Holiday parties come with lots of delicious recipesand an excuse to wear your fanciest holiday dressand take part in gift giving. As fun as those aspects are, the drinks can be a difficult detail to work out. Even though not everyone wants to sip on a boozy drink, it's easy to feel left out if you don't have a pretty cocktail in-hand. Well you're in luck! These holiday mocktails are delicious, easy, and they actually look pretty so that whether you want to serve these to your guests or grab one for yourself, no one will feel excluded — not even the kids!
We gathered recipes from across the internet and on social media, and there's a good chance more than one of these holiday mocktails features ingredients that you already have in your kitchen, especially with your Thanksgiving leftovers. Keep reading for our favorite drinks now that the season is in full swing. Hooray!
Holiday Mocktail Recipes
Add this Morning Metabolism Boost Drink to your morning routine for a detox drink that tastes good. The lemon juice and Apple Cider Vinegar add plenty of flavor, but the ginger and cinnamon add some spice too. (via Two Spoons)
Grapefruit tastes delicious in the winter, which makes this Pamplemousse La Croix and Lavender Mocktail a great option for any parties or girls' nights in you have in the future. (via Brit + Co)
This Sunshine Juice is the perfect summer cool-down drink, but considering we don't get as much sun as we need in the winter, it also provides a healthy dose of Vitamin C that will help you feel sunnier *and* boost your immune system too. (via Brit + Co)
Swap the sparkling wine for sparkling grape juice to make this Pomegranate White Tea Fizz kid- and expectant mom-friendly. White tea pairs well with the pomegranate because of its full flavor, and it's unsweetened for those of us who don't like super sweet drinks. (via Brit + Co)
This Blood Orange Lemonade combines oranges with lemonade (which are two of our favorite things) and is like the winter counterpart to the raspberry lemonade we love to make in the summer. (via The Endless Meal)
Add a little bit of summer to your winter bashes with this Preggy Punch Mocktail, which mixes ginger and limeade with pineapple coconut juice. Jelly beans are optional, but could we get an extra cotton candy? (via A Spicy Perspective)
The flavors in this Vanilla Cinnamon Maple Whiskey Sour are all of our favorite winter picks mixed into one. While this recipe originally calls for bourbon, Tieghan's mocktail variation swaps it for apple cider. (via Half Baked Harvest)
Holiday Mocktails On Instagram
We'll drink sangria at just about any gathering, and we love to make it too! It's a great option for parties because of how easy it is to set up. This booze-free version makes for a tasty punch that kids and kids at heart can equally enjoy.
If The Grinch is a holiday movie that you have on repeat throughout the Christmas season, then this is one mocktail you have to make. The green color comes from matcha powder, which has antioxidants as well as great flavor. It's a win-win.
This is another mocktail that's great for people who don't like super sweet drinks. Lay out different fruits and garnishes that your guests can add to their glasses, and you can also add some simple syrup to the table if any of your friends have a sweet tooth.
You can't beat an orange and cranberry mix for the holiday season, and this holiday mocktail adds sparkling apple cider for a whole other layer of flavor that we can't get enough of. Rosemary and cranberries make the perfect garnishes, but we wouldn't say no to edible glitter.
This drink is full of strawberry flavor, from the strawberry drinks to the cubes of real strawberry you can add right into the beverage. If you can't find lychee sparkling water (or don't want to buy two different drinks), swap the strawberry and sparkling water for strawberry soda.
We'll eat (or drink) just about anything if it's candy cane themed, and in addition to the cranberry juice, you can add in pomegranate juice too. Swap the water for sprite if you want some extra sweetness.
Covering your cranberries with sugar takes your holiday mocktail garnish up a notch. We love that it looks like they're covered in snow! Don't forget to add some sugar (ahem, snow) to your glass too.
Orange juice will give your drink that opaque look and (mixed with water and lime juice) a toned-down color. Add a dried grapefruit or orange slice to each glass for a sophisticated garnish.
Holiday Mocktails On TikTok
Sparkling apple cider tastes delicious when paired with cranberries, rosemary, and cinnamon. It's a good think this recipe makes a whole batch because we will definitely be drinking the whole thing.
If you love Shirley Temples, then you'll love Rudolph's Holiday Mocktail. Add orange juice and cranberry juice to your usual mix of grenadine and ginger ale for multiple flavors and a sweet and tart mix that will become a Christmas party staple.
Light your rosemary on fire (trust us) and let it smoke under the glass so that your whole drink is infused with that smoky, herbal taste and smell. It'll engage all your senses and honestly it just looks really cool.
Change out your usual sugar rim for cinnamon (or a mix of cinnamon and sugar if straight cinnamon is too much) for a spicy edge to your drinks. It'll set them apart and cut down on your sugar intake too.
We are absolutely obsessed with this cotton candy and edible glitter technique and we will be trying it at all our holiday parties for the foreseeable future. Dropping the cotton candy ball into your drink in honor of the 2023 New Year's Ball in New York City is extra fun!
Simple syrup offsets the tart flavor of cranberry juice, but with the sparkling apple cider, the drink doesn't taste too heavy. You can't forget the apples and sugared cranberry garnish!
Fruity ice cubes (which we have a tutorial for here ;)) will take the *look* of your drinks to the next level while also adding another element to the *flavor* of your drinks. We'll take two, please.
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Featured image used with permission, via ppaparazzi_mom_.
