A hot drink in hand stays away the scaries of the day.
Happy Friday, all. Wednesday night was a LONG night, what with a hospital visit (not me) that extended into hours well beyond more normal wake time. I arrived back home at midnight, slept four hours, then like the crazy, routine-oriented person I am, rose at 4am to run 7 miles and step into the gym for a quick mobility workout.
Though I’m sure the doctor didn’t mean it this way, he told me before I yanked myself away from the bedside that I have to show up for myself in order to give the best I can to others. While running a dumb amount of miles off 4 hours of sleep is decidedly not what he meant, that does align with my version of presence and care. Convoluted, maybe, but honest. My rituals are my stability and source of grounding.
Another ritual for which I reach for normalcy? A hot beverage. Today’s Spiced Apple Tea Hot Toddy is a comforting, snappy drink for cold nights where sniffles creep into the sinuses and minds and hearts just feel off. A zippy splash of bourbon warms up steeped black tea and plenty of homemade apple spice syrup, one of my favorite embellishments of the season.
J loved the mug I made for him, and I hope you, too, find your tastebuds dancing and your chilly hands warmed by this drink.
Hot Hot Hot, Hot Toddy
The 21+ version of The Polar Expresss diddy.
First: the apple syrup. I’ve used this formulation in a couple recipes so far. Simply chop up a honeycrisp apple (gala or fuji work well too!) and toss into a small saucepan with brown sugar, water, a cinnamon stick, allspice, and ginger. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer for 12-15 minutes, stirring and smashing the apples intermittently.
Strain the syrup through a sieve and into a jar or bowl, squishing those apples to release as much liquid as possible. Let cool slightly. Leftover syrup keeps well for up to a week in the fridge.
Next: the tea. As your syrup bubbles away, boil a cup of water and pour into your favorite heatproof mug. Drop in a black tea bag and steep for 5 minutes. We want a stronger brew here to handle the other flavors we incorporate. For the tea, I used English Breakfast.
Discard the tea bag. Stir in some of your apple syrup, lemon juice, and bourbon or whiskey. Finish your mug with a cinnamon stick and some apple slices for nibbling.
The simplest, comfiest Friday night indulgence for these increasingly nippy evenings. Cheers!
Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Apple of my eye:
spiced apple tea hot toddy
Ingredients
- 1 black tea bag
- 1 cup filtered water
- 1-2 tbsp spiced apple syrup (recipe below)
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 oz bourbon
- apple slices and cinnamon stick, for garnish
spiced apple syrup
- 1 honey crisp apple, deseeded and roughly chopped
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1/4 tsp ginger
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, combine the brown sugar, 3/4 cup of water, the chopped apple, 1 cinnamon stick, the allspice, and the ginger. Simmer for 12-15 minutes, stirring and mashing the apple as it softens. Strain the solids through a fine mesh sieve, squeezing the liquid from the apples as best you can. Discard the solids. Leftover syrup will keep for up to a week in the fridge.
- Meanwhile, boil the cup of water and pour into your favorite mug. Add the tea bag and steep for 5 minutes. Discard the bag.
- Stir in the syrup, lemon juice, and bourbon. Garnish with apple slices and a cinnamon stick.
