Every holiday season, I like to experiment with new dishes and have something different to go along with our traditional offerings. Christmas is no exception. With pomegranates, oranges & cranberries all readily available at this time of year, they naturally come to mind as the basis for holiday dishes. Each adds distinctive color and flavor to a vast variety of foods. They lend that festive touch and distinct flavor to cocktails, too.
I spent a good amount of time scouring recipes for a suitable cocktail. I knew I wanted it to include cranberries (for the vibrant red color and unique flavor) but other than that, it just had to taste good. Eric & I spent a few evenings a week sampling mini versions of a bunch of different cocktails. Our preferred one the first night would be in the lineup on the next night to face new contenders. And so it went for 3 weeks. It took a lot more experimenting and sampling than it has in past years, but I finally settled on the combination I was excited to serve over the Christmas holiday this year. Last weekend, I served it to friends we had over for a pizza & martini night dinner. In the midst of mixing a few different cocktails, I pulled out the bottle of Pinnacle Whipped Vodka that I usually made flavored martinis and substituted it for the Tito’s vodka I had been using that evening to mix the cocktails. And my Christmas cocktail reached the level of flavor, color and depth I had been searching for since Thanksgiving!
Very Berry Christmastini
Very Berry Christmastini (adapted from inspiredbycharm.com) Makes 2 martinis
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup Pinnacle Whipped Vodka
- 1/4 cup orange liqueur
- 1/4 cup cherry 100% juice
- 2 tablespoons cranberry 100% juice
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- cranberries/pomegranate seeds/orange strips/fresh rosemary sprigs for garnish
Directions:
Pour all the liquid ingredients into a cocktail shaker half filled with ice. Shake vigorously. Pour the mixture into 2 martini glasses.
Add all the juices & alcohol to the cocktail shaker.
Garnish the glasses with cranberries, pomegranate seeds, orange strips, and/or fresh rosemary sprigs.
Garnish the cocktail with orange peel slices, fresh cranberries or pomegranate seeds and a sprig of fresh rosemary.
Very festive for the holidays!
Merry Christmas! ~Linda
Very Berry Christmastini (adapted from inspiredbycharm.com) Makes 2 martinis
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup Pinnacle Whipped Vodka
- 1/4 cup orange liqueur
- 1/4 cup cherry 100% juice
- 2 tablespoons cranberry 100% juice
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- cranberries/pomegranate seeds/orange strips/fresh rosemary sprigs for garnish
Directions:
Pour all the liquid ingredients into a cocktail shaker half filled with ice. Shake vigorously. Pour the mixture into 2 martini glasses. Garnish the glasses with cranberries, pomegranate seeds, orange strips, and/or fresh rosemary sprigs.