A Few Tips for Mixing Holiday Drinks

The holidays are here, and everybody wants to come to your house. I'll show you how to be ready to make a great variety of fun and festive holiday drinks to serve to your guests.

Here are a few tips to help you prepare your home bar and make yourself into a spectacular, bartender if the opening calls for it. This is what you need to have on hand to make those spectacular, holiday drinks.

12 OUNCES EQUALS HOW MANY CUPS

Remember, mixing drinks isn't hard to do. If you can consequent a recipe, you can mix a drink.

Not all of us have a home bar installed in our houses. So, if the list below appears daunting because you have a space issue, just keep these items (the ones that don't need refrigeration!) in a plastic box with a lid and store in a closet or garage until you need to pull them out for your holiday party.

Handy Vessels and Tools

- Jigger portion - with half and quarter ounces clearly marked

- Jazzy chrome cocktail shaker

- Measuring spoons

- Glass stirring rod or long bar spoons

- Bar strainer

- Can opener

- Bottle opener

- Corkscrew

- Small sharp knife

- Mortar and pestle or wooden muddler

- Ice bucket with tongs

- Lemon/lime squeezer

- galvanic blender

- Small bar towels

Useful Glassware

- 3-4 oz. Long-stemmed cocktail glasses

- 8-12 oz. Highball or Collins glasses

- 6 oz. Champagne flutes

- 4 oz. Old-fashioned glasses

- 1 oz. Pony or pousse cafe glasses

- Punch cups and a punch bowl

Fruit Garnishes

- Maraschino cherries both red and green

- Olives

- Lemons

- Limes

- Oranges

Seasonings

- Salt and Pepper

- Worcestershire sauce

- Tabasco or other hot sauce

- Sweet flavorings

- Grenadine

- Maraschino liqueur

Even if you are already a specialist bartender, there are all the time a few bartender tips to keep handy - particularly when the holidays arrive.

For instance, do you know how to make one of the main ingredients of quite a few mixed drinks? It's called uncomplicated syrup, and like the name implies, it's very uncomplicated to make ahead of time.

Simply, dissolve 1 pound of granulated sugar in 8 ounces of warm water. Stirring constantly, add an additional 8 ounces of water until the sugar is fully dissolved. Then, store the syrup in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and use when called for. How easy is that? I guess that's why it's called uncomplicated syrup!

With the holidays all the time seemingly nearby the corner, here are a few more items you might want to have handy - especially for those specialty drinks:

- Peppermint candy or candy canes

- A block of bittersweet chocolate for grating

- Colored sugar for rimming glasses.

And here are some additional tips for bartenders that you might find useful:

- Serve cocktails icy cold. If possible, store your tool in the freezer for a few hours before using.

- Have lots of cracked ice on hand. You must discard the ice in the cocktail shaker once you've mixed the drink. And all the time use fresh ice if the cocktail is "on the rocks."

- It's not a time-saver, but drinks seem to taste better when mixed individually - especially drinks like martinis and whatever with carbonation in the mix. Use a clean, chilled glass for each cocktail - even for refills.

- Be sure you contain non-alcoholic choices when serving drinks and all the time encourage your guests to drink responsibly.

Enjoy the holidays!

A Few Tips for Mixing Holiday Drinks

12 OUNCES EQUALS HOW MANY CUPS

Abdominal Fat Loss Tip - No Soft Drinks?

Let's face it, soft drinks are nutritionally useless. Let's review some the basic ingredients of soft drinks. 1. Refined Sugar. Did you know that soft drinks are the number one source of added sugar in the American diet? Amazingly, a 12 typical ounce can of cola may have up to 9 teaspoons of sugar in it. Let me ask you this, if you drink iced tea or coffee, do you put 9 teaspoons of sugar in it? People just do not realize the amount of empty calories they are getting in soft drinks. If you drink one typical 12 ounce can of cola a day, you will gain approximately 10 POUNDS in one year. Research shows that middle aged women and men have a 31% greater likelihood of becoming obese from drinking one can of soft drink a day. You combine that with a sedentary lifestyle and that is a recipe for weight gain. So now you see if you drank 2-3 soft drinks a day it would be difficult to have enough abdominal fat loss to have a bikini body.

