4 Delicious Holiday Mocktail Recipes

Season's greetings! I searched high and low for a few delicious, holiday mocktail recipes to try out this holiday season and let me tell you, they did NOT disappoint. You can watch me make these holiday mocktails in my latest YouTube video, linked here.

The holiday season can be a triggering time for many sober people. For some of us, our families drink like fish and it can be difficult to be around them this time of year. For others (like me), this may be our first sober holiday season and we are not quite sure how to navigate it. I was never a big drinker around my family, but I would spend a lot of the holiday season getting drunk with my friends, so I am interested to see how this season plays out.

If you need some tips or extra help, I suggest checking out my other blog post titled How I Plan On Staying Sober During the Holiday Season. Of course, it is impossible to have a plan for every possible awkward situation you may encounter, and sometimes, the best way to learn about what will work for you is just to experience it. Like I said, I've never done this before either...so take these tips with a grain of salt.

Speaking of grains of salt, that is just one of the ingredients you will need in these four delicious holiday mocktail recipes! (See what I did there?) One thing that is always in my sober toolbox is having a non-alcoholic beverage or mocktail in hand when everyone else is drinking alcohol. It can make things less awkward and gives me something to do with my hands. This beverage can be something as simple as a kombucha or as extravagant as one of these amazing mocktails I am about to share with you.

So whether you are sober and need something to sip on this holiday season, or you are trying to cut back on the booze for health reasons, these holiday mocktail recipes are PERFECT.

Disclaimer: Mocktails can be triggering for some ex-drinkers. Know what works for you and make these at your own risk :)

1. Cranberry Moscow Mule

Nothing says Thanksgiving and the holiday season like cranberries! Moscow mules used to be my drink of choice (mostly because they tasted so good that I could drink 3 or 4 or them in a matter of hours). These days, I like to recreate them without the alcohol just for fun! You can find my recipe for a normal (without cranberries) non-alcoholic moscow mule here.

I give credit for this idea to Marie Claire, but this recipe is my own!

Ingredients (makes 1 drink, so double or triple as needed):

  • ice

  • 2 fluid ounces (about 2 "shots") sparkling water

  • 4 fluid ounces ginger ale (You could use ginger beer as well)

  • 2 fluid ounces cranberry juice

  • 1/2 a fresh lime

  • 2 lime slices

  • handful of cranberries

Directions:

Fill cup of your choice of cup with ice, add sparkling water, ginger ale, and cranberry juice. Squeeze in half a lime's worth of juice and STIR. Add limes slices and cranberries on top to garnish. Enjoy!

2. Mexican Chocolate Martini Mocktail

This was by far my favorite mocktail out of the four I made. It was thick, creamy, and delicious! Plus, I got to use a cocktail shaker for the first time, which was really fun. I would totally drink this mocktail before dinner, but especially after dinner as dessert. Credit for this mocktail goes to HGTV. I'll link their recipe here. The recipe below makes one drink, so please see HGTV's recipe for measurements on making four drinks.

Ingredients (makes one drink):

  • 1/8 cup sugar (I used coconut sugar)

  • 1/2 tbs. cocoa powder

  • dash of cinnamon

  • 1/4 cup water

  • 1/2 cup almond milk (I used Malk brand unsweetened almond milk and it was delicious and creamy)

  • lemon wedge

Directions:

In a small bowl, stir together sugar and cocoa powder. Set aside about a tablespoon of this mixture on a small plate. Pour the remaining sugar/cocoa powder mixture, cinnamon, and water into a small saucepan, bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, and whisk occasionally until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature (doesn't take long).

Make a small cut in the lemon wedge and run it around the edge of a martini glass. Run the wet rim through the sugar/cocoa powder mixture on the small plate to coat. Pour the cooled syrup from the sauce pan into a cocktail shaker. Add ice cubes and almond milk and shake vigorously until well-chilled. Strain into martini glass, serve, and enjoy!

3. Apple Cider Float

Ok, this one was amazing. It's very simple and could be a delicious dessert when everyone else is toasting with champagne. I adapted this recipe from Cupcakes and Kale Chips, linked here. Her recipe is a bit more complex, as she uses caramel sauce and sparkling sugar, but I kept it more simple and used whatever I had on hand.

Ingredients:

  • A bottle your of favorite apple cider (I used the classic Martinelli's)

  • Vanilla ice cream (I used So Delicious Dairy-Free Vanilla Bean, but use whatever ice cream you like!)

  • 1 tbs. sugar (again, I used coconut sugar)

  • 1 tsp. cinnamon

  • 1 lemon wedge

Directions:

In a small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon. Line a small plate or baking sheet (depending on how many floats you're making) with parchment paper. Using a small ice cream scoop, melon baller, or spoon, place balls of ice cream onto parchment paper (about 2-3 per float). Sprinkle the tops with the cinnamon and sugar mixture. Freeze for about 1 hour.

Take lemon wedge and run it along the rim of champagne flute. Run the rim of the flute though the cinnamon and sugar mixture to coat. Pour apple cider into the champagne flute and add 2 or 3 ice cream balls to each glass. Sip as is, or eat with a straw or spoon.

And of course, there is always the less complicated recipe:

Pour apple cider into any cup you please and add 2 or 3 scoops of vanilla ice cream...it's quick and tastes just as good!

4. Hot Pumpkin Egg Nog

I wanted to make sure to add a hot drink in here as well for those of us who experience cold winter months. I know that egg nog is not really a mocktail, but I'm including it here anyways! This recipe is not vegan, hence the "egg", but sometimes I like to live a little.

WARNING: As you will see if you watch my YouTube video, I accidentally cooked the egg while making this...so my egg nog had chunks of egg white in it...not great. I looked up how to avoid this, and the internet says to avoid letting the mixture get too hot and boil. If you do end up cooking the egg, you can also strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve before serving.

This recipe is from momfoodie.com and it's dairy free! Again, for the full recipe, click here. I just simplified it below.

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups dairy free milk of your choice (I used Malk almond milk, the recipe used vanilla soy milk)

  • 1 large egg and 1 yolk

  • 3 tbs sugar

  • 1/8 tsp cinnamon

  • 1/8 tsp salt

  • 1/4 tbs. pure vanilla extract

  • 1/4 cup pumpkin puree

Directions:

Pour milk into a saucepan. Add egg and yolk, sugar, cinnamon, salt, and vanilla. Turn stove on medium high heat and whisk well (don't let it boil). Continue to whisk the mixture regularly. Just before the mixture would come to a boil, the froth will thicken. At this point, remove pan from burner (this is what I forgot to do) and quickly whisk in the pumpkin. Pour into serving mugs and enjoy!

That is all! If you try any of these holiday mocktail recipes out, be sure to let me know how they go on my Instagram or in the comments of my latest YouTube video, and happy sipping!

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