Plant-based drinks and specialty coffee go hand in hand; both refined, specialised products, with a focus on sustainability and craftsmanship, it’s kind of a thing. Alpro For Professionals is leading the plant-based charge as sponsors of The Amsterdam Coffee Festival and Latte Art Live. But what’s it all about?
The plant-based switch
Wellbeing is the defining trend of the decade, and consumers are opting more and more for plant-based food. Dietary intolerance or not, people are eating more fruit, vegetables, pulses and nuts, in a bid to do good not only for their health, but the planet, too. Now, almost two in three consumers (62%) consider it important that their local coffee shop has more than one plant-based choice on offer. No surprise, then, that there’s been a rise in demand for plant-based products out of the home, with an increasingly impressive range available, and it’s quickly becoming easier to eat and drink out without having to compromise.
Nut and Soya Milk
With vegan brunches, rainbow health lattes, and plant-based alternatives on the chalk board, baristas are seeking innovative, high-quality products to match the switch. Alpro are market-leaders in providing plant-based consumers with extensive home product ranges, but they are now keeping baristas well-stocked, too. Alpro For Professionals launched to support baristas, so that they can offer consumers the luxury of choice.
Every great barista needs high-performance products; 100% derived from plants, the Alpro For Professionals range is formed to be ultra-flexible, producing high-quality micro foam and a glossy texture (latte art specialists and Instagrammers, take note). Its natural flavour means that consumers can get all the taste they’re looking for without the need for lashings of syrups and sugar.
Sustainability
As we become increasingly conscious about the wellbeing of our planet and its people, sustainability is now one of the most important issues facing our societies. For a plant-based milk to be truly viable, it’s got to have top sustainability credentials.
Bringing soya cultivation closer to home is key for Alpro For Professionals, who source 60% of their soybeans from Europe and 40% from Canada to provide certainty about the ecological and social conditions. From the Netherlands to Italy, they’ve been developing strong ties with local producers of soy and introducing crop rotation to boost sustainability. In 2015, they harvested locally grown soy on 170 hectares in cooperation with fifty Dutch farmers. Local cultivation means a shorter production chain with a limited footprint, and as soy crops absorb nitrogen in the soil, less fertilizer is needed for future crops.
Here are six recipes from Alpro For Professionals to try in your cafe or at home…
Ingredients
200ml Alpro Coconut For Professionals
1 level tsp round turmeric
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1-2 shots of espresso
Recipe
1. Add the powdered turmeric, ginger and cinnamon to a latte glass, mix with 30ml hot water.
2. Add the espresso.
3. Steam the Alpro Coconut For Professionals to 65 degrees celsius.
4. Pour over the mixture and serve.
Ingredients
100 ml Alpro Soya ‘For Professionals’
1 shot espresso
75 ml white chocolate syrup
Optional chocolate powder to garnish
Recipe
1. Pour white chocolate syrup and freshly
made espresso into a coffee cup.
2. Pour the Alpro Soya ‘For Professionals’
into a silver milk jug.
3. Using the steam wand, stretch the product
to ¼ volume to a temperature of 65°C.
4. Add Alpro Soya ‘For Professionals’ to the
chocolate syrup and espresso.
5. Serve with an optional sprinkle of
chocolate powder.
Ingredients
200 ml Alpro Almond ‘For Professionals’
4 g Chai tea
Recipe
1. Add the Chai tea mix to the Alpro Almond
‘For Professionals’ and let stand for
8 hours in the refrigerator.
2. Strain the tea and spices out. Use a paper
filter or fine sieve.
3. Serve in a glass, optionally with ice cubes.
Ingredients
200ml Alpro Soya For Professionals
1tbsp sugar free vanilla syrup
1 heaped tsp Matcha green tea powder
1-2 shots of espresso
1 scoop of ice
Recipe
1. Place the Match powder, syrup, Alpro Soya For Professionals, espresso and ice into a blender and pulse until smooth.
2. Pour into a tall glass to serve.
Ingredients
275 ml Alpro Coconut ‘For Professionals’
20 g sugar free caramel syrup
A pinch of salt
1 espresso
Salty caramel fudge flakes
(for 1 cup 330 ml)
Recipe
1. Add syrup to a cup.
2. Brew a fresh espresso.
3. Froth Alpro Coconut ‘For Professionals’
to 65°C and add it to the espresso.
4. Top with fudge flakes.
Ingredients
135ml Alpro Almond For Professionals
1 espresso
20g milk chocolate callers
Recipe
1. Place the chocolate-callers in preheated cappuccino cup and pour the espresso all over it.
2. Stir until the chocolate is completely melted.
3. Foam Alpro Almond For Professionals to a maximum of 60 degrees celsius and pour over the espresso.