'Tis the Season to be Jolly

With tomorrow being New Year's Eve and all, I thought I'd share some of my favorite cocktail recipes with you. I'll be home getting crocked enjoying fresh Italian pizza, various 'tinis and watching my annual New Year's favorites! I hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year's Eve.

• Christmastini
Ingredients:
1/3 Stoli Vanil
1/3 White Creme de Cacao
1/3 Green Creme de Menthe

Directions:
Shake over ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with mini candy cane.

• Banana Foster Martini
Ingredients:
2 oz vodka
1 oz banana liqueur
2 oz Godiva chocolate liqueur
1/2 banana
1 scoop vanilla ice cream
1 tsp powdered cocoa

Directions:
Combine all ingredients (except powdered cocoa) in a bender. Blend until smooth and pour into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a dusting of powdered cocoa, and serve.

• Apple Snowflake Martini
Ingredients:
1 ounce vodka
1 ounce sour apple schnapps
1 ounce apple juice
Sugared apple slice, for garnish (see below)

Directions:
Pour vodka, schnapps and juice over ice in cocktail shaker. Shake until very cold, then strain into a chilled glass. Place apple slice in glass for garnish.

To present this drink, push the apple slice up against the inside of the glass. Keen observers will notice that the apple core's pattern looks a little like a snowflake.

• Church Lady Martini
Ingredients:
2 oz gin
1 oz dry vermouth
1 oz fresh orange juice

Directions:
Pour the gin, vermouth and orange juice into a cocktail shaker half-filled with cracked ice. Shake well, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with lemon, lime and orange peels, and serve.

• The Elf
Ingredients:
Lime wedge, for rim
3 teaspoons superfine sugar, for rim
1/2 ounce Midori
5 ounces champagne

Directions:
Wet rim of champagne flute with lime wedge and dip rim in sugar to coat. Pour Midori into glass, then add champagne. Stir. The sugared rim gives it extra sparkle.

• Absinthe-Minded Martini
Ingredients:
3 oz Bombay Sapphire gin
1/2 oz Mari Mayans absinthe
1/2 oz Grand Marnier orange liqueur
dry vermouth
1 orange peel

Directions:
Properly chill 1 cocktail glass. In mixing glass with ice, pour gin and absinthe, and stir. In your cocktail glass, roll 1/2 oz of dry vermouth and throw away the excess. Strain other ingredients into cocktail glass and float 1/2 oz of grand marnier over top. Garnish with orange peel.

• Down 'n Dirty Dry Martini
Ingredients:
3 oz gin
1/2 oz olive juice

Directions:
Shake the gin and olive brine with crushed ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Rub the rib with a wedge of lemon and drop into glass. Garnish with two cocktail onions, and serve.

• Hypnotic Martini
Ingredients:
4 oz Hpnotiq liqueur
2 oz Malibu coconut rum
2 oz pineapple juice

Directions:
Combine all ingredients over ice in a cocktail shaker and shake well. Strain into a martini or cocktail glass and serve.

• Rudolph's Nose
Ingredients:
1-1/4 oz. Barbancourt's Traditional White Rhum
Cranberry Juice
1-1/2 oz. Lemon Juice
1/2 oz. Major Peters' Grenadine

Directions:
Mix in a tall glass. Add ice.
Garnish with a lemon wedge.