Quick, look at the ingredients listed below and name that beverage.

Mystery Beverage

• Sugar, corn syrup solids, hydrogenated vegetable oil (may contain coconut, palm kernel, and/or soybean oil) modified milk ingredients, cocoa, cellulose gum, salt, dipotassium phosphate, silicon dioxide, artificial flavour, mono-and diglycerides, guar gum, sodium aluminum silicate

It’s a very popular winter drink, most people add hot water or milk to it. It originated in Mexico, but Spanish explorers brought it to Europe, where they kept this delicacy a secret for the next 100 years. It was the Europeans who added sugar to counteract the natural bitterness. They also removed the chilli pepper, replacing it with vanilla, cinnamon and other spices.

It was Hans Sloane, who in the 17th century added milk to the mixture and thereby introducing milk chocolate to Europe. Due to the expense, it was considered a drink for the elite. (Source Wickepedia.org)
Give up? It’s hot chocolate, or at least Nestle Carnation’s powder form of hot chocolate . Somehow I don’t think this is what the Europeans were drinking. When we were kids, my mom used to make homemade chocolate syrup using Fry’s Cocoa. Now I am not comparing the two, but if you are looking to make a real cup of cocoa from scratch, you may want to whip up a batch of the homemade stuff and keep it on hand in the fridge. It also tastes great drizzled over vanilla ice cream.

Fry’s Cocoa Chocolate Sauce

Ingredients (makes 10 servings)

• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup Fry’s Cocoa
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 tsp vanilla

Combine sugar and cocoa in a small sauce pan. Stir in water. Cook on medium heat until it comes to a boil. Reduce heat and boil gently for five minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Cool then store in the refrigerator. It will last up to one month. For hot chocolate, pour a couple of table spoons into warm milk and top with whip cream or marshmallows. For adults, add Bailey’s or Kahlua.

Cheers,

Julie

Every Christmas season I say the same thing, “I will not drink too much at our Christmas party.” Tis the season to make merry, and EggNog, like fruit, cake is right up there on my list of things to be avoided at all costs. But every year, at our annual Christmas bash, I join the long queue of guests waiting for a glass of eggnog. Over the course of the evening, I will stand in this line many times. Not because I like eggnog, I actually don’t. But calling this eggnog is really an injustice. It’s no ordinary concoction. This rich, creamy, velvety drink with the subtlest hints of cinnamon and nutmeg is really an elixir, inspired for the greater good. Much discussion takes place in the line-up about the substance’s ingredients, but the host keeps mum, refusing to give away any secrets regarding his much loved and coveted recipe.

Today, out of the blue, the recipe has landed on my desk; proving once again that Santa Clause really does exist. I am so thrilled to be able to share this Christmas cheer with you. I sincerely hope you enjoy it as much as I do. But be forewarned, it has the same effect on a person as electric jello. You will not know what hit you until it’s too late - and then it’s too late. So exercise extreme caution. DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE. I have already made my travel arrangements for this year’s party, because I know, despite my best efforts, I will be standing in that queue faster than you can say, “Here comes Santa Clause,” waiting to for my cup of merriment.

This would make a great drink to make at the cottage to help ring in the new year, along with your creamy rich cheese fondue. Talk about decadent.

Absolutely Fabulous EggNog

In a large punch bowl combine:

• 4 litres of the best store bought eggnog you can find
• 1 quart of French vanilla ice cream (melted)
• 4 oz 151 Rum
• 4 oz dark rum
• 4 oz brandy
• 2 oz Bailey’s
• 2 oz Kahula
• Advil Headache tablets (reserve for the next day)

Stir well and top with a sprinkle of nutmeg and cinnamon.

Cheers,

Julie

What is the best tasting beer? Given that it’s “Beer Week” at CottageDaily.com, it’s only natural that we would set out to try and answer this question. In retrospect it might have been easier to prove God’s existence.

When it comes to beer, it seems we all have an opinion on what constitutes a great tasting beer.

For example, the overall winner of the 2006 Canadian Brewing Awards is likely a brewery you have never even heard of, Magnotta Brewery, who won five of the six categories they entered.

At the International Beer Championships held earlier this year in Barrie Ontario, the gold medal winners were:

• Castle - European Amber Lager - South African Breweries
• King Pilsner - Pilsner - King Brewery
• Lug Tread Lagered Ale - Light Hybrid - Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company
• Blanche de Chambly - Unibroue
• County Ale -English Brown Ale - Wellington Brewery
• Tankhouse Ale - Pale Ale - Mill Street Brewery

Again, no familiar names on this list not even Molson’s Coors Lite, which is the number one selling beer in Canada.

