Festive Drinks & Nibbles

If, like us, you enjoy nothing more than a few drinks and nibbles in the run up to Christmas, you'll love these ideas to help get you in the festive spirit.

Grand Anno Cocktail (makes 1 drink)

With its bitter orange flavours and bubbles, this cocktail definitely has festive season written all over it!

Ingredients

10ml Aperol
10ml Grand Marnier
10ml fresh orange juice
Champagne
Orange zest to garnish

Method

1. Pour the Aperol, Grand Marnier and orange juice into a Champagne flute.
2. Top up with Champagne.
3. Garnish with orange zest and enjoy

Sloe Gin Fizz (makes 1 drink)

This cocktail allows us to put our homemade sloe gin to good use and it's always a winner with guests.

Ingredients

30ml (2 tbsp) sloe gin
30ml (2 tbsp) gin
30-45ml (2-3 tbsp) fresh lemon juice
1 tsp simple syrup or 1-2 tsp sugar
60ml (4 tbsp) soda water
Lemon slice for serving
Ice

Method

1. Add the sloe gin, gin, 15ml lemon juice and simple syrup (or sugar) to a cocktail shaker filled half way with ice.
2. Shake vigorously until chilled.
3. Taste then adjust with additional lemon and/or simple syrup/sugar to suit your taste.
4. Shake and strain cocktail into a glass filled with ice then top with club soda and garnish with lemon wedge.

Cranberry Orange Mocktail (makes 1 drink)

If you're the designated driver, this delicious long mocktail means you can still enjoy the celebrations. Adjust the sweetness to suit your taste. The children will love it too.

Ingredients

60ml cranberry juice
60ml orange juice
15ml simple syrup
60ml ginger ale
Ice
Cranberries for garnish

Method

1. In a tall glass, add ice and 4-5 cranberries.
2. Add the orange juice, cranberry juice, and simple syrup.
3. Top off with ginger ale and garnish with additional cranberries.

Parmesan Shortbread Biscuits (makes 25-30 biscuits)

As well as nibbles to accompany drinks, these cheesy buttery biscuits make a beautiful gift. With just three ingredients, they are simple to make yet no less delicious. To add some additional flavour, you can add some chopped rosemary to the mixture.

Ingredients

100g salted butter, chopped
100g parmesan cheese
95g plain flour

Method

1. To make the dough, put the butter, flour and parmesan in a food mixer and mix until a wet crumbly dough. If you don’t have a food mixer, place the flour and butter into a bowl and use your fingers to rub the butter into the flour until a crumble dough forms. Then add the parmesan cheese and use your fingers to rub it into the mixture.
2. Lightly flour a surface and turn the dough out onto it.
3. Knead to bring together, then shape into two logs with a diameter of around 3cm and 15cm in length.
4. Wrap the logs in clingfilm and refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm.
5. Preheat oven to 180°C/350F. Line two baking trays with parchment paper.
6. Remove the logs from the fridge and using a sharp knife to cut the log into 7mm thick rounds.
7. Place the biscuits onto the baking tray at least 2cm apart.
8. Bake biscuits for 12 minutes or until light golden.
9. Stand on trays for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool.