7 Favorite Fall Cocktails
The days are getting shorter and the warmth is (slowly) dissipating, but 5 o’clock still comes around the same time. Time to enjoy some tasty cocktails after a long day of fun in Sin City. But you don’t have to go to an overpriced bar on The Strip – or anywhere in Vegas. Simply come back to the comfy confines of your RV and make some homemade cocktails, on the cheap!
Join us in welcoming the change of the season with flavors that scream “fall.” And yes, pumpkin spice is in the mix.
Campfire Sling
Makes 1 serving
Ingredients:
- 2 oz rye whiskey
- ¼ oz pure maple syrup (grade B is richer, but A is recommended)
- 3 dashes chocolate bitters
- Orange twist with scorched orange oil
Add all ingredients in an old-fashioned glass with one large piece of ice. Stir well. Release the oils from the orange zest by using a flaming wood pick over the drink. Serve.
Hard Cider Sangria
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients:
- 1 cup quartered and thinly sliced unpeeled apple
- 1 orange, quartered and thinly sliced crosswise
- 2 T fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup apple brandy
- 1 22-oz bottle hard apple cider, chilled
- Ice
In a pitcher, mix apple with orange, apple juice, and brandy. Add the hard cider just before serving. Serve in tall glasses over ice.
Pomegranate Sparkler
Makes 6-8 servings
Ingredients:
- 2 T pomegranate seeds
- 1 8-oz bottle pomegranate juice, chilled
- 1 bottle sparkling white wine, chilled
Drop a spoonful of pomegranate seeds in the bottom of 6-8 cocktail glasses. Fill glasses halfway with the pomegranate juice. Top with sparkling wine. Serve.
Pumpkin Spice White Russian
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients:
- 4 gingersnap cookies, crumbled
- 1 tsp honey
- ¾ cup coffee liquor
- 2/3 cup vodka
- 1 ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
- ¾ cup heavy cream
Crumble the cookies on a plate. Rub the rims of 4 glasses with honey. Dip the cups in the cookie crumbs. Whisk together coffee liquor, vodka, and pumpkin pie spice in a measuring cup. Pour into glasses evenly and top with ice. Then divide the heavy cream evenly among each. Serve.
Apple Brandy Hot Toddy
Makes 8 servings
Ingredients:
- 1 ½ cups water
- 2 T and 2 tsp honey
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 cups apple brandy
- 8 3-inch cinnamon sticks
In a small saucepan, bring water to boiling. Remove from heat and stir in honey until dissolved. Stir in lemon juice and apple brandy. Set a cinnamon stick in each of 8 mugs or heatproof glasses. Pour in the hot liquid. Serve.
Chipotle Bloody Mary
Makes 8 servings
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup canned chipotle peppers, with adobo sauce
- 46 oz chilled vegetable juice, divided
- ½ cup prepared horseradish
- 1 tsp celery seeds
- 4 dashes Worcestershire sauce
- 1 cup chilled vodka
- Ice
- 12 large prawns, peeled and deveined
- 2 T olive oil
- Lemon wedge for rimming the glass
- Salt to taste
In a blender, mix chipotle peppers and ½ cup vegetable juice on high until pureed. Take ½ cup of the mixture and transfer to a small bowl with the prawns. Marinate for a few minutes (or longer). In a large pitcher, combine the rest of the chipotle puree, vegetable juice, horseradish, celery seeds, Worcestershire and vodka. Mix well and season with salt. Refrigerate until ready to use. Meanwhile, in a skillet over medium heat, add olive oil and saute prawns until heated through. Pour bloody Mary mixture over ice and add a prawn to each. Serve.
Pumpkin Old Fashioned
Makes 1 serving
Ingredients:
- 1 ½ oz bourbon whiskey
- ½ oz brandy-based orange liquor
- 1 oz maple syrup
- 2 T pumpkin puree
- 1 dash aromatic bitters
- Orange peel or rosemary sprig for garnish
Combine bourbon, orange liquor, pumpkin puree, maple syrup, and bitters in a shaker filled with ice. Shake until chilled. Double strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a chilled old-fashioned glass with ice. Garnish with orange peel or rosemary sprig. Serve.