cocktails

Low-Calorie Cocktails to Make Summer Last

August 24, 2012 at 1:06 pm
By Marianne Magno

We’re still in denial that summer is almost at an end. To make the most of the last few weeks of warm weather, beach trips and barbecues, we’re sipping on these fruity cocktails made with Voli Light Mango Coconut vodka–each with under 100 calories. Cheers!

Miami Mojito

 

• 1 1/2 oz Voli Mango Coconut vodka
• 3 lime wedges
• Mango chunks
• 1 pack Stevia sweetener
• 6 mint leaves
• Soda water

Pour ingredients into a highball glass over ice and garnish with mint leaves and mango chunks.

Approximately 85 calories.

 

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Toast to Mom With These Cocktails

May 11, 2012 at 2:49 pm
By Christie Griffin

Whether you’re hosting a big family brunch or just gabbing with mom, why not celebrate her with a little imbibing? These low-cal and gourmet drink recipes, thanks to Patrón Spirits, sound delicious, don’t you think…?

The Good Wife - Low-Calorie

• 2 ounces Patrón Silver
• 1/2 ounces Ginger simple syrup
• 1/2 ounces Lime juice
• Seltzer or mineral water
• 3 to 4 mint leaves
• 2 to 3 peeled fresh cucumber rounds, skins removed

In a highball or collins glass, muddle cucumber, lime juice, and mint. Add Patrón Silver and fill with ice. Cover with seltzer and stir well. Garnish with a mint sprig and cucumber rounds.

 

Mother’s Little Helper – Low-Calorie

• 1 3/4 ounces Patrón Silver
• 1/4 ounces Elderflower liqueur
• 3/4 ounces Fresh lime juice
• 3 slices Cucumber
• 2 whole fresh sage leaves
• Ginger ale

Smack sage to open up aromas. Tear in two and muddle well with cucumber and elderflower liqueur. In a mixing glass, add remaining ingredients and ice. Shake and strain over ice in a highball glass. Top with ginger ale. Garnish with cucumber and sage leaf.

 

I Said So Martini – Gourmet

• 2 ounces Patrón XO Cafe Dark Cocoa
• 0.5 ounces Amaretto Liqueur
• 1 ounces Cream
• Almond shavings for garnish

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with almond shavings.

 

 

Sealed with an XO – Gourmet

• 3 ounces Patrón XO Cafe Dark Cocoa
• 1 ounces. Espresso
• 1 large scoop coffee-flavored gelato
• Coffee grinds for garnish

Blend all ingredients in a blender and pour into a hurricane-style glass. Garnish with coffee grinds.

For more drink recipes and ideas, visit patronspirits.com.

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Spring Break-Inspired Cocktails from a Fit-Focused Bartender!

March 23, 2012 at 1:47 pm
By Christie Griffin

Between the warm(er than usual) weather and March Madness, we’re feeling a little nostalgic for Spring Break in college! So we scored a couple cocktail recipes from Bryan Dayton, the owner and Beverage Director at OAK at Fourteenth in Boulder, Colorado…including a non-alcoholic one, for those of you who gave up booze for Lent/New Year’s/Who Knows Why.

Before we hand over the happy hour inspiration, you should know whom it’s coming from. Bryan hasn’t just been a mixologist for 15 years—he’s also a trail runner (the higher the altitude, the better) with an incredible race resume. Nice!

My Little Honey

• 1.5 oz gin
• .5 oz honey syrup (1:1 honey to hot water)
• .5 oz fresh lemon juice
• Soda water

To make: Pour all ingredients over crushed ice, give a quick stir and garnish with a lemon.

Cucumber Smash

• 2 slices of cucumber
• 2 quarter wedges of lime
• 1.5 oz gin or vodka
• .25 oz honey syrup

To make: Muddle all of the above together in a mixing tin and then add ice. Shake. Fine-strain over crushed ice and then garnish with a slice of cucumber. Idea: Substitute berries for the cucumber, if you want something fruity!

