Mocktails! Part of the New Alcohol-Free & Sober Curious Trend…Recipes Included!

Have you heard about the new #SoberCurious Trend? Yes, it is for real. More and more people are choosing to go alcohol-free…at least for a period of time. Even Dr. Jennifer Ashton on Good Morning America chose to go alcohol-free for the month of January.

So what is the root of this Sober Curious movement? Like so many things in life, it is about living a healthier lifestyle. It is also about choice…our choice…to choose when and if we want to drink alcohol.

For many of us, especially those of us who want and need to be mindful of what we consume, we already know how alcohol influences us. There can be a whole lot of calories in alcoholic beverages. Those calories can add up quickly when you are having a night on the town or having a special celebration. Alcohol can also lower our inhibitions so we end up throwing care to the wind and drinking way more than is good for our mind and body! And for those who have had bariatric surgery, alcohol can be truly dangerous and toxic, affecting blood sugar levels and possibly triggering alcoholic addiction.

Giving up alcohol or choosing to moderate your consumption doesn’t mean you have to give up parties, having friends over, or enjoying a Friday night libation after work. Now it is easy to find non-alcoholic alternatives at bars. In fact, there are even sober free bars cropping up around the country that only serve non-alcoholic beverages.

There are so many delicious drinks you can enjoy alcohol-free. They can be easy to prepare and calorie-conscious. My husband and I have enjoyed developing our own versions of mocktails that are ridiculously tasty and terrifically refreshing. Below are some of our favorites. Try them, enjoy them, and get inspired to create your own mocktail concoctions!

• Cranberry Lemonade Mocktail
• Cranberry Lime Spritzer
• Grapefruit Mint Mixer
• Muddled Strawberry Cooler
• Watermelon Lemonade Mocktail

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Fun Summer Mocktails—Fresh, Quenching and Healthy!

Just about everything is better in the summer. It’s all because of the fresh ingredients that are available. This includes the tasty and thirst quenching concoctions we can create. The good news is that mocktails are in. You don’t need to consume alcohol to get in the party mood, sip a sexy drink, or share a memorable experience as part of your summer fun.

Balance is the key. If you do want to add alcohol to these drinks that is easy to do. The main point is you don’t have to. Recent research conducted by Cambridge University found that the people who consume more than one drink a day face greater risks of dying from any cause than those who drink less. Very light drinking seemed to have a small protective effect against non-fatal heart attacks. But drinking above 100 grams a week also kicked off much higher risk of stroke, heart failure, fatal aortic aneurysm, and disease from high blood pressure that could cancel out the benefits from lower heart attack risks. The challenge is to find a way to choose whether we want to drink alcohol, when we want to consume it, and how much we really want to imbibe.

Using fresh herbs, juices, sparkling waters and muddling of fresh fruits are a great way to concoct you own favorite summer mocktails. The combinations are honestly limitless. And it can be a great element of a party to provide a variety of ingredients and have your guests “build their own” unique versions. Or if you want everyone to share in the memory of a special mocktail you can mix it ahead and serve it up in a punch bowl or pitcher. You decide. Remember to include the garnishes to make the special drinks gorgeous to behold.

Three Fun Hand-Crafted Mocktails for Any Occasion

Cranberry Lime Spritzer

Ingredients

• ⅛ cup 100% cranberry juice
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• ¼ teaspoon lime zest
• 3 drops Sweet Leaf—Sweet Drops
• 6 ounces sparkling water
• Garnish: slice of lime placed on the rim of the glass or on top of the drink.

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Stir to blend.
3. Add crushed ice.
4. Pour sparkling water up to the fill line (8 ounces).
5. Add garnish.

Tips

1. Use the ⅛ cup LivSpoon for easy measuring when making this drink.
2. Want it sweeter? Substitute diet 7-Up for the sparkling water and skip the Sweet Drops.
3. Serve it up in Livliga’s Aveq beverage glass.

Serves: 1     Serving size: 8 ounces

Calories per serving: 21     Fat: .03g     Sodium: 51mg     Carbs: 5.28g     Protein: .1g

Grapefruit Mint Mixer

Ingredients

• ⅛ cup grapefruit juice juice
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• ¼ teaspoon orange zest
• 6 ounces sparkling water
• 1 teaspoon muddled mint
• Garnish: sprig of mint tucked in the side of the glass

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Stir to blend.
3. Add crushed ice.
4. Pour sparkling water up to the fill line (8 ounces).
5. Add garnish.

