What I love most about making cocktails is the “chemistry” of it all. Taking several different flavors and combining them in different ways to create something new. You don’t have to use alcohol to get in on this magic though! I enjoy making mocktails for the kiddos and adults who aren’t into cocktails. So here are a few options to get you started. This list will grow over time!
- Strawberry Booster
- Nojito
- Strawberry Mule
- Blueberry Rosemary Smash
- The Ramona – TRA Original
- Shirley Temple – Classic
- Blended Pina Colada – Virgin
- Citrus Fizz
- Virgin Painkiller
Strawberry Booster
This mocktail packs a few surprises, and the biggest is that it is complex. When we set out to make a mocktail menu for “dry January” the main goal was not to make a bunch of smoothies and Shirley Temples. While the Strawberry Booster is a blended drink, it has so many flavors that it feels like a cocktail and not a smoothie.
Sweetened with honey and sitting on a virgin hot toddy of lemon, hot water, and mint. The complexity arrives with the marriage of strawberry and balsamic vinegar. This isn’t as strange a combo as you might think, but not necessarily found in a lot of drinks. All combined it is complicated and an easy sipper. Definitely an elevated smoothie.
Cheers!
2 tbls Raw Honey
Lemon Juice of one lemon
Pinch of Salt
1.5oz Hot Water
4-6 Mint Leaves
4-5 Strawberries
Dash of Balsamic Vinegar
Garnish with Mint Sprig and use a short straw
In a blender add honey, lemon juice, salt, hot water, and mint (immersion blender works too)
Blend ingredients for 5 seconds
Chop strawberries into quarters and add to blender, blend until smooth
Add a dash of balsamic vinegar and blend again for 5-10 seconds
Prepare tulip glass with fresh ice and open pour mixture over ice, leaving 1 inch
Add cold water to top of drink
Garnish with fresh mint
Source: Dry Mocktail Recipe Book (modified slightly)
Nojito
A classic mocktail if there ever was one. The lime and mint are still there even if the booze is not, and those are the classic flavors you are probably looking for in this mocktail anyway.
Build it in the glass and go easy on the sugar for starters. And always use fresh mint. No shortcuts with this one.
Cheers!
6 fresh mint sprigs (plus 1 for garnish)
1 barspoon superfine sugar
2 lime wedges
Soda Water
Dash of simple syrup
Muddle the mint, sugar and lime in a highball filled with ice
Top with Soda Water and muddle gently
Add simple syrup to taste (start with the barspoon you used with the sugar)
Garnish with mint sprig
Source: Mocktails: cordials, syrups, infusions and more book
Strawberry Mule
Sometimes you just want something simple. If that’s you, this one might hit the spot. Our first attempt accounted for all the ginger (root and beer) and it was pretty strong. If you dig ginger, it’s still good. But you could cut the ginger root in half, or even cut it out entirely if you like. The flavor of muddled strawberries and ginger beer is pretty good all on it’s own.
Cheers!
1 tsp Fresh Ginger Root (finely grated)
3 Fresh Strawberries
Ginger Beer
Add grated ginger and strawberries to a highball glass and muddle
Fill the glass with ice and top with ginger beer
Give everything a gentle stir to combine the flavors
Serve with 2 straws and garnish with strawberry (optional)
Source: Dry Mocktail Book
Blueberry Rosemary Smash (Dry January Month WINNER!!)
If you miss the complexity of cocktails then this one might be worth checking out. It is fruit forward, but with rosemary in the mix, the mocktail is far from boring.
Couple pieces of advice. Don’t be afraid to overdo the blueberries. If they are small, add more. We added simple syrup (2:1 ratio) to the original recipe because the first version was being overpowered by the citrus. Finally when you add the lemon juice, we recommend adding a splash of water (not sparkling) to the tin. Our first cocktail was hard to pour because there wasn’t enough liquid. Make sure to double strain to get rid of the fruit and the rosemary bits, and give the cocktail a gentle stir after adding the sparkling water. Cheers!
7-8 fresh blueberries
Sprig of fresh rosemary (cut in half)
1 tbls fresh lemon juice
1 tbls honey
0.5oz 2:1 Cane Sugar Syrup (aka rich simple syrup)
Splash of Water (for shaking)
Top with Sparkling Water
Add the blueberries, honey, and rosemary to a large shaking tin
Muddle everything into a paste
Add lemon juice, and a splash of water and the simple syrup
Add Ice and shake for 10-15 seconds
Double strain into a chilled nick and nora glass
Top with sparkling water
Source: Mistress of Cocktails Recipe (with slight adjustments)
The Ramona (TRA Original)
We’ve spent many hours introducing our daughter to movies we love, from Empire Records to Serendipity. But this drink was created one evening when she was introducing us to one her favorite movies. Namely, “Scott Pilgrim vs the World”. I created this mocktail for her that evening and empowered her to name it. You don’t have to fight the “seven evil exes” to drink this one though! Cheers!
