Thanksgiving mocktails are a perfect way to include everyone in a festive meal. Here are two recipes to help.
Mocktails have been rising in popularity over the last few years—and with good reason! When you choose to serve mocktails at a get-together, you are promoting social inclusion. Mocktails allow everyone to participate in a social gathering – whether it’s a friend who wants to be social without alcohol, a family member who is sober, someone you know who is trying to be healthier by reducing their alcohol intake, or maybe an acquaintance who doesn’t drink alcohol due to religious reasons.
Mocktails mimic cocktails in every aspect except one—the alcohol. A great mocktail recipe still gives you a sensory experience similar to that of an alcoholic beverage—fresh ingredients, depth of flavor, and a decorative garnish. Check out two Thanksgiving mocktail recipes below that are perfect during the fall season.
Mocktail: Pomegranate “Margarita”
Ingredients: 1 ounce tequila alternative, ½ ounce non-alcoholic orange liqueur, 2 ounces pomegranate juice, an orange, ice, and sugar.
Tools: Cocktail Shaker, knife, cutting board, small plate, cocktail glass
Directions:
Step 1: Add the 1 ounce tequila alternative, ½ ounce non-alcoholic orange liqueur, and 2 ounces pomegranate juice to the cocktail shaker.
Step 2: Cut your orange in half on the cutting board. Grab an orange half and squeeze the juice into the cocktail shaker.
Step 3: With the other half of the orange, cut off a thin slice that you will use as a garnish.
Step 4: After you’ve set aside an orange slice for the garnish, make a cut in the orange piece you have left and then insert your cocktail glass into the orange—you want to get a bit of orange juice on a section of the rim.
Step 5: Pour a small amount of sugar onto your plate. Dip part of the rim of the cocktail glass with the orange juice into the sugar.
Step 6: Add ice to your cocktail shaker, add the lid, and gently shake.
Step 7: Add ice to your cocktail glass.
Step 8: Strain the contents of the cocktail shaker into the glass.
Step 9: Garish with the orange slice.
Mocktail: Apple Cider “Margarita”
Ingredients: 1 ounce tequila alternative, ½ ounce non-alcoholic orange liqueur, 3 ounces of apple cider, an apple, cinnamon sticks, simple syrup, ice, and a cinnamon-sugar mixture.
Tools: Cocktail Shaker, knife, cutting board, small plates, cocktail glass
Directions:
Step 1: Add the 1 ounce tequila alternative, ½ ounce non-alcoholic orange liqueur, and 3 ounces of apple cider to the cocktail shaker.
Step 2: Grab your apple and cut a thin slice—you will be using this as a garnish.
Step 3: With the other half of the orange, cut off a thin slice that you will use as a garnish.
Step 4: After you’ve set aside the apple slice for the garnish, pour a small amount of simple syrup onto a plate.
Step 5: Pour a small amount of the cinnamon-sugar mixture onto a 2nd plate. Dip the rim of the cocktail glass into the simple syrup, and then dip the rim into the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
Step 6: Add ice to your cocktail shaker, add the lid, and gently shake.
Step 7: Add ice to your cocktail glass.
Step 8: Strain the contents of the cocktail shaker into the glass.
Step 9: Garish with the apple slice and a cinnamon stick.
Do you have any favorite Thanksgiving mocktail recipes? We’d love to hear about them – feel free to shoot us a message on Instagram to share your drinks.
