LCBO Food & Drink Holiday 2018

TREND SPOTT ING

Cool Beans Instead of pouring hot coffee over ice, java aficionados are starting their cold brew with cold water, which creates a smoother cup. If you have the pa- tience and foresight, the KitchenAid ($149.99, kitchenaid.ca) cold brew coffee maker slowly steeps grounds overnight for a big batch that can be poured from a convenient spout. If you can’t think that far ahead, the Cusinart ($169.99, thebay.com) can pump out a cup in as little as 25 minutes.

FOR: Health nuts and anyone on a plant- based diet.

FOR: Anyone who enjoys iced coffee.

The cold-pressed juice craze can now be enjoyed at home with the next generation of juicers. Instead of pulver- izing produce through a fast moving blade, slow (a.k.a. masticating) juicers crush, squeeze and strain. This process yields up to 10 percent more juice, and because there is no heat build-up, it won’t destroy any of the nutrients or enzymes. Yes, these juicers are slower than the traditional centrifugal juicer, but they’re also a lot quieter. Aicok (from $149.99, amazon.ca) makes a few popular models, and Breville just intro­ duced The Big Squeeze Slow Juicer ($599.99, thebay.com). NICE AND SLOW

Professional bakers and pastry chefs depend on the accuracy of scales for consistent breads and sweets. Now that baking books are increasingly listing measurements in both volumes and metric weights, Canadians are finally coming around to the precision of kitchen scales. Beyond baking, scales also come in hand for portioning meatballs, and evenly dividing dough and bat- ters. Both OXO (from $39, amazon.ca) and Escali (from $59.99, cookstore.ca) make slim reliable models that can be stored just about anywhere. Once you discover the joys of a digital scale, you’ll wonder how you lived without it. WORTH ITS WEIGHT

FOR: Home bakers and any science-minded cooks.

32  FOOD & DRI NK HOLIDAY 2018