Imaginative Uses Of Flavoured Syrups In Almost Every Recipe

Cocktail recipes require simple flavoured syrups that add to the taste and flavour of your cocktail. You can add your own personal flair to beverages with creative use of syrups.

When you use flavoured syrups for cocktails or coffee and other beverages, make sure you use only the finest quality syrups with carefully chosen ingredients. There are common as well as exotic flavours to choose from for flavouring your drinks.

Caramel flavour is best used with a latte or hot chocolate drink. The light buttery flavour of toasted sugar can have a terrific effect on the olfactory system. Hazelnut is popular and commonly used flavouring syrup. The flavour of roasted hazelnuts is irresistible. When added to a latte, the effect can be truly sensational.

Macadamia offers a creamy flavour when roasted. It can be a great comfort food when added to your cup of coffee. Macadamia is an all time favourite of classic coffee lovers. Irish cream needs no introduction to those who love their coffee made in exotic style and flavour. The syrup offers a hint of whisky and cream flavour and can transform your coffee dramatically when used along with a shot of espresso, milk and cooling with a few cubes of ice. If you like it creamy, head straight to the blender.

Vanilla has a divine flavour and is the classical favourite of all generations. Vanilla flavoured syrup is made from extracts of those lovely looking vanilla beans. Vanilla and coffee? If you have not tried this brilliant combo, you will never know what you are missing.

Vanilla flavour is also an integral part of those delightful and smooth white chocolates. The white chocolate syrup has a clear presence but don't let that deceive you. The flavour is something that will keep lingering on your palate and thoughts long after the drinks are over.

Simple flavoured syrups used in imaginative combinations can bring any staid cocktail or drinks to life. There is no end to the permutations and combinations you can try with flavoured syrups. You can use the various flavours to spruce up your cocktails, coffee and drinks to make your beverages look and taste different and interesting.

Flavoured syrups can also put a twist on cool summer drinks. Syrups can also work wonderfully well for iced tea or your favourite summer drink. It can also be used to flavour some alcoholic beverages and cocktails. There are many recipes available online which can be used as a guide to help you know more about flavoured syrups.

Essential Reads for Men: 'The Food and Beer Cook Book' by Richard Fox

With the exception of such staples as curry, steak and ale pie or, god forbid, the doner kebab, beer and fine cuisine have tended to have a difficult relationship. Despite the arrival of microbrews and fruit beers, grain remains very much grape's poor relation, with few top restaurants boasting of their beer list.

Now, however, grain has found its champion in Maxim 'Beer Chef' Richard Fox. The Food and Beer Cook Book is an unashamedly unpretentious collection of recipes and informative titbits designed to convince us that beer deserves a place in every kitchen, above and beyond that of chef's lubricant.

Fox's love of beer emerges from the start, guiding us energetically through the various types, matching beers to meals and even giving a quick rundown on beer tasting. Throughout, it's clear that his recipes are as much about celebrating the beverage in all its forms as they are about the food itself.

As Fox himself says, 'cooking at home is more about the event...than about fancy food', and that's reflected in his choice of dishes. Many are established favourites such as the club sandwich, Welsh rarebit and eggs Benedict, while every recipe uses beer either for flavour or to simplify preparation.

Fox assumes that his reader will have all the culinary aptitude of the stereotypical male, keeping recipes simple to the point of brutality and focusing on ingredients and flavours rather than technique. The club sandwich is made with pigeon and caramelised onions -- 'top tasting, beer soaking, footie friendly fodder of the highest order' -- while canapés include mini Yorkshire puddings with venison and raspberry beer sauce, with a side order of idiot-proof instructions.

The Food and Beer Cook Book includes suggestions for both formal and informal occasions, ranging from a romantic dinner à deux to supplies for TV marathons. Ladies horrified by the idea of confronting one of Fox's creations at their next candlelit rendezvous can take comfort in dishes such as fruit salad with strawberry beer crème fraiche, and inside-out hot dogs with BBQ sauce look likely to keep plainer appetites topped up.

As you've probably guessed, this isn't a book for the aspiring Gordon Ramsay. For those more Can't Cook, Won't Cook than Masterchef, however, it may prove just the thing to remove that kitchen phobia. Cheers!

**The Food and Beer Cook Book is published by Sentinel Press**

Non Alcoholic Drink Recipes for a Baby Shower

In special occasions like weddings, birthdays and baby showers where you have invited your closest friends and relatives to come over and celebrate the moment with you, serving drinks is a basic rule. Since food and other treats are expected to be present, drinks should never be left out. And since it is a family occasion, non-alcoholic drinks are usually more appropriate.

Drinks are as important as the dishes you want to be served on special occasions such as a baby shower. Hence, it is vital to have at least a few non alcoholic drink recipes at hand for you to use for the event. Listed below are just some of the many options you may want to use for your baby shower:

Lime Rickey:
1 large lime juice
Sugar
Club soda

For this recipe, mix lime juice with a teaspoonful of sugar in a glass and stir well. Add at least two ice cubes and club soda then stir again. An optional garnish of lime slices will make the drink look attractive.

Pineapple Daisy:
8 parts pineapple juice
1 part grenadine
2 parts lemon juice

Mix the ingredients altogether. You can either stir it or shake it. After mixing, pour into the glass and add fresh pineapple and strawberries as decorations.

Spicy Coffee Cooler:
Cinnamon
1 cup heavy whipped cream
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Ground coffee
15 whole cloves
7 cups cold water

Mix the cloves, cinnamon and coffee with water and then brew. Add powdered sugar to the brewed mixture after straining. Fill half of the glass with crushed ice and then pour the brewed mixture. Add a touch of sweetened cream on the top.

Raspberry Mint Crush:
2 cups lime juice
1 cup red raspberries
2 cups sugar
A bunch of mint
2 cups boiling water

Mix the sugar into the water and let it chill. After a while, add crushed mint and lime juice into the mixture and let it chill again in the refrigerator for another 2 to 3 hours. Strain the mixture and pour it over a glass with cracked ice and garnish it with mint leaves.

Planters Punch:
3 quarts ginger ale
2 cups grenadine
2 cups lemon juice
2 cups orange juice
Sliced strawberries and pineapple
Mint leaves

Mix all the juices along with grenadine and let it chill for about 12 hours or overnight. Add ginger ale over the chilled mixture before serving. Garnish the drink with slices of strawberry and pineapple.

The recipes mentioned above can still be added with other ingredients to add more taste and flavoring. The secret also comes on how you present these drinks to your guests by way of the garnishes that you use. You should also know how to make further experiments on the drinks to be able to come up with a revised version of the drink recipes mentioned above. To do this, the testing phase should be done at least a few days before the exact day of the baby shower to allow certain adjustments if there are any.