More Than Mimosas: Host a Bottomless Brunch with These Cocktail, Coffee, and Smoothie Recipes
If you prefer a latte, green smoothie, nonalcoholic cocktail, or creative Bloody Mary, we've got you covered.
Brunch is a more than perfect meal to sip multiple drinks at once. I usually have a mug of coffee, a mimosa, and sparkling water in front of me as I dive into dishes like loaded french toast and eggs benedict.
With that in mind, now is the perfect time to host backyard brunches. To help us all make the most of the season, we’ve rounded up our favorite recipes for cocktails and drinks to get together and celebrate … just about anything.
When I opt for hosting brunches at home, I find that crafting one or two drinks in a big batch is easier when serving a crowd. With recipes that take advantage of herbs like mint and basil, fruits like strawberries, melon, and more, the drinks will be flowing at all of your future brunch gatherings. Some offer a boozy kick, though most all of them can be made sans-alcohol and spiked when serving to make sure everyone in attendance has something they can enjoy.
For those who are fans of caffeinating their cocktails, our espresso martini recipes come together easily in a shaker without needing to brew fresh coffee with the use of cold brew or coffee liqueurs like Mr. Black.
Shake, stir, or mix up your favorite recipes to serve at your springtime brunch as a bright, boozy, or caffeinated beverage that your guests will surely be asking for the refills of with our favorite sips below.
This recipe comes from the book, Feel Good Smoothies, where author Sandra Wu writes, “Feeling not your best after some questionable food choices or a long night out on the town? Try out this blend. Long used as a home remedy for a variety of ailments, ginger is a calming force for sour stomachs.”
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Everyday Green Smoothie
A smoothie a day is part of Olympic swimmer Natalie Coughlin’s strategy for getting plenty of fruits and vegetables into her diet. Adding citrus helps absorb the iron in the greens.
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The Sunset Layered Smoothie
This tropical treat mimics a Hawaii sunset. For the most beautiful results, keep everything ice-cold, so the layers stay nice and thick. A small amount of roasted sweet potato amps up the color of the mango layer.
4 of 8Annabelle Breakey
Cucumber Smoothies
We like our yogurt beverage with puréed cucumber and herbs, plus a spritz of club soda. If the cucumber peels and seeds are tender, they don’t need to be removed.
5 of 8Rocio Egio
PB&J Smoothie
This recipe, inspired by the classic after-school snack or packable lunch, comes from the book, Feel Good Smoothies by author Sandra Wu.
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Pineapple Guava (Feijoa) and Strawberry Smoothie
The tart-floral flavor of pineapple guava (feijoa) pairs really well with sweet strawberries. Guava also makes for a pleasingly thick smoothie. Feel free to add other favorite tropical fruits, like pineapple or banana.
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Cran-Berry Green-Tea Smoothie
The best smoothies combine great nutrition with even better flavor. Cranberries and green tea pack this drink full of healthy antioxidants, while berries and banana add essential vitamins and nutrients.
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The Ultimate Citrus Smoothie
Combine the juice with frozen bananas to form a fruity base, then thicken with rich, tangy Greek yogurt and sweeten with a hint of honey.
Cocktails
1 of 10Photo courtesy of Bradley Tuck
Rosemary Tonic
Rosemary-infused gin elevates a gin and tonic by Kelso Norris, the cocktail director at Genever in Los Angeles’s Historic Filipinotown.
Lychee liqueur anchors this drink, from Seattle’s Musang, in the tropics, while tequila and Peychaud’s bitters add a pan-American vibe. Feel free to substitute passionfruit liqueur, which works just as well.
4 of 10Courtesy of Veso
This recipe was shared with us by Veso. According to Chris Beyer, Veso’s CEO/Founder, “A splash of citrus creates something like an adult strawberry lemonade and the lavender syrup adds an amazing floral complexity to it.”
5 of 10Courtesy of Hélène Dujardin
Coffee Old Fashioned
Looking for coffee and a cocktail all in one glass? This variant from Prairie Rose, author of the book Mixology for Beginners, combines the sweetness of the coffee liqueur, the smokiness of the rye, and the fresh citrus acidity of the orange into a smooth, well-balanced drink.
6 of 10Sydney Yorkshire
Free Parking Cocktail
This recipe was shared with us by the team at U-Street Pizza in Pasadena, California. The Free Parking cocktail caught our eye for its usage of orange wine as a base, making it a great option to serve in a group.
7 of 10Humble Bee Cocktail, right. Photo by Thomas J. Story.
The Humble Bee Cocktail
Malibu honey and Amass gin from Los Angeles star in this local take on the Bee’s Knees.
8 of 10Thomas J. Story
Surfrider Malibu Bloody Mary
Smoky mezcal, local Malibu Mary mix, and abundant briny, spicy garnishes take this daytime tipple over the top.
9 of 10Courtesy of Unsplash
Matcha Maiden
Matcha and sake come together in this out-of-the-ordinary cocktail.
10 of 10Madhu Rao
Tropical Jewel
Ginger and pineapple will make you feel like you’re at a tiki bar, but this sake cocktail’s light level of alcohol won’t leave you groggy.
Nonalcoholic Cocktails
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Pear Tree
A little tart and a little sweet, this mocktail of lemon-lime juice and pear juice will wake up your taste buds. Add a splash of seltzer and an herb garnish for a special presentation.
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The Brightside
This cocktail is made with Optimist, an alcohol- and additive-free botanical drink. A bottle of Bright, used here, pairs ingredients like lemon, orange, jasmine, and fennel with cinnamon leaf and other ingredients to create a clean spirit that drinks similarly to vodka.
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Salted Meyer Lemon Cocktail
This cocktail is a boozy take on the beloved soda chanh muôi, the salted lemonade soda found at restaurants, bakeries, and street stalls throughout Vietnam. Leave out the vodka for a refreshing drink any time of year.
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Bee’s Knees
Seedlip Spice brings the complexity of a gin’s botanicals to the cocktail without the booze, while the lavender honey syrup is a unique addition to this Prohibition-era drink.
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Earthy Beet
This colorful drink is made with Wilderton Earthen, a botanical spirit with herbaceous notes.
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The Verdigo
When you want a refreshing (but booze-free) cocktail, this bright green drink is made with Optimist, a botanical spirit that’s free of alcohol and other additives like sugar, gluten, and carbs. This flavor, Fresh, combines juniper berry and cilantro with lime peels, oregano, and more to create a gin-like sip.