It’s that time of year, full of gatherings of friends and family, and a lot of celebration. Those celebrations often include a cocktail or two, or champagne to ring in the new year. Or maybe a mocktail? For myself personally, I have been cutting back on my alcohol consumption the past few of years, so it is nice to have a few easy alcohol-free drink recipes on hand to make.
Why I chose to cut back on alcohol…
About 7 years ago I started experiencing extreme anxiety on and off. Mix that in with the depression I’ve struggled with my entire life, and needless to say, getting through my days and weeks could be quite challenging at times. I know I am not alone in feeling this way.
I have found through trial and error, certain things that make my anxiety worse… alcohol is a major one.
My first major anxiety attack that lasted 3 days and forced me to stay home from work. It came on after a very heavy night of drinking alcohol. I woke up, didn’t know what was going on, my whole body was shaking from the inside out, my mind was racing, I sat, then stood, then sat again, and I couldn’t figure out how to get myself settled down.
I felt like I was losing my mind. I didn’t know what to do, and I had never experienced this before.
I did everything I could to just get through the next couple of days and manage these extreme feelings of panic and unease. At the time I had been working in the nightclub industry and drinking regularly, so I didn’t make the connection right away that this was triggered (or aggravated) by the alcohol. It wasn’t until the next big event that included lots of alcohol where I woke up in a state of panic AGAIN, and then I started to see a connection.
I do know now, after years of experiencing these feelings, that alcohol isn’t the only piece in this puzzle that I am still putting together. Caffeine became another big trigger, and I’ve had to cut it out completely. I replace it with delicious elixir alternatives.
Now this isn’t to say that I won’t ever have a drink – I do like a nice glass of wine or cocktail once in awhile. That is my choice to still indulge here and there, knowing what I’m risking. There are times when I might have a few drinks, and wake up fine… and other times I might have one drink and wake up feeling the anxiety. There’s no rhyme or reason to it. However, if I can find great alternative alcohol-free drinks to have during these festive occasions, then why not make one of these?
You’ve got to try one of these four delicious mocktail recipes I’ve created here. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
Ginger-Cranberry Mocktail Mule
Ginger-Cranberry Mocktail Mule
Ingredients
- 1/2 lime, juiced
- 5 mint leaves, broken up or muddled in the bottom of the glass
- 1/4 cup pure cranberry juice
- 1 bottle ginger beer
- 2 Tbsp. honey simple syrup recipe below
- optional sparkling water
- ice
- 1 lime slice, for garnish
- 2-3 mint leaves, for garnish
- 4-5 whole cranberries, for garnish
Honey Simple Syrup
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup water
Instructions
- Add mint to the bottom of your glass, either in pieces or muddle.
- Add lime juice, simple syrup, and cranberry juice.
- Fill the rest of the glass with ginger beer (optional: if you don’t like the strong taste of ginger beer, fill the glass half with ginger beer and half with sparkling water)
- Add an ice cube, stir and taste (add more syrup if you prefer it sweeter)
- Garnish with cranberries, mint and lime slices.
- Enjoy!
Honey Simple Syrup Instructions
- Add equal parts honey and water to a small saucepan on low heat (I used 1/4 cup each, but you can make more if you are planning to make quite a few drinks). This will last in the fridge for 2 weeks.
- Let this heat until the honey has melted into the water and they have become one (about 5-10 minutes).
- Remove from heat, and let cool.
Cinnamon-Spice Nut-Nog
If you don’t like the traditional egg-nog, not to worry… this dairy-free, egg-free, alcohol-free version will not disappoint! It’s rich and creamy, and full of delicious cinnamon & spice flavours.
Cinnamon-Spice Nut-Nog
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews soaked in water overnight and drained
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 can full-fat coconut milk
- 1/4 cup coconut butter, softened
- 6 Tbsp. maple syrup
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp. almond extract
- 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
- 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp. sea salt
- cinnamon to sprinkle on top
- optional cinnamon stick, garnish
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a high-speed blender, and blend on high until very smooth.
- Garnish with sprinkled cinnamon, and a cinnamon stick
- Enjoy!
Pomegranate Spritzer Mocktail
Sweet, sparkling, and a little bit tart from the pure pomegranate juice, this mocktail can be enjoyed all night long, without any regret.
Pomegranate Spritzer Mocktail
Ingredients
- 1 bottle pure pomegranate juice
- 1 bottle sparkling water
- 1 lemon
- 2 Tbsp. honey simple syrup recipe found below
- ice
- garnish pomegranate seeds, lemon slices
Honey Simple Syrup
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup water
Instructions
- Add a couple of ice cubes to a glass.
- Juice half of the lemon and add it to the bottom of the glass.
- Add 2 Tbsp. simple syrup
- Fill half of the glass with pomegranate juice, and the rest of the glass with sparkling water.
- Garnish with pomegranate seeds and slices of lemon
Honey Simple Syrup Instructions
- Add equal parts honey and water to a small saucepan on low heat (I used 1/4 cup each, but you can make more if you're planning to make quite a few drinks). This will last in the fridge for 2 weeks.
- Let this heat until the honey has melted into the water and they have become one (about 5-10 minutes)
- Remove from heat, and let cool.
Kombucha “Champagne”
When contemplating how to ring in the New Year on December 31st, how about trying this version of a “champagne”. With sweet notes of pineapple and white grape, paired with the spritz of a ginger kombucha, this drink is delicious, and won’t leave you with a pesky champagne headache!
Kombucha “Champagne”
Ingredients
- 1 cup ginger flavoured kombucha
- 1/2 cup pineapple juice, chilled
- 1/2 cup white grape juice, chilled
- garnish strawberry slices, or frozen green grapes
Instructions
- In a 2 cup measuring cup (or other container), add the kombucha, pineapple juice, and white grape juice.
- Add strawberries or grapes to the bottom of 2 champagne glasses.
- Fill the glasses equally with the liquid mix.
- Enjoy!