The traditional drink of Kentucky and the Kentucky Derby, the mint julep has been served for hundreds of years to help cool down the hot Kentucky summers and is now served by the thousands on Kentucky Derby day at Churchill Downs.
The Chicago Tribune offers this recipe for your own sip of springtime racing:
2 cups sugar 2 cups water Sprigs of fresh mint Crushed ice Kentucky Bourbon Silver julep cupsMake a simple syrup by boiling sugar and water together for five minutes. Cool and place in a covered container with six or eight sprigs of fresh mint, then refrigerate overnight.
Make one julep at a time by filling a julep cup with crushed ice, adding one tablespoon mint syrup and two ounces of Kentucky bourbon. Stir rapidly with a spoon to frost the outside of the cup. Garnish with a sprig of fresh mint.
What's a "silver julep cup," you ask? According to Wikipedia, "Traditionally, mint juleps were often served in silver or pewter cups, and held only by the bottom and top edges of the cup. This allows frost to form on the outside of the cup. Traditional hand placement may have arisen as a way to reduce the cold transferred to the hand by the silver or pewter cup."
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