Cold Outside, Cozy Inside
I don’t know about you, but at the end of a cold winter day, I enjoy a hot drink while I watch a movie or TV show, entertain friends or curl up to read a book from my stack on the table. Hot drinks help chase the chill away.
There is a vast array of delicious hot drinks beyond coffee, black and herbal teas that are so easy to prepare
before sinking into your chair—hot chocolates, steamers, fruity spiced punches, warm cocktails and more.
My favorite easy, maybe lazy, way to create some hot beverages is by using my slow cooker. Slow cookers came into vogue in the 1970s. Some of us may remember our parents’ brown and avocado colored Crockpots, the name maker Rival gave them. They are popular again with busy economical cooks because they do their work mostly unattended, do wonderful things with cheap cuts of meat and do not heat up a summer kitchen.
To make my beverages, just before I begin to prepare dinner, I measure and mix the ingredients in the slow cooker and plug it in. By the time the dishwasher is filled and the crumbs have been wiped off the dinner table, I can serve the cozy drinks to myself and any loved ones or friends who are home with me. Leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator to be served again later.
Here are recipes for a few of my favorites, using slow cooker cookbooks available from our libraries:
1) Caramel Hot Chocolate, from America’s Best Slow Cooker Recipes by Donna Marie Pye
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 4 cups dry milk powder, ¾ cup cocoa, ½ cup granulated sugar and 8 cups water.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
Break up a 2oz. chocolate covered caramel filled candy bar into pieces and stir into the hot chocolate until melted. Pour into mugs and serve with whipped cream, if desired.
2) Vanilla Steamer, from Fix-It and Forget-It Christmas Cookbook by Phyllis Pellman Good
(The Fix-It and Forget-It series is popular, and my favorite of the books is, Fix-It and Forget-It New Cookbook, the newest one.)
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 8 cups milk, 1/8 tsp. cinnamon, 3 Tbsp. sugar, 2 Tbsp. vanilla and a pinch each of salt and nutmeg.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
Pour into mugs and serve with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon, if desired.
Bonus: Leftovers make delicious coffee creamer.
3) Chai Tea, from Healthy Slow Cooker Cookbook by the American Heart Association
(The American Heart Association has created a number of good, health conscience cookbooks.)
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 4 cups water, 2 cups fat-free milk, 2 cups fat-free half-and-half, ¼ cup sugar, 1 ½ tsp. cinnamon, ¾ tsp. cardamom, ½ tsp. ginger, ½ tsp. nutmeg, ¼ tsp. cloves.
Add 8 black tea bags, letting the tags hang over the side of the slow cooker.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
Remove the tea bags. Pour into mugs.
4) Spiced Holiday Punch, from Another Potful of Recipes by JoAnna M. Lund
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 5 cups apple juice, 2 cups cranberry juice cocktail, 2 cups Mountain Dew, 2 Tbsp. Splenda or sugar, 1 ½ tsp. apple pie spice.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
Pour into mugs, adding a cinnamon stick to each mug, if desired.
5) Spiced Tomato Cocktail, from Crockery Cookbook by Better Homes and Gardens
(It’s an older cookbook, using an old name for the machines, but with great recipes including this one)
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 46 oz. can vegetable juice, 1 celery stalk (cut in half, if needed), 2 Tbsp. brown sugar, 2 Tbsp. lemon juice, and 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce.
If you like it spicy add: 1 ½ tsp. prepared horseradish and ½ tsp. hot pepper sauce.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 1 ½ hours.
Discard celery. Pour into mugs, adding a lemon slice to each mug, if desired.
6) Hot Buttered Rum, from Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook Recipes for Entertaining by Beth and Julie Hensperger (Prepared without the rum, this rich, sweet drink can be a kid’s alternative to hot chocolate.)
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 2 cups light brown sugar, ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, pinch of salt, ½ tsp. nutmeg, 8 cups water and a few pinches each of cloves and cinnamon.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
When ready to serve, add 2 cups rum; let mull 20 minutes or so.
Pour into mugs, adding a cinnamon stick to each mug, if desired.
Slow Cooker Cookbooks have really come into their own. Some other terrific cookbooks available from
our libraries include:
Ethnic cuisine: The Italian Slow Cooker by Michele Scicolone and The Mexican Slow Cooker by Deborah M. Schneider
Vegetarian cuisine: Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker and Quick-fix Vegetarian both by Robin Robertson
And my true favorite, the original Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook by Beth and Julie Hensperger. It uses primarily fresh bought ingredients and staples to make its delicious well balanced collection of recipes, including meat based dishes, vegetarian dishes, traditional American standards and ethnic cuisine.
