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December 2024

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Tuesday, December 10
Food

Warm Your Heart

Hot drinks to beat a cold month
Tammy AlgoodBy 8 Mins Read

It’s February. We might or might not have snow. Nobody knows whether your team will win The Big Game. There’s no guarantee that we’ll all have the best Valentine’s Day ever. But one thing we do know: A mug filled with one of these delicious hot drinks will make you feel a little bit better, no matter what February brings.

Ginger-Spiked Hot Chocolate
 
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Recipe Name: Ginger-Spiked Hot Chocolate Prep Time: Cook Time: Total Time: Yield: Serving: Yield: 8 servings
Author:
Ingredients
  • 4 cups milk, divided and at room temperature
  • ½ cup unsweetened cocoa (dark or regular)
  • 4 cups half-and-half, room temperature
  • 1½ cups powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons honey or sorghum syrup
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt
  • 3 whole cloves
  • 3 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 (2-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and slightly crushed
  • Miniature marshmallows for garnish
  • Ground cinnamon for garnish
Instructions
  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 cup of milk and the cocoa until smooth. Do not skip this step! Add to the slow cooker along with the remaining milk, half-and-half, powdered sugar, honey or sorghum, vanilla extract, nutmeg and salt. Whisk to blend. Add the cloves, cinnamon sticks and ginger, stirring again. Cover and cook on low heat for 2½ hours.
  2. To serve, stir well and then ladle through a fine mesh sieve into warmed mugs. Top with miniature or decorative marshmallows and a sprinkle of ground cinnamon, if desired. Enjoy immediately.
  3. Kid alternative:
  4. Many children don’t like much spice, so to make this recipe more appealing to them, omit the nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon sticks and ginger. It will be a more traditional hot chocolate recipe, and since it doesn’t need to infuse the spices, it only needs an hour in the slow cooker.
  5. Author:
Citrus Mulled White Wine
 
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Recipe Name: Description: You can substitute red wine for the white, but you will lose the citrusy taste. Prep Time: Cook Time: Total Time: Yield: Serving: Yield: 8 servings * Suggestion: Keg Springs Chardonnay (kegspringswinery.net)
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Ingredients
  • 1 bottle (5 cups) dry white wine
  • *
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 orange, zested in strips and juiced
  • 1 lemon, zested in strips and sliced
  • 1 lime, zested in strips and sliced
  • 1 apple, cored and cut in wedges
  • 4 whole cloves
  • 1 star anise
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 cup Grand Marnier
Instructions
  1. Place the wine, sugar, orange juice, lemon slices, lime slices, apple wedges, cloves, star anise and cinnamon sticks in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on low heat for 1½ to 2 hours. Stir in the Grand Marnier and ladle through a fine mesh sieve into warm mugs. Garnish with the zested citrus pieces and enjoy immediately.
  2. Notes:
  3. Note:
  4. If you need to hold the mulled wine longer, decrease the heat from low to warm after 1 hour. But follow the remaining instructions, and don’t add the Grand Marnier until serving time.
  5. Author:
Hot Honey Toddy
 
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Recipe Name: Hot Honey Toddy Description: This is medicine in a mug! Prep Time: Cook Time: Total Time: Yield: Serving: Yield: 1 serving
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Ingredients
  • ¾ cup strongly brewed tea (Ceylon is my preference)
  • 2 tablespoons bourbon
  • 2 tablespoons cognac
  • 1 tablespoon honey (or a bit more if you want it sweeter)
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 lemon wedge
Instructions
  1. In a warmed mug, stir together the tea, bourbon, cognac and honey with the cinnamon stick until the honey dissolves. Squeeze the lemon wedge to release the juice over the top. Stir again and savor.
  2. Author:
Traditional Irish Coffee
 
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Recipe Name: Traditional Irish Coffee Description: Tastes best enjoyed in front of a roaring fireplace! Prep Time: Cook Time: Total Time: Yield: Serving: Yield: 2 servings
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Ingredients
  • 1 cup strongly brewed coffee
  • 3 tablespoons Irish whiskey
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon packed brown sugar
  • *
  • Lightly whipped cream (whipped thick but still pourable)
Instructions
  1. In a heatproof container (Pyrex), stir together the coffee, whiskey and brown sugar. Stir until the sugar has completely dissolved. Pour into 2 warmed mugs. Float the lightly whipped cream over the top by gently pouring it over the back of a spoon. Enjoy immediately.
  2. Author:
  3. Alternative: If desired, substitute Bailey’s Irish Cream for the brown sugar.
Hot Buttered Apple Cider
 
