Rob Masters

 A classic cocktail from the middle of last century, this translates rather well to the alcohol-free world. Ingredients: 2 shots Lyres American Malt 1 shot Lyres Orange Sec 1/2 shot Lyres Aperitif Rosso 1/2 shot lemon juice Optional: 1/2 shot simple syrup Garnish: Cherry Method: Fill a large tumbler with crushed ice. Put all ingredients in a shaker with ice and shake well. Pour into tumbler, and add cherry. This is sharp, smooth, and dry all at once. The malt flavours dominate, but the citrus and herbal notes still come through.  Enjoy!

A classic of Italian culture is the Campari & Gin - but this is not the better known Negroni, which adds Vermouth. I do not drink - but I also welcome the chance to drink something not sweet. Enter  Lyres Spirits . They produce a wide variety of what can only be called non-alcoholic spirits. As much as a contradiction as that may sound, they have created a wide variety of drinks that mimic classic spirits. So, here's my take on an Italian classic: 15ml Aperitif Rossi 30ml Dry London Spirit Splash of soda 1 cherry to garnish (or a slice of capsicum, or an olive) Shake or stir the not-spirits, pour into an old-fashioned tumbler with a little ice, and add soda and garnish. The end result is dry and fragrant, with a hint of bitter, and a warm after-glow. All of this makes for a drink that is at once soothing and inspiring. Just the ticket to end off a hard day's server-wrangling, or to start off a new blog series.

Ingredients for 6 serves 2 cups shortgrain rice (Arborio, Short-grain white, or Paella rice) 4 cups chicken stock (warm) .1g saffron threads in 1/4 cup boiled water 1 chorizo sausage (sliced) 200g chicken (diced) 3-4 cloves garlic (crushed) Small handful of runner beans, string beans, or similar, sliced 1/4 cup capsicum (diced) 1/2 tsp Paprika 1 tsp olive oil Pepper All measurements are metric (250ml cup). Method Optionally fry the chorizo beforehand. This is not required, but does improve the flavour. Put the rice in the bottom of the cooking tray, and top with diced vegetables, chroizo slices, and chicken. Sprinkle with paprika, olive oil, and pepper. Add saffron and stock. Place in Fusion in full sun for 1 hour, and check. Serves 6 Notes This skips pre-frying the rice, as  it is not really an option with the Fusion. Mixed seafood could be added to this, or substituted for the chicken and chorizo.