Winter Shrub Mocktail

If you’ve been a reader for a while, you may have noticed that we enjoy mixing up mocktails from time to time! It’s fun coming up with new recipes and we enjoy trying out new flavor combinations. Over the summer, we met some of the girls over at Creativebug at the Michaels Makers Summit. We’ve had fun browsing thru the classes they offer (we can’t wait to try the calligraphy course!) and when we saw that they offered a course on Holiday Preserves and Infusions – we thought some of the recipes featured would be perfect for adding to our mocktail recipes! And we’re trying out the bitters and preserved lemons recipes featured in the course to give as gifts this Christmas!
We were really intrigued by the Winter Shrub recipe, and knew we had to try out a mocktail with it. If you’re wondering what shrubs are – it’s a sweetened vinegar-based syrup that was popular in the 17th & 18th century. We weren’t sure what to expect while we making this, will vinegar mixed in fruit really taste okay in our drinks?! Turns out – it tastes great!  We both were fans of this drink (and the boys loved it too!), and loved the chance to try out something we’ve never made before.  This would make a great addition to your holiday cocktail/mocktail station! Winter Shrub Mocktail
1 tbsp winter shrubs (you can find the recipe in the Holiday Preserves and Infusions class)
2 tbsp orange juice
3 tbsp sierra mist
club soda
frozen clementine slices
cranberries

Add all ingredients to a glass and top off with ice or frozen clementine slices and a couple cranberries.

*To make the frozen clementine ice cubes:
Put thin clementine slice in the bottom of a muffin tin and add a little bit of water. Put in freezer. Run bottom of pan under water until the ice cubes pop out.
Psst… now until December 30th, you can purchase a 1 year subscription to Creativebug for $50, and get another one year subscription free to give to a loved one! One year’s worth of crafting?! Best Christmas gift ever!

xo. Caitlin & Manda