Non-alcoholic Drink Recipes for the Holidays

Many of us like to celebrate the end-of-year holidays with festive drinks. However, for some that holiday cheer can quickly become less-than-festive.

Drinking too much alcohol can have many serious health consequences, including injuries from falls and motor vehicle crashes, increased violent and unsafe sexual behavior, and greater risk of developing liver and other chronic diseases. Lower consumption of alcohol can still be unhealthy, as alcohol can worsen depression, cause heart problems and high blood pressure, and increase the risk of certain types of cancer.    

To give you and your family, as well as your guests, healthier options this holiday season, we’ve collected some non-alcoholic drink recipes.

Healthy Eggnog

Eggnog is a classic Christmas drink dating back to the founding of the country, with documentation that George Washington served it to his guests. Washington’s eggnog recipe was heavy on cream, eggs, sugar, and various liquors. Some modern eggnog recipes still have high fat and sugar content, but this recipe from Superhealthykids.com is healthier, especially if you make it with reduced fat milk. You'll want to have a kitchen thermometer handy to make sure the egg mixture is cooked enough to be safe.

Ingredients:

• 6 large egg yolks
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 3 cups milk
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. Whisk egg yolks, maple syrup, and milk in a medium saucepan, and then place on a burner over medium heat. Whisk regularly until the mixture reaches 160 degrees and coats the back of a metal spoon slightly. Don't let it boil.
2. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Then mix in the spices and vanilla.
3. Chill in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.
4. Whisk well before serving. Serves six.

Hot Spiced Apple Cider

Pressed from the fall apple harvest, hot cider is a favorite drink to take the chill off during the winter holidays. This recipe from Fooddoodles.com skips the added sugar that other recipes call for, although you can add a little natural sweetener like maple syrup if you want.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups apple cider
• 2 large cinnamon sticks
• 3/4 teaspoon whole cloves
• 2 whole allspice berries
• Skin of 1/2 a navel orange removed using a vegetable peeler fresh or dried
• 2-4 tablespoons honey or maple syrup (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg, plus more to sprinkle over top if desired

Instructions:

1. In a small pot over medium-low heat add the apple cider, all the spices, and the orange skin.
2. Slowly bring to a boil and then turn down to a very slow simmer for 10-15 minutes.
3. Remove from the heat and taste before stirring in the honey or maple syrup (if needed) and let sit to cool slightly if desired. If not, serve immediately, being sure to strain out all the spices and orange peel. Sprinkle a tiny pinch of freshly grated nutmeg over the top, if desired, and serve with a cinnamon stick.
4. You can also increase the recipe and place in a crockpot on low for 4+ hours if desired. Any leftover hot apple cider can be strained to remove the flavorings and stored in the fridge to be reheated, or even frozen to drink another day or to use in baking.

Healthy Hot Chocolate

After being outside in the snow, who doesn’t like warming up with a mug of hot chocolate? Many homemade hot chocolate recipes add sugar, but this one from Detoxinista.com keeps it out. If your taste buds prefer a sweeter mix, you can sneak in a little maple syrup.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup almond milk (or milk of choice)
• 1 tablespoon raw cacao powder
• 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup (optional)
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch of fine sea salt

Instructions:

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat and stir, using a whisk to break up any lumps. Keep stirring until it's smooth and reaches your desired warm temperature. (There is no need to bring it to a full boil.)
2. Carefully taste the hot chocolate and make any necessary adjustments. For a darker chocolate flavor, add an extra dash of cocoa powder. For more sweetness, add a touch of maple syrup.
3. Pour the hot chocolate into a mug right away and serve warm. Top with coconut whipped cream and chocolate shavings, if desired, or other toppings.  

Non-Alcoholic Gløgg

Gløgg, also known as glögg or glögi, is a traditional hot drink popular in Nordic countries during the winter, especially at Christmas. Most gløgg recipes include wine or spirits, but this one from The Norwegian American gets its cheer from rich spice flavors, including fresh ginger.

Ingredients:

• 32 oz. fruit juice (such as apple, cranberry, grape, or pomegranate)
• 1 cup water
• 2 sticks of cinnamon
• 8 cloves
• 10 allspice berries
• 5 cardamom pods, crushed
• 1 star anise pod
• ½ orange, sliced
• 4-inch length of fresh ginger, cut into a few pieces
• 1 bottle ginger ale (optional)
• To garnish:
  • sliced blanched almonds
  • raisins
  • thinly sliced oranges (optional)

Instructions:

1. Be sure to use whole spices, not ground, to prevent the gløgg from tasting gritty.
2. In a medium saucepan, combine juice, spices, ginger, and orange slices. Heat over medium-high heat until it simmers. Remove from heat and let sit for 30 mins or longer.
3. When ready to serve, strain the mixture with a sieve. Garnish with sliced almonds, raisins, and a slice of orange. If desired, splash a bit of ginger ale into each cup.

Wassail

Wassail is a punch associated with the English Yuletide tradition, often made from hot mulled cider and hard liquor. This recipe submitted to Allrecipes skips the liquor and can be made in a slow-cooker to really bring out the flavors. 

Ingredients:

• 2 quarts apple cider
• 2 cups orange juice
• ½ cup lemon juice
• 12 whole cloves
• 4 cinnamon sticks
• 1 pinch ground ginger
• 1 pinch ground nutmeg

Instructions:

1. In a slow-cooker or a large pot over low heat, combine apple cider, orange juice, and lemon juice. 
2. Season with cloves, ginger and nutmeg. 
3. Bring to a simmer. If using a slow cooker, allow to simmer all day. 
4. Serve hot. Serves 12

Mocktail Recipes

If you’re in the mood for cocktails, but don’t want to include any alcohol, here are three mocktail recipes that Blue Cross Vermont employees enjoyed during our annual Employee Appreciation event earlier this year.

Raspberry Lemonade Spritzer

Makes five servings

• 1 cup raspberries (can use frozen, just need to be thawed before blending)
• 1.5 cups lemon juice
• ¾ cups sugar
• 4-5 cups plain seltzer water
• lemons (garnish)

Blend together raspberries, lemon juice and sugar. Then, add plain seltzer water.

Mai Tai Mocktail

Makes one serving

• 1.5 oz. orange juice
• 1.5 oz. pineapple Juice
• ½ oz. lime juice
• ½ oz. almond orgeat syrup
• ½ oz. spiced simple syrup
• 2 oz. plain seltzer water
• orange slice (garnish)
• mint (garnish)

Mint Mojito

Makes one serving

• 3 tbsp. mojito mint syrup
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 6 oz. club soda
• lime (garnish)
• mint (garnish)

More Holiday Tips

We hope you and your family enjoy these healthy drink recipes and have a wonderful holiday season. For more tips on staying healthy during the holidays, check out this blog article. If you’d like to continue abstaining from alcohol in the new year, read our blog article on tips for a successful dry January, which includes another mocktail recipe.