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Recipe Name: Hot Buttered Apple Cider Description: Use the larger hole on your zester to have nice long strips of citrus for the garnish. Always zest before juicing. Prep Time: Cook Time: Total Time: Yield: Serving: Yield: 6 servings
Author:
Ingredients
  • 5 cups apple cider (not apple juice)
  • 6 strips of orange zest and the juice of 1 orange
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • Pinch of salt
Instructions
  1. Place the apple cider, orange juice, butter, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice and salt in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally until the mixture comes to a simmer. Remove from the heat. Ladle or pour into warm mugs, and garnish with the orange zest strips. Enjoy immediately.
  2. Notes:
  3. Alternative for spiked cider:
  4. After removing from the heat, stir in 2 tablespoons of spiced rum before serving.
  5. Author:
Mexican Hot Chocolate
 
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Recipe Name: Mexican Hot Chocolate Description: This is not as sweet as traditional hot cocoa but just as delicious. Don’t let the chili powder scare you … it gives the recipe just a hint of spice. Prep Time: Cook Time: Total Time: Yield: Serving: Yield: 2 servings
Author:
Ingredients
  • 2 cups milk
  • 2 heaping tablespoons unsweetened cocoa (dark or regular)
  • 2 tablespoons honey, sorghum syrup or maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon chili powder
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
  • 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
  • Whipped cream for garnish
Instructions
  1. Place the milk; cocoa; honey, sorghum or maple syrup; vanilla extract; cinnamon; chili powder; and cloves in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and simmering. Stir in the chocolate, whisking until it is completely melted and the mixture is smooth. This will take around 3 minutes.
  2. Remove from the heat and ladle into warmed mugs. Top with whipped cream, if desired, and serve immediately.
  3. Author:

Tips and tricks

Slow cookers are perfect for maintaining a constant warm temperature for these drinks. Use a medium one rather than a large.

If you want to transport a hot drink to the outside fireplace or to a neighbor’s house, transfer it to an insulated carafe, insulated water bottle or traditional thermos. To prepare for the hot drink, first pour some steamy water in the vessel. Let it sit for a couple of minutes, drain and it’s ready for your homemade goodness.

The same goes for the mug you are using if staying in your own abode. Warm it first, and the recipe you add will stay hotter longer. An insulated travel mug works perfectly.

Cup koozies are wonderful for keeping the mug at the temperature you want.

Tammy Algood develops recipes for The Tennessee Magazine that feature farm-fresh Tennessee food. Those fresh, local ingredients will always add cleaner, more flavorful foods to your table. We recommend visiting local farms and farmers markets to find the freshest seasonal produce.

Ask Chef Tammy

Email your cooking questions to Tammy Algood: [email protected].

Nicole asks: “How much juice can I expect to get from a lemon? Often I see recipes that call for the juice of one lemon, but if I don’t have one on hand, I will use bottled juice.”

Nicole, you can expect to get about 3 tablespoons of juice from an average-sized lemon. But the most juice will come from one that is at room temperature rather than right out of the refrigerator. Also, rolling it firmly on the kitchen counter before juicing will help extract as much juice as possible from the fruit.

James writes:
“Are you a fan of injecting meat before grilling? I would appreciate any tips you have on doing it correctly.”

James, I do like injecting larger cuts of meat as long as it isn’t overdone to the point that it masks the natural flavor of the meat. When I inject, I only do so on the top side of the meat cut. This technique accomplishes two things: It prevents you from injecting too much, and it also helps keep the liquid from seeping out during the process of cooking or grilling.

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Tammy Algood develops for The Tennessee Magazine recipes that feature farm-fresh Tennessee food. Those fresh, local ingredients will always add cleaner, more flavorful foods to your table. We recommend visiting local farms and farmers markets to find the freshest seasonal produce. For more information about our recipes, contact Algood at [email protected].

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