29 December 2023 , 10:00
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Party season is well under way and whether you are having a New Year’s Eve party, or enjoying some quiet drinks, we’ve got the perfect cocktail recipes that will get you in the festive spirit without having to worry too much about the calories. Just take a look at our delicious recipes.
That’s not all, if you are making a New Year’s resolution, why not take up our great FREE Slimming World Membership offer.
Lime sorbet gin and tonics
Serves 8
Ready in 30 minutes, plus overnight chilling
- 120ml gin
- Juice of 2 limes, plus wedges to serve
- About 300ml ice-cold low-calorie tonic water
- Cucumber shavings, made using a vegetable peeler
For the lime sorbet:
- 5 tbsp sweetener granules
- 6 ripe, juicy limes
First make the lime sorbet. Bring 250ml water to the boil in a small pan. Add the sweetener and stir until the granules have dissolved. Remove from the heat and leave to go cold.
Meanwhile, finely grate the zest from 3 limes then squeeze the juice from all 6. Stir the zest and juice into the syrup, cover and chill until it’s really cold. If you’re being super-organised, overnight would be ideal!
The next day, strain the syrup and discard the lime zest. Pour the mixture into a shallow plastic container, cover and freeze until firm but not rock hard. Scoop into a food processor and blend until smooth. Return to the container and freeze once more. Repeat the process 2-3 times more then leave in the freezer overnight until hard. (If you have an ice-cream maker, lucky you – you can use it instead.)
To assemble your cocktails, fill 8 tall glasses with a few ice cubes. Put the gin, lime juice and lime sorbet into a liquidiser and blend until slushy. Divide the mixture between glasses and top up with tonic water. Thread the cucumber shavings and lime wedges on to skewers and use to decorate each glass before serving.
Clementine, Campari and pomegranate fizz
Serves 4
Ready in 5 minutes, plus overnight chilling
- 300ml clementine juice
- 4 tbsp Campari
- 300ml low-calorie lemonade or bitter lemon, chilled
- 4 heaped tsp pomegranate seeds
Mix the clementine juice with the Campari and chill overnight – the colder the better! To serve, half-fill 4 glasses with the clementine mixture. Top up with the chilled lemonade or bitter lemon and add a heaped tsp of pomegranate seeds to each glass.
You can squeeze fresh clementines yourself if you prefer. You’ll need between 8-16, depending on their size.
Citrus and green tea punch Iced tea and a blend of citrus juices (Non-alcoholic)
serves 12
Ready in 10 minutes, plus freezing and chilling overnight
- 800ml smooth orange juice
- 6 tbsp sweetener granules
- 6 green tea bags
- juice of 1 small lemon, plus 1 quartered and sliced lemon to serve
- Juice of 2 limes, plus 1 halved and sliced lime to serve
- 1 orange, quartered and thinly sliced
Pour 400ml orange juice into ice cube trays (about 24 holes) and freeze overnight.
Bring 750ml water to the boil in a saucepan over a high heat. Add the sweetener and stir until dissolved. Remove from the heat, stir in the tea bags and leave to steep for 5 minutes.
Remove the tea bags with a slotted spoon (try to resist any urge to squeeze them!) and leave the tea to cool.
Add the rest of the orange juice, the lemon juice and the lime juice and chill overnight. Pour the punch mixture into a punch bowl and add the orange ice cubes and sliced fruits. Ladle into glasses to serve.
Cranberry sparkler
Ready in 10 minutes, plus chilling
- 300g fresh or thawed frozen cranberries, plus 12 to serve
- 100ml orange juice
- 3 tbsp sweetener granules
- 400ml chilled sparkling water or soda water
Put the cranberries, orange juice, sweetener and 120ml cold water into a blender and blend well. Strain through a muslin-lined sieve into a jug, then squeeze out every last drop of juice. You should have about 400ml. Chill for at least 4 hours.
Divide the cranberry mixture between glasses and top up with sparkling water or soda water. Poke the extra cranberries on to 4 cocktail sticks and use to decorate each glass before you serve.
All recipes are taken from Slimming World’s collection. Recipes are based on Slimming World’s Food Optimising plan and the liberating concept of Free Food – food that is naturally lower in energy density (calories per gram) and most satiating, so you stay fuller for longer. To find out more about Slimming World and how to join, visit slimmingworld.co.uk or slimmingworld.ie, or call 0344 897 8000 or 01 656 9696.
Images: Slimming World/Will Heap
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