When making a cocktail, the shaker serves several functions. It mixes, aerates, and rapidly chills ingredients, and — as writer Chelsea Fagan pointed out on Twitter — there’s no need to limit the tool to an alcoholic happy hour.
i have to say that cocktail-shaking all kinds of beverages gives them such an edge. iced lattes, iced tea, lemonade, fruit water — break that cocktail shaker out outside of happy hour tbh!!
— Chelsea Fagan (@Chelsea_Fagan) January 15, 2019
Shaking any simple beverage you want super chilled and a little frothy is a delicious idea, but you can also use a shaker to modify — and improve — any drink, from juice to coffee.
Syrups are most commonly used to sweeten cocktails, but I urge you to think outside the bar cart here. Why wouldn’t you want to add this bright and spicy ginger syrup to lemonade, or homemade grenadine to tart cranberry juice?
The extra agitation from shaking — rather than stirring — means your beverage gets sweetened right down to the last sip. If your juice, tea, or lemonade is already plenty sweet, you can also toss in fresh mint leaves, Thai basil, or Makrut lime leaves to add fresh flavours without any extra sweetness.
Iced coffee, when combined with condensed milk — or even better, caramelised condensed milk or toasted cream — is a very nice treat.
Shaking ensures all that creamy goodness gets distributed throughout your cold coffee, rather than sinking to the bottom. To avail yourself of all of these potable pleasures, the process is simple: Just add everything to a shaker full of ice, shake, and strain into a glass (preferably filled with fresh ice).
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