The Original SkinnyTini – A True Story

You have have heard of the term “SkinnyTini” but you may not know that I actually filed for and owned the original trademark for that term. And this is the true backstory of how the The Original SkinnyTini came to be and why I get to call myself the original Skinny Mixologist!

I originally wrote this this post for a fellow healthy blogger, Kim at LivLifeToo. She happens to also live in San Diego and she actually found me through Twitter and one of my 30-Day Challenges. What luck we found each other because we share many common interests and have enjoyed swapping posts.

Because this story is relevant to how I got where I am today, it really makes sense to share this story here as well. Enjoy the story of how the Original SkinnyTini came to fruition — this is way before Skinny Girl was on the shelves. 

The Original SkinnyTini adventure begins on a beach…

I made my very first recipe ever on the beach in Antigua in the winter of 2006. Well, not physically on the beach, but you get the picture. It was actually the winter body, on the beach that inspired the skinny cocktail concept! If you flash back 7 years, you may recall a time when there was no such thing.

I had head out on a voyage for some fun in the sun to ring in the New Year with a girlfriend on the remote south side of the Antigua. I was coming off a few months of too much fun. Because it was seasonally chilly at home, I hadn’t quite noticed how alcohol residue had collected on my tummy, hips and thighs.

The Winter Vacation Body Dilemma

But strip that tan-less, chubby body down into a bikini and put in on the beach and the dilemma was all too clear. But we were on vacation! Not a time to start a diet. So I vowed to find a compromise, we would only drink our sun-kissed cocktails with zero calorie mixers. As I read nutrition labels on the local juices and of course sodas, I realized we could easily cut our calories in half!

Simple Solution: Cut the Sugar to Cut the Calories

But it was 2006, and we were on the remote side of the island, where there wasn’t much to offer by way of zero calorie mixers beyond soda water or diet coke – which is not very clever or all that interesting.

We had just traveled clear across the country and then some, and I noticed in my toiletry bag a bottle of pink grapefruit Airborne. I checked the nutrition label and what luck! Not only could we color our cocktails with something interesting and boost our health, it had only 5 calories per tablet! Viola, the original SkinnyTini, the Caribbean Killer was born!

This is a true story!

So when I got home, in early 2007 I got a little obsessed with finding fun, creative zero or ultra low calorie mixers and created concoctions that were literally “All the Fun for Half the Calories.” After a year of playing mixologist in my kitchen, my friends and coworkers encouraged me to “write a book,” I did.

And to my surprise, Wiley bought it and published it! In the spring on 2009. “SkinnyTinis: All the Fun for Half the Calories” was on the bookshelves. And will always exist as the original low calorie cocktail book. Making me the original SkinnyTini mixologist. I mean, I wrote the book on it!

Now, back to the original skinnytini recipe! If you want to get a glimpse into that winter vacation on the remote side of Antigua, try mixing this one up at home! Or, anytime you find yourself with rum, a teeny bit of fruit juice and an Airborne tablet.

Caribbean Killer SkinnyTini

• 2 oz White Rum
• 1 ½ oz Light Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice
• 1 ½ oz Light Orange Juice
• ½ tablet Pink Grapefruit Airborne

Directions: Add the rum and juices to a cocktail shaker with ice, shake and pour into a 5-oz martini glass. Drop in the Airborne tablet and serve while it is dissolving into a fun fizz. And don’t be alarmed if it takes a while, that’s just how it goes.

Calories: 147 per 5 oz martini.

Cheers!

*This was originally posted on Eat. Drink & be Skinny*