Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

This ginger beer is from Nigel Slater's Classic Ginger Beer recipe which appeared in The Observer. I didn't think you could make fizzy drinks from scratch at home, and was pleasantly surprised to see the bubbles. It happened a couple of days after it was brewed and the source of the effervescence is yeast, an ingredient I never thought would be used in making ginger beer.

What I didn't reckon on was the alcoholic content in this homemade brew!

But of course! I make bread, I should have realised that yeast reacts with sugar and creates carbon dioxide and alcohol. No wonder I felt woozy after gulping down a whole glass, expecting it to be just like any other refreshing fruitade.

It's not potently alcoholic, but for someone who hardly imbibes, it went straight to my head.

In Toast, Nigel Slater talks about waiting for the man who sells pop and that his second favourite drink is cream soda. I can't remember if he mentions ginger beer in his memoir, but if cream soda is like drinking a sponge cake, as he says, this ginger beer is like drinking Asia ­­– ginger, lemongrass, cloves...

This recipe does not involve toil and trouble or burning fires under cauldrons: Place lemons, fresh ginger, cloves, cream of tartar and sugar in a large bowl; pour in boiling water. Wait till the mixture cools down enough to add the dried yeast. Leave overnight before straining and bottling. Allow to mature for two or three days.

Mr Slater suggests the option of adding lemongrass, which I did. That gave it an extra level of tang. He didn't say to squeeze the lemons before straining, but I did that too. The result was a lemony flavour together with the ginger and lemongrass. I won't do that next time ­­– the taste of ginger should dominate.

One addition that I think is necessary is salt. Pour yourself a glass of ginger beer and add a pinch of salt to it ­­– it's subtle but I think you will be able to appreciate the difference in taste. There are people who like to add a pinch of salt to their Coke, swearing that this makes the drink fizzier. I just think salt, even a small amount, makes anything taste good. My mother doesn't call me Salty Mama for nothing.

The title of this post is attributed to Betsy Canas Garmon, who writes at wildthymecreative.com. (That there's a "thyme" in her site name is purely coincidental. We're not related.)

Above is a picture of the mug my morning coffee is made in. It holds 400ml - 14oz for those of you who don't use the metric system. It's quite a big mug but that's all the coffee I usually have in one day. (Despite being in the press, I don't have copious amounts of joe at work like some of the other journalists.)

Here's how I make mine: 1 heaped teaspoon of Indocafe instant coffee - no contemptuous snorts from you connoisseurs, now - and the same amount of demerara sugar topped with just-boiled water to about an inch from the brim of the mug, which is then filled with full-cream milk. Very simple, but I can't do without it first thing in the morning.

On weekends, I might make a latte using this simple method with brewed coffee. I've never been able to form that nice pattern on top of the foam though; mine always comes out wonky, if it works at all. Never mind. I keep a bottle of Kahlua on the top shelf of my kitchen cabinet and that saves the day!

Banana mochaccino

After using one banana for the brownies that I posted about in the previous blog, there was still one more in the fridge, all black and smelling faintly alcoholic.

Feeling I would need a pick-me-up at around 11am since I was going to deal with some rather unstimulating work that morning, I made myself a banana latte that my stainless steel water bottle would keep cold for a few hours. I should have added an ice cube or two though because I didn't drink it until after lunch and it was no longer as frosty.

BANANA MOCHACCINO 
1 serving

1 ripe banana
½ cup strong black coffee
¼ cup milk
1 tbsp cocoa powder
Sugar to taste
Ground cinnamon, to garnish

• Blend all the ingredients, pour out and dust with cinnamon. Shake container before drinking.

Note: When not at work ­­– or if you absolutely must ­­– splash in some Kahlúa!

PRINTABLE RECIPE