Happy Holiday season!
The world is covered with lights and snowmen, it smells like pines and cinnamon, and there is eggnog and hot chocolate not far away. Holiday parties are appearing left and right and wrapped gifts are common currency. However, there is one slight complication for those of us expecting our bundle of joy soon.
Cocktails, alchohol, beer, vodka, and mixed drinks.
Every office party, holiday party, family party, even the supermarket has the enemy present- everyone is crafting and presenting delicious Christmasy and wintery alcohol infused drinks. They come in the cutest cups, in the prettiest colors, and in all sizes- did I mention the free beers in local pubs?
Well ladies, fear not- I have gathered a list of the tastiest and loveliest mocktails you can make yourself. No one has to know your mocktail is alcohol-free- and its definitely a more fun alternative to drinking plain water! You can also ask the bartender to whip them up as well- they’re that good!
- Seedlip Spice and Tonic
Ingredients:
2 oz Seedlip Spice 94
Tonic syrup to taste
Tonic water to taste
Star anise
Cinnamon stick
Instructions:
Mix and pour Seedlip Spice, tonic syrup, and tonic water into glass over ice. Garnish with star anise and cinnamon stick.
- Shirley Ginger
Ingredients:
4 cups Brooklyn Crafted Lemon-Lime Ginger Beer
1 cup club soda or seltzer water
3 tbsp lime juice
.25 cup grenadine
Lime rounds
Maraschino cherries
Ice
Instructions:
Stir ginger beer, club soda, lime juice, and grenadine in a pitcher. Pour into tall glasses with ice. Garnish with lime rounds and or maraschino cherries.
- Hot Apple Cider
Ingredients:
10 oz apple cider
1 tsp pumpkin butter
Instructions:
Heat apple cider and stir in pumpkin butter. Garnish with star anise and cinnamon.
- Virgin Watermelon Margarita
Ingredients:
1 medium seedless watermelon, cut into chunks
.5 cup fresh lime juice
4 tsp agave
5 tbsp sparking water
Instructions:
In a blender, puree enough watermelon chunks so that you have 4 cups of watermelon puree. Add lime juice and agave and mix again. Pour into 4 cups. Top with sparkling water.
- Mango Mule
Ingredients:
4-5 slices of Cucumber
1 oz honey syrup
1.5 oz mango puree
1.5 oz fresh lime juice
1.5 oz ginger beer
Ice
Instructions:
Muddle cucumber and honey syrup in the bottom of a cocktail shaker. Add the mango puree and lime juice and shake, covered, with ice vigorously for 10 seconds. Strain into a copper mug. Top with ginger beer and stir to incorporate.
- Mountain Mojito Mocktail
Ingredients:
.5 oz lime juice
.5 oz agave
.5 oz blood orange purée
4 fresh mint leaves
Splash of soda water
Instructions:
Muddle the mint along with the lime juice and agave in a Collins glass, add ice and the rest of the ingredients, top with soda water. Garnish with fresh mint.
- Lavender Lemonade
Ingredients:
6 cups water
.5 cup light-colored honey
5 tbsp dried lavender
1 cup fresh lemon juice, strained
Instructions:
Bring water and honey to a boil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Gently crush the lavender in a mortar and pestle or in a bowl with a meat tenderizer. Add the crushed lavender to the pot then remove it from the heat. Cover, refrigerate, and steep for 2 hours. Strain the liquid through a fine mesh sieve. Stir in the lemon juice and serve over ice.
- Rosemary Blueberry Smash
Ingredients:
7-8 blueberries
1 rosemary sprig, stripped
1 oz honey syrup
1 oz fresh lemon juice, strained
4 oz sparkling mineral water
Ice
Instructions:
Gently muddle blueberries, rosemary leaves, and honey syrup in the bottom of a cocktail shaker. Add lemon juice and shake, covered, with ice vigorously for 10 seconds. Strain through a mesh strainer into a tall glass of fresh ice. Top with sparkling water and stir to incorporate.
- Strawberry Chamomile “Maritini”
Ingredients:
1 oz elderflower cordial
.5 oz simple syrup
.5 oz ginger juice
4 oz chamomile
1 strawberry
5 mint leaves
Orange and lemon wedge
Instructions:
Muddle strawberry with simple syrup and ginger. Add the elderflower and chamomile and five mint leaves along with the orange and lemon wedge. Add ice and shake before straining into a cocktail coupe.