2. Caffeine. Caffeine is an artificial stimulant. Your body is set up to use the least amount of energy. For example, if you are in a warm room on a cold winters day, and you suddenly go outside where it is freezing cold. In a short amount of time you may notice that you have the urge to urinate. That is a normal response from your body. You see, your body would rather eliminate fluid then have to expend energy trying to heat it up. The problem with caffeine is that it is an energy substitute. Instead of your body using its own resources for energy, like fat, your body uses caffeine first. If you drink a cola right before you perform any home exercises you will not get the benefit that you would if you just drank water. Do your body a favor and drink more water.

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3. High amounts of phosphorus and phosphoric acid. This high amount of phosphorus can throw off the body's calcium-phosphorus ratio causing the body to take calcium out of your bones to balance the ratio, which could cause osteoporosis. The acidity of cola is about the same as vinegar and it was found that when human teeth were put into cola they would soften and start to dissolve in a short amount of time.

Abdominal Fat Loss Tip - No Soft Drinks?

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Coffee, Soda, Triple Diamond Energy Drinks Or Smoothies - Getting Your Daily Energy Boost

Most people can't make it through the day without a little help from a caffeine boost. If you're looking for the best pick-me-up, consider a cup of coffee, a soda, a triple diamond energy drink, or an all-natural smoothie. Any of these drinks can give a quick fix, but which one is right for you? Here is a guide to the most commonly used drinks for an energy boost.

Coffee

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Coffee is probably the best known energy drink. It's easy to find almost anywhere you go and has long been used to get going in the morning. You can get your coffee boost from regular drip coffee, espresso or an espresso based drink like a latte or cappuccino. Depending on how the coffee was made, it can have anywhere from 65 to 175 milligrams of caffeine. Drip coffee typically has the most, while instant coffee has the least amount of caffeine. Two ounces of espresso usually has around 100 milligrams of caffeine in it so a large latte won't necessarily have more caffeine than the same size cup of drip coffee.

Soda

Soda is a go-to energy boost for many people. The amount of caffeine in a can of soda varies, depending on the brand. Brands like Mountain Dew have the most, at 55 milligrams per 12 ounces. Diet Coke has around 45 milligrams while Pepsi, Diet Pepsi and Coke have around 35 milligrams. Brands like Sprite, 7 Up and Sierra Mist all have 0 milligrams, so enjoy them if you'd like, but don't depend on them to give you an energy boost like the caffeinated sodas.

Triple Diamond Energy Drinks

These energy drinks are chock full of caffeine and other ingredients to help you stay awake and alert. Triple diamond energy drinks have been specially created to give you an energy boost. These triple diamond energy drinks can have anywhere from 30-300 milligrams in a serving so do a little label reading if you need a big energy jolt. You'll want to take caution with excessive amount of caffeine as many people have reported shakes and severe crashes afterwards.

Smoothies

If you're looking for a more natural way to boost your energy levels, consider a smoothie. These drinks can contain ingredients like bananas, yogurt, honey or carrots and less commonly found ones such as bee pollen powder or ginseng extract. If you're buying them ready made, many local smoothie shops also have a list of supplements to help boost energy, kick start weight loss or improve brain function. The effectiveness of these supplements hasn't been entirely proven and make sure to consult your doctor if you make them a habit.

The need for an energy boost is a normal, everyday occurrence in many people's lives. Whether you choose to get your jolt from coffee, soda, triple diamond energy drinks or natural smoothies, there's something out there for you.

Coffee, Soda, Triple Diamond Energy Drinks Or Smoothies - Getting Your Daily Energy Boost

12 OUNCES EQUALS