As if you needed a reason to whip up a fun Christmas cocktail this season, let a sugar cookie martini be your excuse. Whether you’re hosting a holiday movie marathon for one or an adults-only Christmas cookie decorating party for friends, this sugar cookie martini recipe will add to the feel-good coziness of the Christmas season.
Ingredients for Sugar Cookie Martini
- Vanilla frosting and sprinkles: While it’s completely optional, we love decorating the rim of the glass with vanilla frosting and festive Christmas sprinkles.
- Ice cubes: Whenever you’re shaking up any cocktail recipe, avoid small ice cubes at all costs. They melt much more quickly than regular-sized or large ice cubes and will water down your drink.
- Vanilla vodka: A splash of vanilla vodka imparts flavor to mimic the vanilla extract found in sugar cookies. Liquor stores have a ton of vanilla vodka brands to choose from. Take your pick from your go-to brand.
- Irish cream liqueur: Creamy, rich and filled with whiskey, Irish cream liqueur adds to the cookie flavoring.
- Amaretto: Amaretto is a bitter and nutty Italian liqueur that will offset the overload of sweetness for a balanced drink.
- Half-and-half: Our sugar cookie martini recipe uses half-and-half to make the drink nice and creamy.
Directions
Step 1: Decorate the rim
Rim a martini glass with vanilla frosting.
Place your sprinkles on a plate, then dip the rim in the sprinkles to adhere to the frosting.
Editor’s Tip: Decorating the rim is an optional step, but it plays up the Christmas sugar cookie theme of this martini.
Step 2: Shake up the cocktail
Fill a shaker three-fourths full of ice. Pour in the vanilla vodka, Irish cream, amaretto and half-and-half. Cover the shaker with its lid and shake until condensation forms on the outside of the shaker, 10 to 15 seconds.
Step 3: Strain and serve
Strain the cocktail into the prepared glass and serve.
Recipe Variations
- Add more garnishes: Whip up a batch of cutout sugar cookie dough and cut out mini candy cane shapes. Bake and decorate the candy canes, then hook them onto the rims of the sugar cookie martinis. Or, bake mini sizes of these Christmas candy cane cookies for the rim’s garnish. How cute is that?
- Omit the frosting rim: Not a fan of the frosting and sprinkles rim? You definitely don’t have to use it. The frosting creates a lot of sweetness in the martini though, so if you don’t use the frosting, shake 1/2 teaspoon confectioners’ sugar into the martini to make up for the sweetness.
- Swap in RumChata: RumChata is a take on a rum-filled horchata. Horchata is heavily spiced with cinnamon, a prominent ingredient in Christmas baking. Use RumChata in place of the Irish cream to add a note of cinnamon to this martini.
- Use up that eggnog: Got some extra homemade eggnog sitting in your fridge? Use it in place of the half-and-half in the sugar cookie martini recipe. ‘Tis the season!
How to Store Sugar Cookie Martini
If you have any leftover sugar cookie martini that you’re saving for later, pour the contents into a Mason jar and seal the lid on tightly. Stick the Mason jar in the fridge for up to one week, and give it a good shake before enjoying it again.
Sugar Cookie Martini Tips
Can you make a batch of sugar cookie martinis in advance?
Yes, you can make a big batch of these sugar cookie martinis in advance. Multiply the amount of each ingredient with how many people you’re going to serve. Pour the vanilla vodka, Irish cream liqueur, amaretto and half-and-half cream into a pitcher, cover the opening with storage wrap and keep it in the fridge for up to one week.
When you’re ready to serve, give everything a really good stir as alcohol tends to fall to the bottom. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and, working in batches, shake up each martini, strain it into a prepared glass and serve.
Does the quality of the alcohol matter?
Yes, the quality of the alcohol directly impacts how smooth the martini will be to drink. We highly recommend buying the best liqueur that’s in your budget. Middle-of-the-road or higher alcohol is best.
