If you’re hosting this holiday season, you have enough going on. Forget the fact that you made the entire dang meal; just making sure your holiday napkins are on the table and the guest bathroom is clean is an ordeal. Do yourself a favor and make ONE signature drink for the event… and make it a mocktail.
Make ONE signature drink for all your guests, even the kids. Whether you’re hosting a small event for friends or a big extended family gathering, I’ve figured out that mocktails are the way to go.
Here’s why:
(1) Booze isn’t cheap
Alcohol is one of those things that is never cheap, but it’s especially expensive to have lots of different sorts of alcohol for your holiday gathering. Mocktails offer the idea of having a cocktail but without the alcohol. I frequently offer that my guests can turn it into a cocktail if they wish. And again, you didn’t have to make a different drink for your guests.
(2) You don’t have to worry about anyone “getting home safe.”
If everyone is having non-alcoholic drinks, you don’t have to worry about safety or liability. I had that one friend in my 20s. You know the one I’m talking about. She would always drink a LOT and then tell me how she was “fine” to drive home when she probably wasn’t. It’s actually really refreshing not to have to be concerned about friends getting home alright.
Cranberry Hibiscus Jingle Mocktail
4
servings30
minutes40
minutes300
kcalIngredients for the Hibiscus Simple Syrup
2 Tbsp hibiscus loose leaf tea (I prefer organic)
1/2 package frozen cranberries (about 5 ounces)
2 cinnamon sticks
1 quart of filtered water
1/4 cup honey
- Ingredients for the Hibiscus Cranberry Orange Splash
4 ounces hibiscus simple syrup
Juice from 1-2 Mandarin oranges
Directions
- Place the hibiscus leaves and the cranberries in a pot with the cinnamon sticks with 1 to 1.5 quarts of filtered water. Let the mixture come to a boil and then turn it down to simmer. let it simmer for 10 minutes or so.
- Let it cool on the stove. Once it's cooled, add 1/4 to 1/2 of honey, depending upon how sweet you want your drink. Stir it until the honey is dissolved. Store this hibiscus cranberry syrup in a quart jar in the fright until you're ready to assemble the mocktail.
- When you're ready to assemble your mocktail, squeeze the oranges into a pitcher (or use orange juice, but I think that the freshly squeezed tastes better). Add hibiscus, juice and sparkling water (1 part each) to the pitcher. Taste test and make sure it taste to your liking. Adjust with more honey, orange or hibiscus syrup if you like.
- Serve directly out of the picture or in fancy glasses with an orange wedge.
