Liqueurs

Liqueurs are very useful for flavoring pastries, but they can be expensive because of the taxes on alcohol. The more popular ones can be purchased as concentrated flavorings, without the alcohol, for a lower cost. Concentrated flavorings are ideal for use in creams, where large amounts of alcohol could curdle the dairy ingredients. They can also be useful for frozen desserts, where alcohol lowers the freezing point and at high levels can prevent freezing from happening at all. Finally, concentrated liqueur flavorings can be used in products for customers who, for religious or personal reasons, choose not to consume alcohol. While concentrated flavorings have advantages over liqueurs, remember that alcohol has a taste, too. Without the burn from a liqueur’s alcohol, a product might lack flavor, even when the flavor concentrate is of high quality.