(festive holiday music)
- Hey, Munchies, welcome to the channel.
If you're new or if you're not, I'm Alyssia,
and I am stoked you're here either way.
Obviously, it's the holidays,
and I have noticed that a lotta people
seem to be drinking less than before.
I am not a drinker.
I don't like the taste of alcohol,
I don't like the way it makes me feel,
and I always have a headache after,
even if it's just a few sips.
So, I don't really feel a lot of incentive to drink,
but I do get the appeal of going out for a cocktail
or enjoying something special.
And in recent years,
I have really gotten on the mocktail train.
So, I have some holiday mocktail recipes for you today.
Yes!
But when you look online for mocktail recipes,
a lot of them are now using these non-alcoholic liquors,
which to me sort of ruins it.
I mean, if I'm not gonna have alcohol,
I don't really wanna have to buy fake alcohol
to be able to make a drink.
So, none of these require real or fake liquor.
I will say, though,
these mocktails are intended to be a nice treat replacement.
They are probably lower in calories
because they don't have alcohol,
but they are not healthified otherwise
regarding the ingredients.
That wasn't really the intention.
It is the holidays, after all.
So, of course, feel free to add alcohol if you want
or modify these or add the fake alcohol or whatever.
First up, a mulled wine.
Mulled wine is really just a spiced red wine,
usually made with fresh fruit or dried fruit.
The beautiful thing about this recipe
is it's really versatile.
So, instead of wine, I used cranberry and grape juice.
Feel free to use one or the other if you prefer.
And then I added in a fresh apple, an orange sliced,
some fresh cranberries, cinnamon sticks, star anise,
cloves, and some ground nutmeg for the spices.
(festive holiday music)
It is just gonna simmer over low heat
for about 20 minutes or up to an hour.
If you go longer, it will get more flavorful,
so if you can let it sit, that's great.
And it is going to make your house smell delicious!
I did not add any sugar at all
because the juice was plenty sweet to me.
You could add it after you simmer
if you feel it's not sweet enough.
Now to serve, I wanted to make it sorta special,
and I love a sugared rim.
I dipped a glass into a shallow dish of lemon juice,
let the excess gently drip off,
and then dipped that into a shallow dish of sugar crystals.
Voila!
So, just be patient with adding the wine
so you don't ruin the beautiful sugared rim.
Of course, it will all taste delicious just the same.
This is sweet, fruity, tart, and even spicy.
That is holiday spicy, not heat, of course.
Without the alcohol,
it's like a special winter spiced punch.
It can be served warm or chilled.
I actually prefer this non-alcoholic version warm.
So festive.
Okay, next up, an apple ginger beer.
This one is so easy it almost seems like a cop-out.
But if your goal is to enjoy something special,
this will do the trick with only three ingredients.
First of all, in case you don't know,
ginger beer is naturally a non-alcoholic beverage.
It has got a robust and spicy flavor
because it is made with ginger.
For this mocktail, I simply combine
ginger beer, apple cider, and lime juice, that's it.
Just whisk it together and, boom, a holiday ginger beer,
offering something special in a glass
without any alcohol or much effort required.
I like ginger beer, but it is really gingery.
It's spicy.
The apple cider in this helps to tame it a bit
and it adds holiday flair, so I really love this drink.
Okay, I call this next one a hodgepodge holiday punch
because, honestly, it's just a jumble of ingredients
that you can do differently every time.
So, it's a great way to use up leftover juices and fruits,
and it's really hard to make it taste bad.
I went with a mix of cranberry juice, orange juice,
pineapple juice, pomegranate juice, and white grape juice.
You could really just use any juices you like.
Feel free to use two or three or seven.
It's fruit juice, it's gonna be fine.
I added some sparkling water
to give it a punch. (punch crunching)
You get it?
That works, right?
Sort of; you could also use ginger ale or Sprite,
but something bubbly.
And I don't need any more sugar
because the juice is super sweet,
so plain sparkling water was fine for me.
And then, add in your fruit.
I went with cranberries, pomegranate seeds,
and orange and lime slices.
Yum!
But you could add anything.
(festive holiday music)
I like this one served cold over ice.
The various fruits give it that sweet-and-sour flavor.
But of course, it's juice, so it's mostly sweet.
The bubbly water gives it a nice fizz,
which makes it something special that I can enjoy
that I wouldn't necessarily make on a regular Tuesday,
even though it is that easy.
What would you put in your holiday punch?
Let me know in the comments below.
I have one more for you, but I wanna remind you,
don't forget to subscribe and hit the bell
for more health and food content.
I do appreciate it.
Okay, we saved the best for last:
a chocolate peppermint martini.
Impressive looking, right?
There's really nothing to it.
So, first, I dip the glass in regular chocolate sauce,
you know, the stuff that you use for chocolate milk,
and then into a plate with crushed peppermint.
Look at that pretty rim!
(soft jazz holiday music)
For the drink itself, I combine milk of choice,
dairy or non, sweetened condensed milk, oh yeah,
chocolate syrup, or you could use cocoa powder if preferred,
and peppermint extract.
You do not need much peppermint extract.
Less is more with this because you don't want it
to taste like a cough drop martini.
And definitely don't use mint extract
because you don't want it
to taste like a toothpaste martini.
So, just enough peppermint extract
to let the peppermint flavor come through
while still tasting the chocolate.
OMG, this is my favorite of the day.
I mean, anything with sweetened condensed milk
is a win for me, but this is just so fun.
Chocolate and peppermint
is a classic holiday combination for a reason.
It tastes like the holidays in a glass.
And that crushed peppermint rim makes me so very happy.
Well, there are some fun holiday mocktails.
I have found that I can enjoy myself thoroughly,
holidays or not, no alcohol required.
In fact, I enjoy myself more
because I don't have to feel sick the next day.
So, what are your thoughts: mocktail or cocktail?
Remember, you could totally add alcohol to these
if you want, but just know that you don't have to.
Also, if you didn't get my free holiday ebook
featuring 12 delicious dried fruit recipes,
I will link the video where the ebook is
in the description box below.
There's no email required to get that download.
I hope that you have an amazing holiday season.
I will see you soon.
And remember, it's all a matter of mind over munch.
(festive holiday music)