Use a Cocktail Shaker to Make the Finest Soft Drinks
When preparing a cocktail, a shaker has several functions. It mixes, aerates, and quickly chills ingredients, and as writer Chelsea Fagan tweeted, there is no need to limit the tool to alcoholics’ happy hour.
It’s great to shake up any simple drink you want to chill or whisk a little, but you can also use a shaker to modify and enhance any drink, from juice to coffee.
Syrups are most commonly used to sweeten cocktails, but I encourage you to think about more than just the bar cart. Why not add this vibrant and spicy ginger syrup to lemonade or homemade grenadine to tart cranberry juice? The added excitement of shaking rather than stirring means your drink becomes sweetened right down to the last sip. If your juice, tea, or lemonade is already sweet enough, you can also add fresh mint leaves, Thai basil, or makroot lime leaves to add a fresh flavor without unnecessary sweetness. Iced coffee paired with condensed milk, or better yet, caramelized condensed milk or toast with cream is a very enjoyable treat, and shaking it ensures that all that creamy goodness spreads throughout the cold coffee rather than sinking to the bottom. To enjoy all of these drinking pleasures, the process is simple: just add everything to a shaker full of ice, shake and strain into a glass (preferably with fresh ice).