No one minds that there are cocktails on a blog called The Mom 100, right? Without sliding into the kids=alcohol jokes, I think it’s safe to say that most of us with kids surely do enjoy a glass of wine or a cocktail or a beer as much as the next child-free person. Possibly even a little earlier in the day (oh, see, I did dip down into kids-alcohol territory. Mea culpa).

This Blood Orange Pomegranate Screwdriver is the perfect cocktail recipe during the winter when both fruits are in season. Serve it for the holidays or at any party, and the drink will be an instant crowd-pleaser. It’s perfect to pair with Wild Rice Salad with Cranberries, Oven Baked Beef Brisket, or Parmesan-Garlic Mushroom Chicken.

Pomegranate juice is optional in this Blood Orange Pomegranate Screwdriver. It deepens the color and adds a layer of sweet and tart flavor.

When I was a coming-of-age drinker, a Screwdriver was one of the first drinks one encountered. They were easy to make (vodka and OJ), they didn’t require any unusual fancy or costly mixers, and if you had one bottle of hard liquor in your apartment, it was probably vodka.

A good friend of mine still drinks her version of Screwdrivers and not much else, though the OJ is more of a splash…almost a garnish. More on that in a bit. It’s still a very solid drink.

But say it’s a little more of a special occasion, and you’re getting all dressed up, and you want your Screwdriver to get all dressed up, too. This is what I was thinking when I was unpacking some beautiful blood oranges sent over to me by my pal Robert at Melissa’s Produce, who keeps me stocked with those more unusual produce items. Once you cut open a blood orange, you know that you are not going to want to hide this gorgeous color by mixing it into a stew or a dip or something.

This is not a strong screwdriver at all – just add more vodka if that’s what a cocktail means to you. Some people like to go for a 1:1 ratio. My friend likes to pretty much reverse the proportions of juice to vodka in this recipe. As a single mom of two teenage boys, I think she can do whatever she wants.

See, I devolved into the boozy parent jokes again. I’m clearly incorrigible.

Ingredients

• Vodka – Try using mandarin or orange vodka.
• Blood orange juice – Use fresh-squeezed blood orange juice, and save an orange for cutting into a garnish. See the tip below.
• Pomegranate juice – Optional, but if you are looking for the reddest, sweetest, and tangiest cocktail, I wouldn’t skip it. It’s easy to find in bottles at the store, or you can make your own juice from fresh pomegranates.
• St. Germain liqueur – Optional, but this elderflower liqueur will add a very delicate floral flavor to the cocktail.
• Rosemary, mint, or basil – Fresh herb sprigs always make a nice garnish.

How to Make Blood Orange Pomegranate Screwdrivers

1. Combine the ingredients: In a glass with ice, combine the vodka and orange juice and stir. Top it off with the pomegranate juice and St. Germaine liqueur if using. Give the drink a stir.
2. Finish and enjoy: Garnish with a sprig of herbs. Serve cold.

Variations

There are four things that are optional, and if you skipped all of them, you would still have a wonderful drink:

• One is the pomegranate juice. It will deepen the color, as you can see in the photos, and add another layer of sweet but a tiny bit of tart flavor.
• The other is St. Germaine liqueur. It’s an elderflower liqueur that’s been very popular for a long time with the cocktail crowd because of its bright, slightly haunting floral flavor. A little splash is all it takes to add sophistication and intrigue to all kinds of drinks. Cocktail fans and professional mixologists rely on it often.
• Thirdly, if you want, you can make ice cubes from additional pomegranate juice or blood orange juice. It would add more sheer gorgeousness to this drink, but as you can see, this drink is not exactly wanting in that department.
• A sprig of fresh herbs adds prettiness and a slight herby flavor. It would add much more if you let it steep in the vodka or muddled it into the drink and then strained it through a cocktail shaker. Do that if you like the idea of a really herbaceous note in your drink.
• For a nonalcoholic option, try this with an elderflower cordial or simple syrup, NA botanical spirit, or a lavender soda. You can also simply take out the vodka and add tonic water or club soda.

Tips

One important thing — the orange juice has to be freshly squeezed. This isn’t a real question most of the time since blood orange juice is pretty hard to come by in all but the most upscale food retail places.

And you’ll probably want to check out the gorgeous pulp for yourself. It’s a little bit of a thrill when you cut into a blood orange and see the brilliant, deep reddish orange-pink inside. Especially since the outside is allowing the orange to masquerade as just another juice orange, ho-hum, la de da.

What to Serve with Blood Orange Pomegranate Screwdrivers

Garlic Oregano Monkey Bread

Warm Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Mustard Vinaigrette

Corn Pudding

More Cold-Weather Cocktail Recipes

• Orange Champagne Mule
• Mulled Cider
• Red Pomegranate Pitcher Cocktail for the Holidays
• Old-Fashioned
• Manhattan Cocktail