Cheers! Cookbook contains alcohol-free recipes for holidays and other occasions

Eat, drink and be wary: All the alcohol does NOT evaporate when you're cooking with wine, beer or other spirits. Up to 85 percent of it can remain in that rum cake, fondue or other alcohol-containing recipe, according to a study done more than 15 years ago for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

"Even in culinary school, I was told that all the alcohol burns off during cooking, but that is a myth," said Liz Scott, a New Jersey chef and author of "Sober Celebrations" (Cleveland Clinic, $24.95).

But is one cup of wine an issue by the time it's partially evaporated and divided into eight servings? That depends on the person and why he or she avoids alcohol.

"For people who are fighting to stay sober, it's really critical to avoid even small amounts," said Scott, who is in recovery from alcohol addiction. "The smell and taste can be an enormous trigger."

In Utah, alcohol consumption is often considered a religious issue. But there are other reasons people choose not to drink it — they need to drive, they are recovering from alcoholism, they are pregnant and don't want to harm the baby, or it interferes with their medications (more than 9,000 medicines carry alcohol warnings, Scott notes).

"When I gave up drinking nine years ago, I discovered that less than 10 percent of the entire population consumes 100 percent of the alcohol sold in America," said Scott in a telephone interview from her home in New Jersey. "People who drink think that everybody does. But as you become a non-drinker, you meet so many people who choose not to drink, for whatever reason. I do a lot of catering, and I've found that certainly we can have festive celebrations without alcohol."

Scott's book contains about 150 alcohol-free dishes and beverages for parties throughout the year.

"If you're taking alcohol from the party atmosphere, you must put something back in that's festive and fun," Scott said. "All too often abstainers are offered boring beverages they could get out of a vending machine."

A New Year's suggestion is ratafia, a Mediterranean aromatic drink traditionally infused with red wine. Scott uses pomegranate juice instead. The book has recipes for other "mocktails," such as cordials, daiquiris and margaritas.

"When we substitute for alcohol, we need to consider the overall taste it's contributing," she said. In her margarita recipe, orange-flavored club soda replaces Triple Sec and dilutes the sweet-and-sour taste of the limeade and lemon.