MOCKTAILS: RING IN THE NEW YEAR WITH NONALCOHOLIC DRINKS

Glasses raised, toasts will ring out as the New Year rings in.

New Year's Eve is the night many people look forward to all year long. Hosts and hostesses know that preparing for the big party takes hours, sometimes days, of planning and effort.

But hosting one of the best parties in town means more than serving tasty hors d'oeuvres and promoting sparkling conversation.

"You want everyone to have a good time at your party, but you want them to have a good time afterwards too, you want them to be safe," said Sharee Galnore, coordinator of the Cape Girardeau Community Traffic Safety Program with the Cape Girardeau Police Department.

Attention to a few simple details when planning a party can help ensure that friends aren't involved in alcohol-related traffic accidents shortly after the last chorus of Auld Lang Syne. After all, the party isn't over until each guest is safely home.

With most any New Year's Eve party, food and drink are prime considerations. Here, variety is key.

"If you know you're going to serve alcohol, make sure you're serving non-alcoholic beverages also," Galnore urged.

Kerry Hoggard, counselor at St. Francis Medical Center's Center for Recovery, agreed. "Any party, any place that's going to serve alcohol to drink should provide non-alcoholic drinks," he said. After all, Hoggard noted, "not everybody likes alcohol."

Whether for the non-drinker, the designated driver, for people who have reached their alcohol limit, or simply for a change of pace, mock-cocktails are tasty, attractive alternatives to drinks containing alcohol. Non-alcoholic punches, refreshers and hot drinks can also be pleasing to the eye and the pallet.

Cappuccino and expresso are two other types of non-alcoholic drinks with wide-spread popularity, said Doc Cain of Port Cape Girardeau. Non-alcoholic beers and "virgin" mixed drinks are other favorite refreshers, he noted. "We have a lot of people that don't drink that come to our establishment," Cain said.

When planning a party, food ranks just as important as beverage choices for more than one reason, Galnore noted. High protein foods score high points with guests because of taste but there are added benefits. Foods such as cheeses, meats, hard-boiled or deviled eggs and seafoods stay in the stomach longer and slow the absorption of alcohol into the bloodstream. Plus, lots of fresh vegetables served with dips are sure pleasers. "Make sure you have plenty of food and make sure it stays available all evening," Galnore said.

Some of the more obvious party foods like crackers and chips are easy to serve but they spark thirst and thus, promote heavier drinking.

While food should be available throughout the party, Galnore said alcohol should not. "It's very important to stop serving alcohol a couple of hours before the party is over," she said. Coffee and dessert can be pleasing alternatives as the evening progresses.

But coffee has no influence in sobering an intoxicated person, Hoggard warned. "Coffee has no magical potion in it that makes the alcohol disappear," he said. "A cup of coffee will make a drunk an awake drunk."

"Time is the only thing that's going to eliminate alcohol from your blood stream," Galnore explained.

She advises hosts to be "up front" about asking who the designated driver is as guests arrive. A little extra pampering of that designated driver would no doubt be appreciated. Calling a cab or insisting that over-indulgent guests stay overnight are choices that can make all the difference. In some cases, simply driving the over-indulgent guest home may make the most sense.

Hoggard noted that many factors are involved in how much is too much to drink. "Legally drunk and impaired are two different things," he said.

A person may be impaired long before he could be classified as legally drunk.

"In the long run, if people have too much to drink, then we have to take accountability for that. We have to do the right thing and not let them drink and drive," Galnore said.

Dozens of mock-cocktail and other non-alcoholic drink recipes along with tasty "go-along" recipes are available at the Cape Girardeau Police Department and at the University of Missouri Extension office in Jackson.

Simple Syrup

In saucepan, combine 2 cups sugar and 1 cup water. Bring to boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Boil gently for 5 minutes. Makes about 2 cups. Will keep 6 months in refrigerator.

Strawberry-Orange Frosty

2 scoops crushed ice

10 fresh or frozen strawberries

4 oz. fresh squeezed orange juice

1 oz. simple syrup

* Combine in blender; blend until smooth

* Serve in 16 oz. glass

* Garnish with orange twist and strawberry

Citrus Collins

* Fill 10 to 12 oz. glass with ice cubes

2 oz. fresh squeezed orange or grapefruit juice

1 oz. fresh squeezed lemon juice

1 oz. simple syrup

* Fill with club soda

* Garnish with 1/2 orange slice and cherry

Rondo Fizz

1 scoop crushed ice

2 oz. fresh squeezed orange juice

1 oz. cream or half & half

1/2 oz. simple syrup

1 egg white

* Combine in blender; blend until smooth

* Serve in 12 oz. glass

* Fill with club soda

* Garnish with 1/2 orange slice

Banana Flip

1 scoop crushed ice

1/2 small banana

1 1/2 oz. cream or half & half

1 oz. fresh squeezed orange juice

1/2 oz. simple syrup

* Combine in blender; blend until smooth

* Serve in 8 oz. glass

* Garnish with orange wedge, banana chunk and mint.

Salty Puppy

* Salt rim of 9 oz. glass

* Fill glass with 1 scoop crushed ice

3 oz. fresh squeezed grapefruit juice

Splash club soda

* Garnish with grapefruit wedge and mint

Tomato Bull

* Salt rim of 10-oz. glass

* Fill glass with ice cubes

* Squeeze and drop in 1 fresh lemon wedge

* Squeeze and drop in 1 fresh lime wedge

* Fill with Bloody Mary mix

* Garnish with celery stick

Mock Pink Champagne

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup water

1 6-oz. can frozen orange juice concentrate

1 6-oz. can frozen grapefruit juice concentrate

1 28-oz. bottle cold ginger ale

1/3 cup grenadine syrup

Early in day, mix sugar and water in pan and boil for 5 minutes. Cool. Add frozen concentrates. Refrigerate. At serving time, add ginger ale and grenadine syrup and let sit. Garnish with fresh fruit slices. Yield: 10 servings.

Frosty Virgin Margaritas

3 12-oz. cans frozen limeade

1 6-oz. can frozen orange juice concentrate, pulpy variety

1 6-oz. can frozen grapefruit juice

32 oz. ginger ale

2 fresh limes, cut into 24 rounds

Pour half the juices and ginger ale into a blender. Add some ice cubes and blend; add ice until desired consistency. Repeat. Serve in large goblets. Garnish with a round of lime. Yield: 24 servings.

PARTY TIPS

from the State of Missouri Department of Public Safety

*Always serve food with alcohol

*If serving alcoholic punch, use a noncarbonated base such as fruit juice.

*Serve nonalcoholic beverages.

*Have several jiggers or self-measuring 1-ounce bottle spouts at the bar to mix drinks.

*Do not force drinks on guests or rush to refill their glasses when empty.

*Stop serving alcohol about two hours before the party is over.

*If a guest is drinking too much, engage him in conversation to slow down the drinking, offer high protein food, offer to make the next drink using less alcohol -- mix it with a noncarbonated base.