Our Favorite Healthy Holiday Cocktails

By: Leslie Hughes - Nov 15, 2021

The holiday season is upon us and that means many things, including extra indulgence. We love celebrating the holidays but also don’t love the toll all the sugar and calorie-packed drinks can take on our bodies.

To help you still have fun this holiday season without going too far off-track with your healthy lifestyle, we’ve rounded up some healthy festive cocktails.

Live your life to the fullest without sacrificing your health with the help of these healthy cocktails.

Dirty Horchata

Via Openfit

Horchata is a traditional Mexican drink made by soaking rice in water and throwing in some other ingredients to create a tasty drink. Throw in some coffee and you’ve got yourself a dirty horchata.

Because the standard horchata recipe calls for condensed milk, that means you are looking at a lot of calories, loads of sugar, and more saturated fat than anyone needs. Thus, we found a way to make it more healthy while still giving you that creamy and tasty treat.

Makes 1 serving

What you need:

●1 cup unsweetened rice milk

●½ cup cold-brewed coffee

●1 T canned coconut cream

●2 Medjool dated, pitted and roughly chopped

●½ cup ice

●Dash of ground cinnamon

●Pinch of nutmeg

What to do:

1. Mix rice milk, coffee, coconut cream, and dates. You can do this either in a shaker, or add in the ice for a frappucino-style drink.
2. Top with cinnamon and nutmeg and serve.

Pomegranate Kombucha Mimosa

Via The Real Food Dieticians

Get that extra sweet in your champagne and raise your glass to anything and everything you’re celebrating this holiday season with this pomegranate kombucha mimosa. The lightness of this drink will give you that refreshing feeling and the taste will have you coming back for more. And when you do, you don’t have to feel guilty since this drink is healthier than most.

Makes 6 servings

What you need:

●1 bottle champagne or prosecco

●3 fresh oranges, juiced

●2 bottles of kombucha

●½ cup pomegranate seeds

●Orange peel

●Coconut sugar

What to do:

1. Put coconut sugar in a small bowl
2. Dampen the rim of each glass and dip it in coconut sugar, coating the rims
3. Add 1-2 T of pomegranate seeds to each glass
4. Add juice from ½ of an orange
5. Add 4 oz of kombucha
6. Top each glass with champagne or prosecco
7. Garnish with orange peel and an orange slice

Natural Whiskey Sour

Via Happy Food Happy Life

Love a whiskey sour but not the high-sugar sweet and sour mix? Us, too. We’ve found an alternative that allows you to enjoy the taste of this holiday drink without pouring in the sugar.

The secret ingredient? Stevia. This is a natural sugar substitute that comes from the leaves of the stevia plant. It is much sweeter than sugar, so a little bit goes a long way. However, unlike sugar, it is free of both calories and carbs.

Throw a little bit of stevia into this drink, and you’ll have your desired sweetness level without the guilt.

Makes 1 serving

What you need:

●1-2 oz whiskey

●Juice of 1 lemon

●3-4 tsp stevia

●Club soda

●Ice

●Lemon slices

What to do:

1. Pour whiskey into a low-ball glass
2. Add in the ice and stevia, and stir
3. Top the glass with club soda and a few lemon slices as garnish
4. Add more stevia and whiskey as needed

Orange Cranberry Margarita

Via Lexi’s Clean Living

All you need to make a summer margarita that works for the holidays is to change out the flavors you add to the tequila.

This winter, orange and cranberry are two of the flavors we are into, so we decided to add them to tequila, throw in some sweetener, and have ourselves a delicious holiday treat. The fresh orange zest gives this drink a little something extra that will keep you coming back for more.

Makes 1 serving

What you need:

●1 ½ - 2 oz tequila

●2 ½ oz cranberry juice

●½ oz orange juice

●½ oz orange liquor

●1 tsp maple syrup

●Salt

●Orange zest

What to do:

1. Combine all ingredients in a shaker and shake
2. Salt the rim with orange zest and salt
3. Add an ice cube and pour the margarita mix over the ice
4. Add orange slices and serve

Apple Cider Sangria

Via Lexi’s Clean Living

While we are on the subject of fall flavors and tasty fruits, we think you should give this festive sangria a taste test to see if it strikes your fancy.

Though there are more ingredients on this list than some of the other cocktails we’ve got here, they are all easy to get and healthy, too. Plus, sangria doesn’t require much effort – all you have to do is throw everything in a pitcher together and drink up.

Makes 8 servings

What you need:

●2 apples, roughly chopped

●1 orange, sliced

●¼ cup pomegranate seeds

●1 bottle of white wine

●½ cup vodka

●2 ½ cups fresh apple cider

●1 T honey or maple syrup

●½ tsp cinnamon

●1 T fresh grated ginger

●1 cup club soda

What to do:

1. Add all ingredients to a large pitcher, except carbonated water, and let sit
2. Serve over ice with fresh fruit

Rosemary Gin Fizz

Via Cookie + Kate

The minimal ingredients for this cocktail make it one that’s not only easy to throw together but also makes it a healthy one that isn’t packed full of all kinds of junk.

All you need to get your taste buds dancing is rosemary, gin, club soda, lemon, and honey. This is perfect for those days when you need a drink but don’t have time for things to get complicated. Though simple, don’t doubt how much the combo of these flavors will make you and any guest you serve feel elevated and fancy.

Makes 1 serving

What you need:

●3 1-inch sprigs of fresh rosemary

●1 lemon, juiced

●½ tsp honey

●1 ½ gin

●3 oz club soda

What to do:

1. In a small glass, muddle the rosemary, lemon juice, and honey
2. Fill the glass with ice and pour in the gin
3. Top with club soda and stir

Peppermint Cocktail

Via Step Away From The Carbs

When you want dessert but aren’t ready to sacrifice the carbs, then we suggest you reach for this cocktail. It gives you that bit of sweetness you’re looking for without all the extra calories.

The mix of peppermint and chocolate screams “holiday season,” but you may find yourself loving this one so much that it makes an appearance year-round.

Makes 1 serving

What you need:

●1 oz vodka

●½ oz sugar-free peppermint syrup

●½ oz sugar-free chocolate syrup

●½ oz heavy cream or coconut cream

●1 tsp stevia

●Honey or syrup

What to do:

1. Put the stevia on a plate
2. Add honey or syrup to the rim of the glass and dip it in the stevia
3. In a cocktail shaker, mix the vodka, peppermint syrup, chocolate syrup, and heavy or coconut cream
4. Add ice cubes to the prepared glass
5. Pour the shaken cocktail over the ice

The temptations of the holiday season are abundant. However, just because you’re trying to be healthy doesn’t mean you can’t have fun, too. So, when you get those cravings for something sweet or a nice drink to get into the festive mood, reach for one of the above cocktails that will give you the same enjoyment, but without all the calories. Plus, you’ll feel much better the next day when you aren’t suffering the after-effects of a few too many sugary drinks.