Diet

Holiday Cocktails for the Hostess Who Hates to Cook

Spare your guests the food coma and provide holiday cheer in liquid form instead

by Allie Flinn | 4 COMMENTS

PHOTO 4/10

Catching Up With Old Friends Need to impress those friends you haven't seen in forever but always seem to pop up around the holidays? This oh-so-festive bright red cocktail should do the trick. The rhubarb syrup keeps the drink tart and crisp, while the pomegranate seeds float around the glass as you sip. The whisky imparts a smoky flavor that rounds out the drink. "By the end of the sip," says Jeremy LeBlanc, author of The Best Craft Cocktails, "note how the pomegranate seeds have taken on a smokier flavor."

La Mariquita
Yields One Cocktail
Ingredients:
Ice
1 ½ oz whiskey
$#189; oz red cranberry juice
1 tsp homemade rhubarb syrup (recipe below, or your can buy it canned)
2 tsp pomegranate seeds

In a bar tin, combine 20 pieces of ice, whiskey, juice, and syrup. Shake vigorously for a count of 15, strain and pour into a cocktail glass. In your glass, add seeds and stir for 10 revolutions. Serve and suggest guest notes flavors at the first and last sip.

Rhubarb Syrup
2-3 small stalks of chopped rhubarb
1 cup cane sugar
2 cups water
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
½ vanilla bean pod

Combine ingredients in a small pot. Bring to a boil, and then reduce hear to a simmer. Simmer 5-7 minutes then let cool completely. Strain ingredients.

Excerpted with permission from "The Best Craft Cocktails & Bartending with Flair"
By Jeremy LeBlanc and Christine Dionese
Page Street Publishing Co., $19.99, www.pagestreetpublishing.com
Photo Credit: Photography by Sean Cassidy

SEE NEXT PAGE: When You Realize You're Out of That Bakery-Bought Pie and Guests Are Clamoring for Dessert

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