Enjoy-stay warm, stay safe this winter!
There is a vast array of delicious hot drinks beyond coffee, black and herbal teas that are so easy to prepare
before sinking into your chair—hot chocolates, steamers, fruity spiced punches, warm cocktails and more.
To make my beverages, just before I begin to prepare dinner, I measure and mix the ingredients in the slow cooker and plug it in. By the time the dishwasher is filled and the crumbs have been wiped off the dinner table, I can serve the cozy drinks to myself and any loved ones or friends who are home with me. Leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator to be served again later.
Here are recipes for a few of my favorites, using slow cooker cookbooks available from our libraries:
1) Caramel Hot Chocolate, from America’s Best Slow Cooker Recipes by Donna Marie Pye
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 4 cups dry milk powder, ¾ cup cocoa, ½ cup granulated sugar and 8 cups water.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
Break up a 2oz. chocolate covered caramel filled candy bar into pieces and stir into the hot chocolate until melted. Pour into mugs and serve with whipped cream, if desired.
2) Vanilla Steamer, from Fix-It and Forget-It Christmas Cookbook by Phyllis Pellman Good
(The Fix-It and Forget-It series is popular, and my favorite of the books is, Fix-It and Forget-It New Cookbook, the newest one.)
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 8 cups milk, 1/8 tsp. cinnamon, 3 Tbsp. sugar, 2 Tbsp. vanilla and a pinch each of salt and nutmeg.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
Pour into mugs and serve with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon, if desired.
Bonus: Leftovers make delicious coffee creamer.
3) Chai Tea, from Healthy Slow Cooker Cookbook by the American Heart Association
(The American Heart Association has created a number of good, health conscience cookbooks.)
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 4 cups water, 2 cups fat-free milk, 2 cups fat-free half-and-half, ¼ cup sugar, 1 ½ tsp. cinnamon, ¾ tsp. cardamom, ½ tsp. ginger, ½ tsp. nutmeg, ¼ tsp. cloves.
Add 8 black tea bags, letting the tags hang over the side of the slow cooker.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
Remove the tea bags. Pour into mugs.
4) Spiced Holiday Punch, from Another Potful of Recipes by JoAnna M. Lund
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 5 cups apple juice, 2 cups cranberry juice cocktail, 2 cups Mountain Dew, 2 Tbsp. Splenda or sugar, 1 ½ tsp. apple pie spice.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
Pour into mugs, adding a cinnamon stick to each mug, if desired.
5) Spiced Tomato Cocktail, from Crockery Cookbook by Better Homes and Gardens
(It’s an older cookbook, using an old name for the machines, but with great recipes including this one)
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 46 oz. can vegetable juice, 1 celery stalk (cut in half, if needed), 2 Tbsp. brown sugar, 2 Tbsp. lemon juice, and 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce.
If you like it spicy add: 1 ½ tsp. prepared horseradish and ½ tsp. hot pepper sauce.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 1 ½ hours.
Discard celery. Pour into mugs, adding a lemon slice to each mug, if desired.
6) Hot Buttered Rum, from Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook Recipes for Entertaining by Beth and Julie Hensperger (Prepared without the rum, this rich, sweet drink can be a kid’s alternative to hot chocolate.)
Pour into slow cooker and stir to combine: 2 cups light brown sugar, ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, pinch of salt, ½ tsp. nutmeg, 8 cups water and a few pinches each of cloves and cinnamon.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
When ready to serve, add 2 cups rum; let mull 20 minutes or so.
Pour into mugs, adding a cinnamon stick to each mug, if desired.
Slow Cooker Cookbooks have really come into their own. Some other terrific cookbooks available from
our libraries include:
Ethnic cuisine: The Italian Slow Cooker by Michele Scicolone and The Mexican Slow Cooker by Deborah M. Schneider
Vegetarian cuisine: Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker and Quick-fix Vegetarian both by Robin Robertson
And my true favorite, the original Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook by Beth and Julie Hensperger. It uses primarily fresh bought ingredients and staples to make its delicious well balanced collection of recipes, including meat based dishes, vegetarian dishes, traditional American standards and ethnic cuisine.
Enjoy-stay warm, stay safe this winter!
- Kim L.
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