If you’re putting on your hosting Santa hat this season for family and friends, you can bring a completely inclusive and compassionate holiday feel to your home by including some yummy nonalcoholic drinks.
In this day and age, it’s important to remember that everyone out there is living a different lifestyle and may have a health-related reason for their sobriety, so in order to keep festive celebrations fun for everyone, it’s vital to include some nonalcoholic drinks on the menu.
If you’re someone who enjoys putting together an extensive holiday menu, there should be a good mix of alcoholic and nonalcoholic pairings to go with everything in order to help make everyone feel welcome. Plus, it’s always fun to figure out what drinks are going to pair nicely with everything from your cheese course to the desserts.
More from LittleThings: I Made My Own Homemade Granola For A Healthier Alternative To The Grocery Store Version
So get ready to fully stock the fridge with items like various fruit juices, club soda, and everything delicious and fizzy because when you put on your bartender cap to pour these nonalcoholic drinks — your friends and family will only want more.
Here are five nonalcoholic drinks to serve during the holidays that actually taste good.
Stir up a cranberry basil spritzer for a tart but zingy thirst quencher.
If you’re having a holiday party and are looking to fill one of those large glass drink dispensers full of a drink that’s alcohol-free but also looks and tastes like Christmas, this might be the one for you. It’s quite easy to make, and the basil adds a nice freshness that you wouldn’t expect from a cranberry-based drink.
To start, make the basil syrup, which you can create by adding some water and sugar to a saucepan and then adding ½ cup of fresh basil leaves. Once the sugar has dissolved and the basil has steeped for about 20 minutes, you can strain it and put it aside to cool.
The rest of the ingredients are a total breeze to put together. Simply take a large-size jug of cranberry juice and pour it into your dispenser. Add lots of ice to keep it cold. Then you can add about a liter of club soda to make it fizzy.
Some fresh lime juice and sliced limes can go in for garnish. Add about 1 cup of fresh cranberries and the basil simple syrup along with some fresh basil leaves and you’re all set. Serve it super cold in punch glasses to get the full effect.
A peppermint candy cane mocktail can make a holiday movie party that much more festive.
Whether you’re gathering with the neighbors to host a holiday movie night or having your in-laws over to open up gifts, these peppermint candy cane mocktails make quite a splash. For this nonalcoholic holiday drink, get out your best set of martini glasses, because the drinks turn out so pretty in the end, you’ll want to show off their creamy peppermint look. To make the end result really pop with red and white sweetness, rim your glasses with some simple syrup and line the glasses with crushed candy cane bits.
The drink itself takes only four ingredients. You’ll need about 1 cup of half-and-half for some deluxe creaminess. Add a good portion of cream soda to give the drink some fizz. A few tablespoons of simple syrup gives some of that sweetness that’s going to be nicely cut with a few drops of peppermint oil, which gives you that minty peppermint blast. And voilà!
Apple cider ginger beer makes the perfect drink to sip during a big meal.
A lot of people forget that apples and cinnamon make an inspired choice for a holiday drink that feels warm and is just so easy to drink during those days when you’re eating two or three plates of heavy foods.
This apple cider ginger beer can be served in a super-cold Moscow mule mug or even a martini glass. All you need is some quality apple cider to be mixed with a good portion of ginger beer.
Add in the juice of a lime to bring a good hint of zinginess to the drink. If you want to make the drink even more vibrant, add a splash of orange juice as well. Finish off your drink with a garnish of cinnamon stick, and a load of ice to make things go down super smooth.
Indulge in a chocolate 'fauxtini' that the kids can enjoy, too.
It’s simply not the holiday season until you indulge in some chocolatey goodness, and that can certainly include some rich chocolate mocktails.
For this nonalcoholic drink, you can get out your martini glasses or even large-size wine glasses. Rim your glasses in some chocolate syrup and then dip them in some chocolate shavings or sprinkles to really add to the beauty and fun of this mocktail.
For the actual beverage, pour 1 cup of cold milk into a blender with about ¼ cup of chocolate syrup, a little bit of corn syrup to help thicken things up, and a bunch of ice.
Once your drink looks smooth and rich, pour it into your glasses. Add a few more chocolate shavings for good measure.
A pomegranate and rosemary cocktail looks and tastes bright and beautiful.
If you’re looking for something that’s a little bit different from your usual cranberry juice, might we suggest this pomegranate and rosemary cocktail that’s super simple to make and so vibrant.
All you need for this one is a bottle of either pomegranate juice or pomegranate soda for some added fizziness. To that, you can add a whole bottle of tonic water as well as the juice of three oranges for some brightness and citrusy goodness.
Add a handful of pomegranate arils to your drink mixture, as well as a few cinnamon sticks. Garnish with a couple of sprigs of rosemary to add that fresh herby taste.
Serve this drink over a heaping amount of ice in your favorite glass to show off the bright red hue.
*Psst: if you choose to purchase an item from this post, LittleThings.com may receive a small cut. Each item and price is up to date at the time of publication; however, an item may be sold out or the price may be different at a later date.