The Summer Smash (Non Alcoholic)

• 2 slices of cucumber
• 6 mint leaves
• 1 mint sprig
• .5 oz lime
• .25 oz honey syrup
• 3 oz soda water

To make: Muddle mint and cucumber in a mixing tin. Add all the ingredients, except for the soda water. Add ice, shake and strain into a highball glass with ice. Finally, pour in soda water and give it a quick stir. Garnish with mint sprig.

Traditional Margarita on the Rocks

• 1.5 oz Reposado tequila
• .75 oz orange liqueur
• .75 oz fresh lime juice

To make: Put all ingredients into a shaker, add ice and shake. Pour over fresh ice in a short tumbler and garnish with lime. Salt is optional.

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Two Low-Cal, Festive Spritzes to Sip On

December 1, 2011 at 2:17 pm
By Colleen Moody

As December officially kicks off, it’s time to snap out of your Thanksgiving turkey coma and start prepping for the looming holidays. Soon, you’ll feel more popular than Kelly Kapowski on Saved by the Bell, with holiday invites stuffing up your inbox and maybe even your mailbox (gasp, snail mail?!). To help keep your waistline in tact, we snagged two low-cal cocktails for you to keep on hand. Serve at your own party or bring it to a friend’s to impress them with your bartending skills this holiday season.

Skinny Cosmo

Ingredients

• 1.25 ounces Russian Standard Vodka
• 1 ounce lemon juice
• 1/2 ounce Monin O’Free Triple Sec (sugar free)
• 1 ounce cranberry juice

Directions

Shake all ingredients well over ice. Strain into cocktail glass. Approximately 103 calories.

Read on to get the recipe for an Iced Chocolate Cake cocktail!

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Can a Cocktail Make You Even More Beautiful?

June 24, 2011 at 1:35 pm
By FITNESS Intern

Written by Danielle Paquette, editorial intern

Sip vodka to banish blackheads, tequila to erase wrinkles and rum to diminish dryness. There’s a cocktail for every skin woe, claims Randy Falcon, a mixologist at swanky New York City nightclub Provocateur.

I bellied up to the bar for some serious research and Falcon poured me a vibrant red Teddy Bear—one of 11 alleged drinkable facials. The blend of fresh lime juice, crushed mint, muddled strawberries and Belvedere is designed to unclog pores, according to the menu. Extra vitamins, minerals and “power powders” are mixed to delay aging.

But what can a shot of liquor do for my face (besides give me puffy eyes in the morning)? “You’ll feel and look a lot better with this than if you had a vodka tonic,” Falcon said. “It’s all in the fresh ingredients. ”

Since Provocateur unveiled its bar-meets-spa selection in April, health-conscious celebs have been spotted dropping $22 a glass. And with cocktail names like “Sweet Enchantment” and “Spring Flower,” why shouldn’t I, too, buy into promises of a gorgeous morning-after?

“Beauty drinks are a fun idea, but alcohol tends to dehydrate the skin and cause it to look dry,” says Tess Mauricio, M.D., a dermatologist in San Diego. No amount of kumquat, cucumber or pomegranate can cancel that consequence, she warns. “However, in moderation, drinking can reduce stress. That won’t hurt your complexion.”

After finishing the Teddy Bear in three swigs, I definitely felt more relaxed. It was fresh, fruity, refreshing—all of the qualities I desire in a drink.  So I had another.

When my alarm sounded at 7:30 a.m. the next day, I didn’t feel like a beauty queen. I didn’t feel particularly hungover, either. And after a look in the mirror, I realized I hadn’t found the secret to skin radiance in a cocktail or two.

But a night on the town put me in a great mood, and that’s worth the occasional puffy-eyed morning.

More from FITNESS: Yes, you can drink and still shrink! Check out our round-up of delicious low-calorie cocktails.

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