With the winter season in its peak, here’s a list of hot beverages that will help you stay warm during the storms and low-temperatures.
Glogg
The Glogg usually refers to a fortified wine beverage based on port wine. Whiskey, brandy or vodka are often added to give the glögg a little extra kick.
The alcohol is sweetened with sugar and heated and then cinnamon sticks, cardamon, cloves, orange zests, raisins and other spices and fruits are added.
To make your own Glogg, you need the following ingredients:
- 1 bottle (750 ml) dry red wine
- 1 bottle (750 ml) port
- 2 cups water
- 1 1/2 cups cognac, brandy, rum, or vodka
- Zest of 1 orange, cut into strips
- 10 cardamom pods
- 2 sticks cinnamon
- 10 whole cloves
- 5 slices peeled fresh ginger
- Granulated sugar
- 10 teaspoons raisins
- 10 teaspoons blanched almonds
Instructions:
In a nonreactive saucepan, mix together wine, port, 2 cups water, Cognac, orange zest, cardamom, cinnamon sticks, cloves, and ginger. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; immediately reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Cover and refrigerate for at least 12 hours and up to 24 hours.
Strain wine mixture and discard solids. Reheat wine mixture over low heat (do not boil) and stir in enough sugar to reach desired taste. Add 1 teaspoon raisins and 1 teaspoon almonds to each of 10 mugs; fill mugs with wine mixture and serve.
Indian chai
Chai (which is the word for tea in many South and Central Asia languages) is prepared using different spices. Traditional recipes vary, but ingredients like cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg, star anise and cloves are almost always used.
Ingredients:
- 10 green cardamom pods, cracked, seeds removed, and pods discarded, or 1/2 teaspoon cardamom seeds or ground cardamom
- 1 piece cinnamon stick
- 4 peppercorns (preferably white)
- 1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 2 cups whole milk
- 3 1/2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar, or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 cups water
- 5 teaspoons loose orange pekoe tea or other black tea
Instructions:
Grind together cardamom, cinnamon stick, peppercorns, and fennel seeds with mortar and pestle or coffee/spice grinder.
Bring milk just to a simmer in a heavy saucepan. Stir or whisk in brown sugar, ground spice mixture, ginger, and 1/8 teaspoon salt, or to taste.
Reduce heat to low and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes to infuse flavors.
Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in another saucepan, add tea, and boil 1 minute. Pour tea through a fine-mesh sieve into hot milk mixture (discard tea leaves) and cook over low heat 1 minute. Stir before serving.
Turkish salep
Salep is made from the roots of several species of orchid. The starchy tubers are ground down into nutrient-filled flour.
Exotic-tasting salep is perfumed with rosewater and garnished with cinnamon and ground pistachios.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons glutinous rice flour
- 2 cups whole milk
- 4 teaspoons sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon rosewater Ground cinnamon, for garnish
- 2 teaspoons finely chopped pistachios, for garnish
Here’s how you make it:
In a small saucepan, combine rice flour and milk, whisking well. Set saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer, whisking constantly. When mixture has thickened, about 2 minutes longer, add sugar and rosewater and stir. Divide salep between mugs and garnish with cinnamon and chopped pistachios.
Yerba mate
Mate is a stimulant. It has a caffeine kick that is comparable to that of coffee, and it has many of the healthy amino acids and antioxidants that tea offers.
To brew your own mate you need:
- 10 whole cloves
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 6 whole white peppercorns
- 1 cardamon pod opened to the seeds
- 1-inch piece fresh ginger, mashed
- 3 cups water
- 2 heaping tablespoons of yerba mate tea
- 3 cups milk Sweetener of choice, to taste
Instructions:
In a small saucepan, add spices and water. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let steep for 5 - 20 minutes, depending on how strong you want the spice flavor to be.
Add almond milk to the water and spices. Bring the milk and spice mixture just to a boil and remove from heat. Add the tea and let steep for 5 to 10 minutes. Add sweetener to taste, if desired. Strain into a pot and serve warm.
The Mate tea can also be prepared without milk.
Moroccan mint tea
Moroccan mint tea is certainly a warming drink to fend off the cold breezes of the winter season.
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon loose Chinese gunpowder green tea
- 5 cups boiling water
- 3 to 4 tablespoons sugar, or to taste
- 1 large bunch fresh mint
Instructions:
Put tea in teapot and pour in 1 cup boiling water, then swirl gently to warm pot and rinse tea. Strain out and discard water, reserving tea leaves in pot. Add remaining 4 cups boiling water to tea and let steep 2 minutes.
Stir in sugar (to taste) and mint sprigs and steep 3 to 4 minutes more. Serve in small heatproof glasses.