Christmas drinks

Do you want to serve some festive drinks at your holiday party this year? Check out my guide to Christmas drinks!

1. Key lime pie: 1 oz lime juice, 1 oz whipped vodka, 2 oz rumchata
   Combine in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake. Strain into martini glass
2. Cranberry mimosa: 3 ½ oz cranberry juice, ½ oz triple sec, 4 oz champagne
   

   Add cranberry juice and triple sec to champagne flute. Fill with champagne.

3. Cranberry mule: 2 oz Ginger beer, 1 ½ oz vodka, 3 oz cranberry juice
   Pour vodka, cranberry juice, and ginger beer into a rocks glass with ice. Stir.  Optional: serve in a traditional copper Moscow mule mug.
4. Peppermint White Russian: ½ c milk, ½ c Kahlua, ¼ c peppermint vodka (makes 2 drinks)
   Combine milk, kahlua, and peppermint vodka in a shaker with ice. Shake and serve in rocks glass. For a creamy drink, use half and half or even cream instead of milk. Makes 2 drinks.
5. Cranberry cinnamon whiskey sour: 1 ½ oz fireball cinnamon whiskey, ½ oz simple syrup, 1 oz cranberry juice
   
   Combine fireball, simple syrup, and cranberry juice in a rocks glass.
6. Jack Frost shots: 2 oz whipped vodka, 2 oz peppermint vodka, 1 capful blue Curacao (makes 3 shooters)
   
   Add whipped vodka, peppermint vodka, and a splash of blue curacao to a shaker with ice. Shake. Strain into shot glasses. Makes 3 shooters.

Did you enjoy this post?  What are your favorite holiday drinks?  Share with me in the comments below!  Share this post via Facebook or Twitter and, as always, follow me here on WordPress for more GREAT content like this!

Shout-outs!

Peppermint White Russian photo: https://lipglossandcrayons.com/2015/12/peppermint-white-russian-recipe/
And inspiration: https://homecookingmemories.com/peppermint-white-russian-cocktail-recipe/

Key lime pie photo and inspiration: http://www.rumchata.com/

Cranberry Cinnamon Whiskey Sour photo: http://dev.bakerbynature.com/cranberry-cinnamon-whiskey-sour/

Cranberry mimosa photo: http://stressbaking.com/2015/12/cranberry-mimosa.html/
And inspiration: https://theblondcook.com/cranberry-mimosas/

Cranberry mule photo: http://www.localfoodrocks.com/2016/11/festive-cranberry-moscow-mule.html

A special shout-out to my husband, brother-in-law, mom, and dad for being my guinea pigs!  Thank you all!

Fall drinks

1. Boozy Iced Pumpkin Spice Latte
   1 oz pumpkin spice liqueur
   1 oz coffee liqueur
   1 ½ oz 1% milk (or more, to taste)
   
   Combine pumpkin spice liqueur and coffee liqueur in a rocks glass with a few cubes of ice. Add milk or cream to taste (I recommend starting with 1 ½ oz). Stir to combine.
2. Caramel Apple Mimosas
   1 pitcher:
   1 cup apple cider
   8 oz caramel vodka
   1 (750mL) bottle of champagne
   
   Combine all ingredients in a pitcher. Serve in champagne flutes.
3. Ginger with a Soul
   1 oz Pumpkin Spice Liqueur
   1 oz Caramel Vodka
   4 oz Ginger Ale
   
   Combine all ingredients over ice in a rocks glass. Stir to combine.
4. Cinnamon Toast Crunch Shooters
   1 ½ oz Rumchata
   1 ½ oz Fireball whiskey
   ¾ oz vanilla vodka
   
   Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice.
   Shake, then pour into 2 shot glasses
5. Sour Apple Soda

   2 oz Sour Apple Pucker
   2 oz Apple Cider
   2 oz Ginger Ale
   
   Add equal parts sour apple pucker, apple cider, and ginger ale to a rocks glass. Stir with ice.

6. Fall Backwards Shooters

   ½ oz caramel vodka
   ½ oz pumpkin spice liqueur
   ½ oz rumchata
   
   Shake in shaker with ice
   Strain into shot glass

7. Snow White’s Revenge

   1 oz Sour Apple Pucker
   1 oz Caramel Vodka
   4 oz Sprite
   
   Add sour apple pucker, caramel vodka, and sprite to a rocks glass. Stir with ice.

8. 75 Pumpkins

   ½ oz Pumpkin Spice liqueur
   Champagne
   
   Add liqueur to champagne flute. Fill the rest of the way with champagne.

What are your favorite fall drinks? Share with me in the comments below! Share this post via Facebook or Twitter and, as always, follow me here on WordPress for more GREAT content like this!

Shout-outs!

Caramel apple mimosas inspired by http://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a49432/caramel-apple-mimosas-recipe/

Fall Backwards inspired by

http://www.mantitlement.com/recipes/pumpkin-pie-shots/

Cinnamon Toast Crunch inspired by Michael Anthony

Halloween Drinks

Are you hosting a Halloween party this year? Your friends will love these Halloween themed drinks!

1. Caramel Apple Mimosas

   1 pitcher:
   1 cup apple cider
   8oz caramel vodka
   1 (750 mL) bottle of champagne

   

   Combine all ingredients in a pitcher. Serve in champagne flutes.

