As the cool evenings of autumn slide into the cold nights of winter, it’s a pleasure to relax with a warm cocktail under a soft blanket. You don’t have to be a professional bartender to shake up delicious cocktails, just follow these suggestions and you’ll have the perfect nightcap before you put on your nightcap.
Hot and Toddy
This classic cold-weather drink is known for helping people who feel under the weather. According to the website The Manual, the hot toddy was used in by soldiers in the Revolutionary War as “liquid courage” before a fight, so that should make you feel pretty good about using it to relax after a long day on the battlefields of work. There are all sorts of recipes out there, but all of them are basically a combination of alcohol, hot water, cinnamon, lemon, and honey. Most recipes call for whiskey, but you may want to try cognac, aged rum, or bourbon instead.
Cider Drink Rules
Isn’t it great how humans have made fruits of all kinds the basis of alcoholic beverages? We harvested apples in the fall and didn’t stop with canning or coring them, and we didn’t stop with frying, baking, or candying them. No, our ancestors said: bring on the cider. And we say, thank you.
You can turn your kid-friendly apple cider into an adult-friendlier version by simply heating it up and adding rum, plus a little cinnamon and lemon if that suits your tastes. A more involved alternative calls for adding maple syrup, vanilla bean pods, and butter. Or, if you prefer the simple route, you can actually make spiked apple cider in your slow cooker – perfect for parties. Simply pour apple cider into the slow cooker and add a satchel of cinnamon, lemon, cloves, and allspice. Let it all marinate for a few hours and add the alcohol at the very end.
Big, Fluffy, Dreamy Drinks
Marshmallows and hot drinks go together like peanut butter and jelly, cinnamon and sugar, and syrup and pancakes. While you can certainly just add a splash of liquor to your mug of hot cocoa, there are countless recipes out there that elevate classic kids’ combos to adult-focused favorites.
Let’s take the s’more, for example. Why would we stop at just eating the delicious combination of chocolate, graham cracker, and marshmallow when we can drink it too? This recipe for a S’more Martini will leave you asking for s’more before you’re even done with your first glass. Now let’s go back to that hot chocolate. Yes, it’s delicious. But wouldn’t it be even more delicious with Kahlua? And maybe a chocolate syrup and salted caramel drizzle? I think we all know the answer is yes.
This Butter Be Good
Three great words on a cold night: hot, butter, and rum. Put together, these words make for some delicious recipes for Hot Buttered Rum. The basic ingredients for this classic winter drink include butter and rum, of course, and also brown sugar, honey, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. You’ll need to start with boiling water, then add the other ingredients. While you’re waiting for the drink to cool down a smidge, we won’t blame you for getting out a few cookies to go with it.
Hello, I am Cristy. I love cooking but what I love most is keeping my kitchen tools and appliances top notch. I enjoy writing about everything I have learned around the kitchen. I believe that keeping your kitchen tools well cleaned and maintained produces the best dishes and drinks. Besides writing and cooking I enjoy traveling, camping, hiking and music.