Twas the Night Before Christmas, 2021

 Twas the night before Christmas and all through the flat,

Not a creature was sober except maybe a cat.

Flamingo stockings hung by the bookshelf with care,

In hopes that Nico would enjoy the Christmas flare.

The kitties were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of tuna fish swum through their heads.

And I with my shaker and Nico prepping the rest,

Had settled our brains for a winter taste test.

We started with raspberry, creamy and light,

Then onto the yuletide spice for the night.

It flowed from my glass, such a wonderful flavor,

A taste that our holiday guests could all savor.

And so with our mixing skills all in full gear,

We perfected our Christmas cocktail for the year.

Raspberry cream mimosas

Ingredients (4 servings)

• 2 cups of frozen raspberries
• 1/6 cup (or 2 2/3 tablespoons) white sugar
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 bottle sparkling wine
• a few fresh raspberries for garnish

Instructions

1. In a small saucepan, thaw the frozen raspberries on medium heat until they've broken down and become soup-like. Add sugar to the sauce, stirring until it dissolves. Remove from heat.
2. Filter the raspberry sauce to remove raspberry seeds and fruit guts.
3. Add heavy cream to the filtered raspberry sauce. Chill. (We tried freezing it in the photos above but ultimately think it's better with just some fridge time.)
4. Mix equal parts raspberry cream and sparkling wine.
5. Top with fresh raspberries.

The Harvest Sparkle

What it lacked in photogenicity it made up for in flavor. This wintery bourbon-prosecco drink may just become our new Christmas classic.

Cider syrup ingredients

• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Cocktail ingredients (1 serving)

• 1 ounce bourbon (or whiskey)
• 1 ounce prosecco
• 0.7 ounce cider syrup
• 1/2 sprig rosemary
• ice

Instructions

1. Make the syrup: mix the honey, orange juice, and spices in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk until it starts to bubble, then remove from heat for 5 minutes.
2. Mix the bourbon and syrup over ice in a cocktail shaker.
3. Add prosecco and garnish.