2. Bloody Brain Shooters

   ½ shot peach schnapps
   ½ shot irish cream
   Dash of grenadine

   

   Fill shot glass halfway with peach schnapps.
   Pour in irish cream with pourer or use a straw to drizzle cream in
   Irish cream will curdle giving the “brain” effect
   Add a few drops of grenadine for “blood”

3. Cinnamon Toast Crunch Shots

   1 ½ oz Rumchata
   1 ½ oz Fireball whiskey
   ¾ oz vanilla vodka

   

   Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice.
   Shake, then pour into 2 shot glasses

4. Harry Potter themed shooters

   

   1. Gryffindor
      1 shot of strawberry vodka
      dash of grenadine
      Combine in shot glass
   2. Slytherin
      1 part sour apple pucker
      1 part vodka
      Pour vodka into shot glass.  Layer on sour apple pucker.
   3. Ravenclaw
      ½ shot white Rum
      1 splash Lime juice
      ½ shot Blue curacao
      Pour 1/2 shot of rum into a shot glass.  Layer on blue curacao.  Add a dash of lime juice.
   4. Hufflepuff
      ¾ oz Malibu rum
      ½ oz lemon juice
      ½ oz pineapple juice
      Combine in shaker with ice. Shake and strain into shot glass
5. Fall Backwards Shooters
   ½ oz caramel vodka
   ½ oz pumpkin spice liqueur (try my recipe for homemade pumpkin spice liqueur!)
   ½ oz rumchata

   

   Shake in shaker with ice
   Strain into shot glass

I love Halloween. I love dressing up, I love candy, I love stepping on crunchy leaves, and I really love Halloween themed drinks. I’ve hosted Halloween parties several times in my life and having fabulous themed drinks is always a hit (okay, so when I was 8 it was a little different). A lot of these drinks would be fun to have all autumn long, so enjoy!

Did you like this post? What are your favorite Halloween/Autumn drinks? Share your thoughts in the comments! Share this post via Facebook or Twitter, and as always, follow me here on WordPress for more GREAT content like this!

Shout-outs!

Caramel apple mimosas inspired by http://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a49432/caramel-apple-mimosas-recipe/ (we also got the photo from them)

Bloody brain shooter inspired by

Fall Backwards inspired by: http://www.mantitlement.com/recipes/pumpkin-pie-shots/

Cinnamon Toast Crunch inspired by Michael Anthony (photo credit: https://www.liquor.com/articles/fireball-drinks/)

Harry Potter shooters inspired by the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling

Homemade Pumpkin Spice Liqueur

Ingredients:

½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 oz vodka
½ oz simple syrup

Instructions:

1. Combine pumpkin pie spice and vodka in a small bottle
2. Close and shake vigorously until spices are mostly dissolved (liquid will turn brown)
3. Let sit at least 2 hours (for best results, let sit overnight). Shake occasionally.
4.  Strain liquid through coffee filter (I ended up with about 1 ½ oz of liquid after straining) and discard solids.
5. Add simple syrup to liquid and mix thoroughly

This recipe is pretty simple and perfect for fall drinks (or even coffee, we won’t judge). Enjoy!

Inspired by: https://www.tastingtable.com/cook/recipes/pumpkin-spice-liqueur-recipe

Building Your Home Bar

Are you tired of paying way too much for mixed drinks in bars? Do you like mixing your own drinks, but aren’t sure what you need to keep on hand? You’re in luck, because I love making my own drinks, and maintain a home bar. I’m also cheap AF. Let’s get started!

Quick list:

Liquor: Vodka, rum, tequila, gin, and whiskey

Liqueurs: Triple sec, kahlua, Irish cream, peach schnapps, blue curacao, and bitters

Mix-ins: Lime juice, lemon juice, cranberry juice, orange juice, lemon-lime soda, dark soda, grapefruit juice/soda, pineapple juice, tonic water/club soda, red bull, grenadine, and simple syrup.

Uh, why?

Liquors are the base of any bar. I would recommend at least one kind of vodka, gin, rum (I prefer white rum), tequila (I prefer silver over gold), and whiskey. Whiskey isn’t my thing, so I don’t keep it around myself, but even if you don’t like something straight, you might enjoy it in cocktails, so I would still recommend getting one of everything when you’re starting out.

Liqueurs are almost as important. They make cocktails really come together. Triple sec is in a lot of cocktails, as are kahlua, Irish cream, and peach schnapps. If you like fruity tropical drinks you want blue Curacao. It’s not really a liqueur, but bitters are used in a lot of cocktails, especially whiskey cocktails.

Juices, sodas, non alcoholic essentials include: lime juice, cranberry juice, orange juice, lemon lime soda (Sprite or Sierra mist), dark soda (cola or Dr. Pepper), club soda, grenadine, and simple syrup. Others include grapefruit juice or soda, pineapple juice, sweet and sour mix (you can make your own though!), lemon juice, red bull.

With these ingredients you can make basic, classic cocktails like margaritas, cosmos, old fashioneds, gimlets, and many more! Always keep in mind that this is your bar. If you don’t like gin, don’t buy gin. If you love rum, get three different kinds of rum. The best part about your bar is it’s tailored to you: to your tastes, preferences, and budget.

Did you enjoy this post? What are your home bar essentials? Let me know in the comments! Share via Facebook or Twitter, and as always, follow me here on WordPress for more GREAT content like this.