Drinkmasters from the amateur to the professional level have their own take on what comprises a “mistletoe” cocktail. This Jello shot was inspired by Tim Laird’s Mistletoe Martini from That’s Entertaining. Laird’s Mistletoe Martini contains cranberry juice, lemon juice and tangerine vodka and is served in a cocktail glass rimmed with sugar.
Edit Ingredients
Servings: About 16 shots
Lemon syrup
- 4 medium lemons, cut into wedges and muddled in a medium saucepan
- 1 1/2 cups (350 ml) water
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- Note: If you don’t want to make the syrup, then mix 1 part lemonade concentrate with 1 part water. Just remember to strain out the pulp before you add it to your gelatin mixture.
Mistletoe shots
- 1 3-oz. (85 g) package of cranberry gelatin
- 1 cup (240 ml) water, boiling
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) tangerine vodka
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) lemon syrup
- Granulated sugar for garnish
- Lemon zest for garnish
Edit Steps
Part 1: Make the Lemon Syrup
- Add the 1-1/2 cups of water and 1 cup of sugar to the lemons that you have muddled in the saucepan.
- Bring the entire mixture to a rolling boil over medium heat.
- Reduce the mixture to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally with a whisk.
- Pour the syrup through a strainer into a jar.
Part 2: Assemble and Serve the Shots
- Combine the cranberry gelatin and the boiling water. Stir with a whisk for about 2 minutes. Make sure that you’ve removed the gelatin from the heat before you add any of the other ingredients.
- Stir in the tangerine vodka and 1/2 cup of the lemon syrup. Reserve the rest of the syrup for another use.
- Lightly spray a loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Pour the gelatin mixture into the loaf pan and refrigerate the mixture for about 4 hours or overnight.
- Gently loosen the gelatin from the loaf pan using an offset spatula.
- Invert the loaf pan over a cutting board, supporting the top of the gelatin with your palm.
- Gently ease the loaf onto the cutting board to prevent breakage.
- Cut the loaf into 16 squares using a sharp chef’s knife and place the squares onto a serving tray.
- Sprinkle the shots with sugar and garnish each shot with a curl of lemon zest just before you serve them.
- Finished.
Edit Tips
- Because sugar is a delicate garnish, you should wait to sprinkle sugar on the shots until just before you serve them. The water in the gelatin will dissolve the sugar after a few minutes.
- Feel free to make these Jello shots up to 2 days in advance. However, do not sprinkle them with sugar or garnish them until just before you serve them.
- You can also garnish these shots with a sliver of tangerine.
Edit Things You'll Need
- Saucepan
- Strainer
- Whisk
- Loaf pan
- Nonstick cooking spray
- Offset spatula
- Cutting board
- Chef’s knife
- Zester
Edit Sources and Citations
- http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=resources/lifestyle_community/food/restaurants&id=8472395
- http://www.wgntv.com/news/middaynews/middayfix/wgntv-midday-fix-tim-laird-holiday-party-ideas,0,269213.story
- Palm, Michelle. The Jelly Shot Test Kitchen. Running Press, 2011.