Dry January: Try these 3 recipes to jazz up your alcohol-free drinks

No need to worry you will just be drinking water if you are ditching alcohol. Try these tasty fruity beverages that pack an impressive amount of zing. Who knows, maybe you'll manage another month. Berlin (dpa) – Simply mixing three ingredients is not enough to create a truly refined non-alcoholic drink. At the Michelin-starred restaurant Blaue Burg in Pfronten, in Germany's Allgäu region, chef Simon Schlachter and bar manager Martin Masch treat alcohol-free beverages with the same care as fine-dining dishes. For their menus, the duo develops complex, layered drinks that rely on shrubs, infusions, syrups and reductions. The recipes require patience and preparation, but reward the effort with depth and balance. Here are three to try: Mango and Fennel Shrub First, mix the following ingredients well in a preserving jar for the mango-fennel-honey shrub: 200 g mango juice 50 g fresh fennel, thinly sliced 100 ml apple cider vinegar 100 g honey 1 pinch of salt Preparation: Cover and leave to infuse in the refrigerator for 48 hours. Strain through a fine sieve and chill. Next, prepare the saline solution: 20 g salt 80 g water Heat gently in a small pan while stirring until the salt dissolves. Cool and transfer to a clean bottle. The following step is making the fennel and star anise infusion: 10 g fennel seeds 1 g star anise 400 ml mango–fennel–honey shrub 3 g saline solution Lightly toast fennel seeds and star anise in a dry pan. Add the shrub and saline solution and bring briefly to a boil. Remove from heat, cover and let infuse for 10 minutes. Pour through a fine sieve and chill. To serve: Pour 45 ml into a chilled glass and serve as a shot, without ice. Apple Crumble Pie First, make your own almond syrup: 50 g blanched almonds, chopped 100 ml water 75 g sugar 1 pinch of salt 1 drop bitter almond flavouring Toast almonds until golden. Add sugar and water, bring to a boil, cover and steep for 10 minutes. Add salt and bitter almond flavouring. Strain through a sieve, pour into a sterilized bottle and store in a cool place. The almond syrup is then part of an apple and spice decoction – with the following ingredients: 30 ml almond syrup 900 ml apple juice 6 cloves 3 g cinnamon 30 g sultanas 1 star anise 45 ml maple syrup ¾ vanilla pod, scraped 50 ml lime juice Bring all ingredients to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered for 30 minutes. Strain and serve hot or cold. Now, make the vanilla foam for the topping: 50 ml cream ¼ vanilla pod, scraped 15 ml almond syrup Place all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until frothy. Caution: Do not whisk too hard! Serve the drink in a cocktail bowl or a bulbous wine glass without ice. Cold: Add ice to a glass, pour 180 ml of cold decoction, top with vanilla foam and garnish with apple chips and biscuit crumble. Warm: Pour 200 ml into a heatproof glass, add foam and garnish with a cinnamon stick or apple chip. Blood Orange, Almond and Tonka Bean First, make a blood orange and raspberry reduction: 500 ml blood orange juice 50 g raspberries 15 ml lime juice 40 ml mandarin juice ½ tonka bean, grated Preparation: Simmer over medium heat until reduced by half (about 300 ml). Strain and cool. Now make the roasted almond syrup: 50 g roasted almonds, chopped 50 g sugar 100 ml water 1 pinch of salt 1 drop bitter almond flavouring Preparation: Lightly toast the almonds in a pan without fat, add sugar and caramelize slowly. Deglaze with water, stir until dissolved, add salt and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add flavouring, strain and cool. Shortcut: You can also use store-bought almond syrup. Place the following ingredients in a shaker with ice and shake vigorously for 15 seconds: 35 ml blood orange–raspberry reduction 30 ml fresh blood orange juice 25 ml roasted almond syrup 10 ml lemon juice 1 egg white Strain into a chilled cocktail bowl or large wine glass and serve without ice. The following information is not intended for publication dpa/tmn ueh xlt cwg amc xxde mls arw

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