3 Festive Skinny Cocktails

Cocktails for the holidays often mean extra calories and a wider waist. You don’t have to give up your favorite holiday drinks in order to save on pounds. A little ingenuity and creativity go a long way toward making the drinks you love into lower calorie versions. Try the following adjustments to old favorites and enjoy your festive skinny cocktails with everyone else!

What would Christmas be without eggnog? Think of cozy nights by the fire, spicy cookies, and a lot of cuddling. Before you know it, the spiked eggnog will have you feeling festive. Eggnog is inherently fatty, but, by just changing a few things you will see a big reduction in calories. Try out a skinny cocktails spiked nog!

Ingredients:

Two tablespoons egg substitute

1/4 cup Splenda

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 cup spiced rum

Mix all of the ingredients, except rum, in a blender. Once blended, add rum and mix until perfectly blended. Pour over ice and serve. Sweetener and spice can be adjusted to taste. Egg whites may be used; if so, add one to two drops of yellow food coloring for a more genuine look. Makes about 6 servings this skinny cocktail eggnog favorite.

Wine that has been steeped with spices is a centuries old holiday cocktail. The best wine to use is a rustic red, sometimes referred to as ‘rough’. In other words; cheap red wine is perfect for this.

Ingredients:

1 bottle of wine (750 ml)

4 oranges

1 lemon

2 cinnamon sticks

4 to 6 whole cloves

1/2 cup sugar or honey

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Juice the oranges and lemon. Pour into a large container (preferably glass), along with all of the other ingredients. Allow to sit overnight at the very least. Strain through a fine mesh colander or several layers of cheesecloth. Pour the strained and flavored wine into a non-reactive saucepan and warm on low heat. Do not bring to a boil, keep below the boiling point, and once it is hot (not boiling!) remove from heat and pour into mugs. You can garnish with a cinnamon stick or orange slice. Makes about about 8 servings of this skinny cocktail mulled wine.

Something sweet, yet minty. Coffee cocktails are refreshing to drink and easily adjusted for low calorie diets. Coffee itself is very low calorie and perfect for skinny cocktails. It’s the additives that are a problem. Instead of cream, this recipe uses low fat milk. The peppermint schnapps adds about 93 calories per ounce added.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups strong coffee

4 cups low fat milk

1 tablespoon cocoa powder

1/2 cup sugar (or sugar substitute to taste)

1/4 cup vodka

2 ounces peppermint schnapps

Mix all ingredients in a blender on high. Once blended, add 10 to 12 cubes of ice. Blend again until slushy. Pour and serve. A tasty addition to any skinny cocktails mix!