4oz Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice (do the work, it’s worth it)
0.25oz Passion Fruit Syrup
0.25oz Orgeat
0.5oz Cream of Coconut
Garnish with cocktail cherry
Glassware: Low ball
Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker
Add ice and shake for 15 seconds
Option 1: strain over low ball glass filled with crushed ice
Option 2: double strain into low ball glass with no ice
Garnish with cocktail cherry (or two)
Source: Runaway Anchor Original Recipe
Shirley Temple – Classic
This first mocktail is my own recipe (though I’m sure it looks like plenty other recipes out there, as this one is pretty straight forward). Here are the keys to getting it right. Squeeze the lime juice (no bottles!). You can get all you need from one half and use the other half for garnish. Use homemade grenadine. I was converted by Anders Erickson to making this stuff at home. It’s so easy to do, and is nothing like the grenadine you are used to seeing at the market. If you think grenadine is “cherry” you need to try the real stuff (which is pomegranate). Drink as many of these as you like!
Cheers!
2oz Homemade Grenadine
0.25oz Fresh Lime Juice
Lemon-Lime Soda (I’m a Sprite person)
Garnish with Lime Wedge and Maraschino Cherries (yes, PLURAL)
Glassware: High Ball glass with straw (or a wine glass if you’re fancy!)
Add ice to the High Ball glass (fill it up)
Pour Grenadine over the ice
Pour Lime Juice over the ice
Add Lemon-Lime Soda until the glass is mostly full (give an inch or so)
Give it a mix to blend the ingredients together
Add additional Lemon-Lime Soda to fill the glass
Garnish with at least 3 cherries on a cocktail pin (mine are tropical birds!) or a toothpick in a pinch
Source: This one is my personal recipe
Blended Pina Colada – Virgin
You can do pina colatas lots of different ways. But if we are doing it non-alcoholic for the kiddos (or the adults) why not have some fun and make it a smoothie version!? This recipe sticks with several key ingredients including chunks of pineapple and coconut milk, while ending up something entirely different from what you’d normally think of with a Pina Colada.
Cheers!
10oz (bag) Frozen Pineapple Chunks
4 large scoops of vanilla ice cream
1 cup Coconut Milk (can)
0.5 cup Pineapple Juice (little can is fine)
Garnish with Pineapple Wedge and Maraschino Cherry
Glassware: High Ball glass with a wide straw (or a Hurricane Glass if you have one handy!)
Add all the ingredients to a blender (you could also use an immersion blender, but I haven’t tried yet)
Divide mixture between two high ball glasses
Garnish with Pineapple and Cherry
Source: Delish.com Virgin Pina Colada
Citrus Fizz
Here is a simple drink when you want to skip the liquor (or you have kids hanging around cocktail hour). This one is a nice combo that leans into that “orange creamsicle” space, beloved by many. You can skip the egg (or just use the white if the yolk freaks you out), but you’ll lose some of the foamy magic if you do so. Perhaps more of a Summer drink, I’m okay with it since it’s taking forever for even Spring to arrive in my neck of the woods.
Cheers!
1/4 cup Orange Juice (quality bottled or juice it)
1/4 cup Fresh Lemon Juice
2 tbls Fresh Lime Juice
1 tsp Homemade Grendadine
1 whole egg
2-4 tbls Sparkling Water
Garnish – Orange Slice
Glassware: High Ball glass
Add all ingredients to a shaker without ice
Dry shake for 10 seconds
Add ice and shake for 30 seconds
Double Strain into a High Ball glass
Top off with Sparkling Water
Garnish with Orange Wedge
Source: The Spruce Eats Citrus Fizz Recipe
Virgin Painkiller
I wanted to make a fun cocktail for my teenager, and this is a cool combo of standard “pina colada” materials, with the added element of grated nutmeg. Simple build but very tasty. Give this one a try. Cheers!
3oz Pineapple Juice
2oz Orange Juice (fresh squeezed if you’ve got it)
1oz Coconut Cream (homemade is best)
0.5oz Fresh Lime Juice
Garnish with Grated Nutmeg and Pineapple Wedge
Glassware: Low ball glass
Combine all of the ingredients in a shaker
Add ice and shake for 30 seconds (shake less and the glass won’t fill up)
Strain over fresh ice in low ball glass.
Garnish with grated nutmeg (grate yourself if you can) and pineapple wedge or lime wheel
Source: Food With Feed Tropical Pineapple and Coconut Mocktail Recipe