We’ve entered the most wonderful time of the year, or at least so they say. In some ways it totally is IMO. I mean, I can put up as many lights as I want in my house without it drawing comparisons to a college dorm room, I’m finally justified in the number of soft fluffy blankets I own, and everyday clothes covered in sparkles or sequins are totally acceptable.

It’s also the time of year when we can find all kinds of excuses to party, in the name of being “festive.” Time to bake some cookies? PARTY. Decorating the tree? BIGGER PARTY. Kid wants to make a gingerbread house? Yup, we party. And that’s not even counting the actual holidays themselves, of which there are several.

Unfortunately, every wonderful aspect of the holidays goes along with a really stressful one. Gift shopping, travel, dealing with family we may or may not want to deal with, the number of times we’ll all hear that Paul McCartney song and swear our ears are bleeding…

For a lot of us, one aspect of the holidays that falls squarely into that category is the copious number of occasions for indulging in delicious foods and beverages. Starting with Thanksgiving (which really isn’t just one epic meal, it’s actually at least four with all the leftovers) we’re launched into the season of cookies, pies, hot chocolate, and I don’t even want to disclose how much oil I fried my latkes in. Not to mention the alcoholic beverages of choice that we use to both celebrate and, well, cope.

All of this gustatory indulgence is absolutely amazing, but can also trigger a lot of stress, guilt, concern, and anxiety. Sigh.

As long as the indulgence is reasonable and controlled. Guilt is not an emotion that we should ever associate with food or responsibly enjoying some adult beverages.

That being said, there are lots of valid health- and lifestyle-related reasons why some of us might want to make sure we’re still being careful with our caloric intake, even during the holiday season. To those of you, I bring tidings of joy: you can still enjoy festive AND tasty cocktails without the concerning calories.

At the risk of sounding cliche, it really just comes down to making the right choices. Problem is, “making good choices” when it comes to food and alcohol has become synonymous with “choosing the thing that is boring and/or doesn’t taste good instead of the yummy thing I really want.” This is the miracle that 21Seeds tequila brings to the holiday. With this one magical ingredient, you can have an array of incredible, low-calorie, and totally holiday-worthy cocktails at your fingertips.

In other words, you really can have your cocktail and drink it too!

Take a look at a few of our festive holiday favorite recipes and get ready for some serious indulgence. Watch out, Santa might get jealous.