Shape up with mocktails

By Cherie Calbom
Mocktails (mock cocktails) are non-alcoholic drinks that offer a delicious and refreshing alternative to alcoholic mixed drinks. For people who don’t want to broadcast that they’re avoiding alcohol, mocktails are the answer.
But that’s just the beginning. If you ditch the alcohol and choose healthy ingredients, including a healthy low-calorie sweetener such as stevia, you can avoid a boatload of calories, not to mention a hangover. They use a wide range of ingredients like fruit juices, veggie juices, spices, herbs, mineral water, ice and sweetener.
Here are three mocktail recipes to get you started, one savory and two sweet mocktails:
Icy Spicy Gazpacho 2 tomatoes, cut in chunks
1 cup fresh carrot juice (about 5–7 carrots)
1 lemon, juiced, peeled (if putting it through a juice machine)
1/4 cup cilantro, rinsed and chopped
1/4 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 small jalapeño, chopped (more if you such as it hot)
3 radishes
Place the tomato chunks in a freezer bag and freeze until solid. This is optional.
(Or you can use fresh tomatoes placed in the blender; then you would need to add ice cubes.) Pour the carrot and lemon juices into a blender and add the frozen tomato chunks, cilantro, salt, cumin, jalapeño, and radishes. Blend on high speed until smooth but slushy; serve immediately. Serves 2.
Twisted Ginger Berry 2 green apples juiced or 1 cup apple juice
1 cup blueberries
1-inch-chunk ginger root. peeled
4-6 ice cubes
Pour apple juice in a blender along with the berries and ginger root. Add the ice cubes and blend. Serve your icy cocktail with a sprig of mint.
Lemon SipperWith less than 10 calories, this is an ideal low-calorie, vitamin C–rich thirst quencher.
1/2 lemon, washed or peeled if not organic
1 cup unsweetened mineral water
2–3 drops liquid stevia
4 ice cubes
Juice the lemon and pour the juice into a glass over ice. Add the mineral water and stir to combine. Sweeten with stevia to taste.
Cherie Calbom holds a master of science degree in whole foods nutrition from Bastyr University. Known as “The Juice Lady” for her work with juicing and health, she is the author of 32 books, including her latest, "The Juice Lady’s Guide to Fasting and Sugar Knockout."