what happens when you're sipping on a cranberry mojito while you shop.

One of my favorite things about the holidays is holiday cocktails. So, I'm pretty excited for the first official Cocktail Friday of the holiday season! Oh, happy day!

I started with one of my favorite seasonal ingredients, cranberries, and transformed them into one of the best drinks, a mojito.

Why You'll Love This Recipe

Mojitos are typically a summer drink, but mint is also pretty awesome in the winter and I knew the addition of cranberry flavor would work well.

These cocktails are fairly simple and don't require too many ingredients. And the ingredients are REAL. Instead of using store-bought cranberry juice, this only has fresh cranberries in it.

If you double or triple the recipe for the cranberry simple syrup, you can very easily make these mojitos all holiday season long.

Plus… the colors! These are such festive drinks, perfect for the holidays.

Ingredients

The ingredients for this cocktail are pretty simple. Aside from the mint, I generally have all of these items in my kitchen during the holiday season and you might, too.

Here's what you need:

Fresh cranberries
Granulated sugar
Water
Mint leaves
Lime juice
Ice
Rum (light)
Soda water

How to Make Cranberry Simple Syrup

This cranberry mojito is more delicious than the standard cranberry cocktail because it is made with fresh cranberries!

I didn't want to use fake cranberry juice in my Christmas cocktail and really wanted to incorporate the real deal in. So, I made a simple cranberry simple syrup. Really, it's so easy! Which is probably why it's called a "simple" syrup in the first place.

To start, put cranberries, sugar, and water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil.

Saucepan with water, sugar, and fresh cranberries

Lower the heat to a simmer and continue to cook for about 10 minutes, until the berries are just starting to burst.

Fresh cranberries simmering in sugar water for syrup

Remove the saucepan from the heat and pour mixture through a fine mesh strainer placed over a bowl.

Press with the back of a wooden spoon to extract as much liquid from the cranberries as possible.

Cranberries being strained out of syrup into bowl

Keep syrup in bowl or pour into jar and place in fridge to cool completely before using.

Cranberry simple syrup in a jar with fresh cranberries all around

How to Make Cranberry Mojitos

Now that your cranberry syrup is made, the rest of the cocktails are super easy to put together. They're basic mojitos with the addition of a yummy flavored syrup.

Place about 10 mint leaves and 1 tablespoon of lime juice in each glass. With the back of a wooden spoon or a muddler, mash the mint up as much as you can.

Mint being muddled in tall cocktail glass

Put ice in each glass and pour 2 oz. of the cranberry syrup and 2 oz. rum into each glass.

Stir it up and top each glass off with soda water. Sprinkle some fresh cranberries in for garnish.

Head-on view of cranberry mojitos in tall glass with lime and cranberries all around

I like adding a lime wedge, too.

These cranberry mojitos are so perfectly refreshing and flavorful. I love the sweetness of the cranberry syrup combined with the freshness of the mint.

View of cranberry mojito with holly, cranberries, and sliced limes

Plus, these colors are the absolute best for the holiday season. It's the perfect holiday party drink and can also be served as a Thanksgiving mojito.

Can I Make This Drink Less Sweet?

Of course! Traditional mojitos have a bit less simple syrup in them than these ones do, but I wanted to really let the cranberry shine, so I added quite a bit.

If you prefer a drink that's less sweet, cut the simple syrup amount in half. You can always mix in more if you want it.

Can I Make a Big Batch of This?

If you're serving these cranberry mojitos at a holiday party, you may want to make a big batch of it, so you're not standing at the bar mixing cocktails all night.

You can make a big batch of this in a pitcher ahead of time. Simply add the soda water right before you're ready to serve. Here's the ratios I would use for a pitcher of cocktails that serves 8-10:

½ cup lime juice
80 fresh mint leaves
2 cups rum
2 cups simple syrup (double the recipe)
1 ½-2 cups soda water

Put lime juice and mint leaves on the bottom of a pitcher and muddle together as much as possible. Stir in rum and cranberry syrup. Right before serving mix in soda water.

Allow guests to fill their glass with ice and pour the cranberry mojito into their glass. You can also leave a bowl with cranberries and lime wedges for garnish.

Closeup view of cranberry mojito with holly, cranberries, and sliced limes

And now the countdown to Christmas is on! In the meantime, I'll be overindulging on all things Christmas movies, decorations, foods (and drinks!!), candles, music, etc. etc.

Oh, and maybe some shopping, too. Just a little bit. Promise. But pour me another cranberry mojito while you're at it...

More Christmas Cocktails

Instead of just the 12 days of Christmas, make it the 12 days of Christmas cocktails! Here are some more fabulous holiday drinks that will help you get into the spirit(s) of the season!

Cranberry Jalapeño Margarita
Cinnamon Pear Sangria
Tropical Cranberry Sangria
Cranberry Pomegranate Sparkler
Pumpkin Pie Martini
Hot Spiced Cranberry Cocktail
Pomegranate Rosemary Gin Sparkler
Spiked Butterscotch Eggnog (from Honest Grub Honest Foodie)
Mulled Wine (from Culinary Hill)

Overhead view of two cranberry mojitos with red and white straws, limes, and cranberries

I love drinking my cranberry mojitos, but I also enjoy eating them! I created this Mojito Cranberry Sauce for you to serve as a Thanksgiving dinner side and it's also super fun.

Do you have a favorite drink for the holiday season?

📖 Recipe