Here's a true confession from a coffee elitist. I like winter
because ... egg nog lattes! For everyone that thinks I ONLY
drink macchiatos and double short cappuccinos, I make my
Christmas confession. Eggnog lattes. Let's look at some drink
creations that your guests can enjoy as much as my eggnog
lattes.
The first thing to remember is to start with a drink idea,
then have fun with the name and presentation of the drink.
You can do it! For instance, start with some flavor elements
in your favorite traditional holiday foods- mixed drinks,
eggnogs, puddings, pumpkin and pecan pies, special cookies
and pound cakes. Take a combination of two of them in making
a drink. Go to the next level with your original name for
the drink, special cup or mug to serve it in and garnish
to add the finishing touch.
How many ways
can you dress it up? Plenty. Remember that you have a wide
variety of hot chocolate sweetness to start with- from very
sweet Hersheys© through the
traditional Swiss chocolates from Boyd's© to Ghirardelli's© to
the semisweet Guitard's©.
The holiday season is license to spice up hot chocolate
with cinnamon (either ground or with syrup), orange syrup
or any holiday flavor. As a basic rule of thumb, use ½ the
amount of the accent flavor as the chocolate. So, if you
are doing an 8 oz orange mocha, start with 1 oz of chocolate
and ½ oz of orange syrup. All flavors are different,
so vary the ratios based on the strength of the syrups. A
third flavor can add an interesting flavor note. Try adding
it just to the point where the flavor appears. Cinnamon,
Peppermint, and Hazelnut can all be great thirds.
A super cider can be made with unfiltered
apple juice with a dash of nutmeg, allspice and a cinnamon
stick. We made this 10 years ago for Seattle mayor Norm Rice's
staff holiday party. The mayor came back twice for refills!
A few favorites are Almond Roca Lattes
(Almond Roca syrup, chocolate whipped cream with curled chocolate,
Candy Cane (peppermint syrup, whipped cream with small candy
cane) Lattes, Apple Pie Lattes (apple and cinnamon syrup,
topped with whipped cream and crushed biscotti).
A high impact holiday topping and
very simple is flavored whipped cream. My associate Bob Cox
was teaching people how to do this 10 years ago. Take your
ISI type whipped cream dispenser, pour in an ounce of syrup-
strawberry, cinnamon, orange, chocolate or your choice- add
food coloring along with the whipping cream, and presto!
You have your custom holiday flavored topping for drinks
and desserts.
A simple shaving of chocolate on top can be everything a
drink needs. Shaking on flavored sprinkles (the kind used
on lattes and mochas) vanilla, chocolate and brown sugar,
cinnamon and brown sugar may be the last touch. A dusting
of nutmeg is also a cold weather favorite. The advent of
the caramel macchiatos, drizzled with a cross hatch of caramel
sauce is a reminder of how great a drink can look as it reminds
us of an apple pie. Thick chocolate, white chocolate and
caramel sauces that stand on top of whipped cream.
Plan for the season- come up with a couple drinks that your
staff can get excited about and promote them! If you have
fun with them, your guests surely will. |