After visiting a number of forums like Yahoo.ca, I found the majority of respondents there liked the following:

• Alexander Keiths
• Moosehead
• Kronenberg 1664 - French beer
• Rickards Red
• Heineken
• Sleeman’s Honey Brown

Women (myself included) seemed to prefer Corono - with lime of course. Interestingly, there was just as much discussion about bad tasting beer, no offense to our American neighbors, as there was about good tasting beer.

There was also some concern about how cold beer should be when it is served. According to RenegadeX, any quality beer should be served at slightly-below room-temperature. If a beer is below optimum temperature, depending on the type of beer, anywhere from 6-15C, it will diminish the flavour. Cold kills.

I personally like my beer icy cold. I find it more refreshing.

So what is the best tasting beer? That’s easy - the one that’s in front of you.

Cheers,

Julie

U-Brew

There are two ways to make beer. The first, and arguably the easiest, involves going to a “u-brew” store where everything is provided. U-Brews were really popular in the mid-nineties, but few remain in operation today. Some of the reasons for their decline are due to high operation costs and strict government regulations.

For first time brewers, this is a good place to start. You simply call ahead to book your brew time, when you arrive, everything is setup and ready to go. You decide what kind of beer you want to make, and yes, they do carry popular brands like Canadian and Coors Lite. The staff will guide you with your selection and step you through the whole process.

The first phase takes about 90 minutes. The second phase (2 weeks later) is the bottling phase, and requires an additional 90 minutes. You will end up with approximately 135 - 140 bottles of beer. The average cost per bottle is $0.74 -$1.00.

Home Brew

The second way to make beer is definitely more complicated, and will require a lot more effort on your part. It can be broken down into three main events: brewing, fermentation and bottling
Getting Started

The brewing process requires the following equipment:

1. 20 qt. brew pot made of stainless steel or enamel-coated metal. Do not use aluminum or a chipped enamel pot - it will cause the beer to taste funny.
2. large stirring spoon (non wood)
3. tablespoon
4. glass measuring cup
5. 12 oz glass jar
6. primary fermentor (purchase from homebrew store)
7. airlock and stopper (homebrew store)
8. sanitizer (restaurant bleach)
9. stick on thermometer
10. plastic hose
11. bottling bucket
12. bottles
13. bottle brush
14. bottle capper (if glass bottles used)
15. small bowl
16. saucepan
17. rubber spatula
18. oven mitts

Next, you need to select your mix, this can be purchased at a homebrew store and will contain all the ingredients needed to brew a particular style of beer. The kit consists of malt extract, yeast, and hops.

Sterilize Everything

The first and most important step in the brewing process is to clean and sanitize everything.

The next step is to create the wort. Wort is the sweet, amber liquid extracted from malted barley that the yeast will later ferment into beer. The primary fermentation process takes about 5 days to complete.

The next phase involves bottling and secondary fermentation and takes 10 - 14 days. Every step along the way requires very careful preparation and handling so the beer does not become contaminated.

According to Dan Small, owner of Dan’s Homebrewing Supplies, bottling is definitely the drudgery of beer making. A lot of people use kegs instead of bottles. The upfront costs are higher, but it saves a lot of time and energy in long run.

Costs

Homebrewing equipment costs approx. $60, and the ingredients range from $20 - $30 depending on the beer. If you’re re -using glass bottles, a capper is required and costs $20. One kit will make 60 regular bottles, costing on average $0.40 a bottle. This excludes start-up costs. There is money to be saved by brewing your own beer, but it is a time consuming hobby.

Kegs

While the upfront costs to use kegs are higher, roughly $300 for set up including a CO2 tank, you will save a lot of time in the long run. One kit will produce 42 litres of beer which can be split into two kegs. You will need a beer fridge to store the keg, or you can purchase one from Kegs to Go, see Tuesday’s blog, No Ordinary Beer Fridge.

While beer sold in the store is definitely more expensive, it does free up my time to devote to more worthwhile activities, like drinking it, and enjoying it with my neighbors.

Tomorrow is Beer Can Chicken.

Cheers,

Julie

PS If you would like a step-by-step guide to brewing beer, visit these sites:

www.howtobrew.com and www.soyouwanna.com/site/syws/makebeer/makebeer.html