Tips

1. Use the ⅛ cup LivSpoon for easy measuring when making this drink.
2. Want it sweeter? Substitute diet 7-Up for the sparkling water and skip the Sweet Drops.
3. Serve it up in Livliga’s Aveq beverage glass.

Serves: 1     Serving size: 8 ounces

Calories per serving: 19     Fat: .03g     Sodium: 50mg     Carbs: 4.77g     Protein: .26g

Muddled Strawberry Cooler

Ingredients

• ⅛ cup lemon juice
• 3 muddled strawberries
• ¼ teaspoon lemon zest
• 6 ounces sparkling water
• Garnish: whole strawberry with top placed on the rim of the glass or on top of the drink.

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Stir to blend.
3. Add crushed ice.
4. Pour sparkling water up to the fill line (8 ounces).
5. Add garnish.

Tips

1. Use the ⅛ cup LivSpoon for easy measuring when making this drink.
2. Want it sweeter? Substitute diet 7-Up for the sparkling water and skip the Sweet Drops.
3. Serve it up in Livliga’s Aveq beverage glass.

Serves: 1     Serving size: 8 ounces

Calories per serving: 20   Fat: 0g     Sodium: 50mg      Carbs: 5.41g     Protein: .31g


For More Drink Ideas: 

Rosemary Tequila Lime Smash
Watermelon Lemonade
Cantaloupe Frappe
Cranberry Lemonade Cocktail



Healthy Lifestyle Tip: Looking for a way to serve up refreshing drinks in right-sized glasses? Check out Livliga's stylish Aveq Drinking Glasses! Portion control never looked so good…or plentiful!

#sobercurious

Jumpstart Your Livliga^® Lifestyle
with our Get Started Guide!

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Celebrate Summer Holidays with Watermelon Lemonade!

Watermelon Lemonade @livligahome

Holidays are fun times to add something new to your menu. It is also a great time to enjoy using the best the season has to offer in its fruits and vegetables. It is an easy way to make your table look appealing and taste delicious.

This summer, as my go-to holiday mocktail, I plan on serving a watermelon lemonade. Watermelon is a summertime staple in our house. And now that there are smaller, seedless versions it makes serving up favorites to a smaller crowd that much easier.

Here is my Watermelon Lemonade recipe:

Ingredients:

• 2 cups mashed watermelon pulp, sieved or use seedless
• 1 cup lemon juice, about 2 lemons
• 3 cups water
• 1 cup ice cubes
• 6 sprigs of mint
• 2 tbsp honey 

Instructions:

1. Juice lemons
2. Mash watermelon (fun activity for the kids) or puree in a blender
3. Mix all juices together
4. Add honey 
5. Pour into glasses
6. Add ice cubes and 1 mint sprig per glass

Serves 6. Calories per 8 ounce serving: 46


Healthy Lifestyle Tip: Looking for a way to serve up refreshing drinks in right-sized glasses? Check out Livliga's stylish Aveq Drinking Glasses! Portion control never looked so good…or plentiful!


#sobercurious

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Cranberry-Lemonade Mocktail With Livliga Flair

Refreshing Cranberry-Lemonade in a Livliga Beverage Glass (photo by LivligaHome)

This is a refreshing drink which is ideal for summer and a great alternative to alcohol all year long.

Ingredients
2 Tablespoons unsweetened cranberry juice
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon Stevia, or to taste
Sparkling Mineral Water
Ice
Sprig of mint (optional)

Directions
Use a 10 oz. Tom Collins glass and place the cranberry juice, lemon juice and Stevia in the bottom of the glass. Slowly pour in the sparkling water (i.e., S. Pellegrino or Perrier) and fill the glass about 2/3rds full. You need to pour slowly because the Stevia causes the liquid to foam at first. Add ice to fill to the top. Garnish with a spring of mint.

Healthy Lifestyle Tip: Looking for a way to serve up refreshing drinks in right-sized glasses? Check out Livliga's stylish Aveq Drinking Glasses! Portion control never looked so good…or plentiful!

#sobercurious

Enjoy! And Live Vibrant!

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