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[1] Gingerbread hot chocolate (photo © Bittersweet Blog).
[2] Serve it with gingerbread men, gingersnaps, or any ginger or chocolate cookie (photo © Colavita).
[3] Get out your cookie cutters and have some fun (photo © Baked NYC).
[4] Chocolate chip gingerbread cookies. Here’s the recipe (photo © King Arthur Baking).
[5] Crispy gingersnap cookies. Here’s the recipe (photo © Cloudy Kitchen).
[6] The White Chocolate Chips from Guittard are the best that can be purchased in small quantities. For two pounds or more, conssider Callebaut and Valrhona and (photo © Guittard Chocolate Company).
[7] Horchata, a classic Mexican drink. Here’s the recipe (photo © Taste Of Home).
[8] A cup of hot, milky chai (photo © Charles Chocolates).
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How about a cup of hot chocolate x gingerbread? Our colleague Hannah Kaminsky of Bittersweet Blog, a great baker with numerous vegan cookbooks to her credit, was inspired to create a recipe.
“Thick enough to qualify as a dessert, my rendition gets an extra boost from bright gingerbread spices, plus the deep, earthy sweetness of molasses,” she notes.
> A brief history of ginger.
> A brief history of gingerbread.
> Gingerbread cake and cookie recipes.
> The history of cocoa and hot chocolate.
Below:
> The difference between gingerbread, gingersnaps, and spice cookies.
> A year of gingerbread and related holidays.
> How to reuse cinnamon sticks.
> Hot and cold drinks that use cinnamon sticks.
> What are warming spices?
RECIPE: GINGERBREAD HOT CHOCOLATE
If you prefer, you can make white hot chocolate with white chips. Be sure to use real chocolate chips, like Guittard. Never use “melts” when you want real chocolate flavor. Be sure the ingredients have cocoa butter and do not have oil.
Prep time/total time is 5 minutes.
Ingredients
3 cups milk of choice
1/4 cup molasses
1-1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 ounces (1 cup) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Optional garnish: whipped cream
Preparation
1. WHISK thoroughly all ingredients except the vanilla in a medium saucepan over low heat. Continue to whisk gently until the chocolate melts smoothly and the mixture is hot.
2. REMOVE the saucepan from the heat and mix in the vanilla. Pour into cups, garnish as desired and serve.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GINGERBREAD, GINGERSNAPS, GINGER COOKIES & SPICE COOKIES
A ginger cookie (photo #4) is a soft, molasses-type cookie that is flavored with ginger and other spices. It is larger than, and otherwise differs from, a gingersnap.
Unlike the fancier gingerbread (photos #2 and #3), a gingersnap (photo #5) is a small, thin, plain round cookie with a hard, smooth texture like a gingerbread cookie. It is a smaller version of the traditional German Christmas cookie known as Lebkuchen. Like a gingerbread cookie, gingersnaps break with a “snap.”
Gingersnaps contain a larger amount of ginger, and thus are spicier, than the chewier ginger cookies.
What about spice cookies?
Spice cookies and ginger cookies have similar seasonings, but the ginger flavor is much more prominent in ginger cookies.
While spice cookies may include ginger, it’s not the dominant flavor. In addition to ginger, they typically contain allspice, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and sometimes cardamom.
This gives them a more complex, layered flavor profile, but less “sizzle.” Examples include Pfeffernüsse and Speculaas.
A YEAR OF GINGERBREAD HOLIDAYS
GINGERBREAD HOLIDAYS
Gingerbread Holidays
& More
April, 1st Full Week: National Bake Week
June 5: National Gingerbread Day
July 1: National Gingersnap Day
October: National Cookie Month
October 1: National Homemade Cookies Day
November 15: National Spicy Hermit Cookie Day
November 21: National Gingerbread Cookie Day
December 1: National Cookie Cutter Day
December, 1st Week: National Cookie Cutter Week
December 12: Gingerbread Decorating Day
December 12: Gingerbread House Day
December 18: Bake Cookies Day
December 22: National Cookie Exchange Day
Related Holidays
January 31: National Hot Chocolate Day
May 15: National Chocolate Chip Day
November 1: National Cinnamon Day
December 13: National Cocoa Day
REUSE YOUR CINNAMON STICKS
People use cinnamon sticks to mugs of hot chocolate, mulled wine, and other beverages. They make a drink feel more festive and cozy for reasons beyond aesthetics.
There’s no reason to throw away an expensive cinnamon stick that’s just been used for garnish. While each reuse will result in slightly less intense aroma and flavor, as drink garnishes no one will notice.
Quality sticks can typically be reused more times than cheaper ones, but only reuse sticks that have been in hot or cold drinks—not those that have been used in cooking.
To reuse immediately: Just rinse thoroughly with cool water and pat dry. Ideally, reuse it in a similar drink (e.g. from one cocktail to another). Don’t reuse a stick that has been in a dairy-based drink.
To store for later use: A cinnamon stick can be used 4-5 more times if completely dried and properly stored. Rinse thoroughly with cool water and pat completely dry with a clean paper towel. Let it air dry fully before storing in an airtight container.
Discard if you notice any mold or off-smells, or when the stick becomes soft.
Other Ways To Re-Use Cinnamon Sticks
Add to a pot of simmering water as a natural air freshener.
Place in the tea strainer when making tea.
Add to the basket of coffee grounds when brewing.
Place in sugar or rice containers to add subtle flavor.
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DRINKS THAT USE CINNAMON STICKS
A cinnamon stick not only serves as an attractive garnish but can also be used as a stirrer. It also slowly infusing more cinnamon flavor into the drink as it sits. Especially in hot drinks, the warm liquid helps to release more of the cinnamon stick’s aromatic oils.
Use A Cinnamon Stick With These Hot Drinks
Chai tea (masala chai—photo #8)
Hot buttered rum
Mexican hot chocolate
Mulled cider and hot apple cider
Mulled wine (Glühwein or spiced wine)
Plus these hot coffee-based drinks:
Café de olla (Mexican spiced coffee)
Moroccan Spiced Coffee (also includew other warming spices like cardamom and nutmeg)
Vietnamese Cinnamon Coffee
Snickerdoodle Latte, flavored cinnamon-sugar latte
Spiced coffee, a variation of spice tea that includes additional warming spices
Turkish Coffee (sometimes served with a cinnamon stick on the side for stirring)
Use A Cinnamon Stick With These Cold Drinks
Bourbon or whiskey-based cocktails like the Cinnamon Maple Whiskey Sour
Cold apple cider
Horchata (photo #7)
Sangria
Some tiki drinks and tropical cocktails (Don’s Special Daiquiri, Navy Grog, Polynesian Pearl Diver)
Spiced rum cocktails
WHAT ARE WARMING SPICES?
Warming spices, also referred to as warm spices, are those that create a sensation of warmth or heat when consumed. They are used in both sweet and savory dishes.
American cuisine uses them in recipes like gingerbread, pumpkin pie, mulled wine, and spiced tea.
Chinese five-spice powder spice blend is used to season many dishes, baked goods, meats, vegetables, and soups.
Indian cuisine uses them in curries, garam masala spice blend, and chai.
Middle Eastern cuisine incorporates them into chermoula marinades and sauces, harissa, and ras el hanout spice blend,
North African cuisine incorporates them into key spice blends, including advieh (Persian), baharat, dukkah (Egyptian), and za’atar.
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WARMING SPICES
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Allspice
Black pepper
Cardamom
Cinnamon
Cloves
Coriander
Cumin
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Fennel
Ginger
Nutmeg
Star anise
Turmeric
Szechuan peppercorns
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