January 11th is National Hot Toddy Day; January 17th is National Hot Buttered Rum Day. But we think this Chocolate Hot Toddy recipe (photo #1) is so full of holiday cheer, it deserves to be enjoyed now.

Hot buttered rum, also called a rum toddy, is a type of hot toddy, a venerable warm cocktail made with rum or another spirit, boiling water, sugar or honey, spices, and in this case, butter.

The word toddy, which first appears in English around 1600-1610, comes from the Hindi word tari, meaning palm sap—the juice of the palmyra palm tree, which was fermented into an alcoholic drink.

For food trivia lovers: The word punch also derives from Hindi, panch, after the Sanskrit panchan, meaning five. It refers to the five different ingredients of punch. Here’s more about it.
 
 
TODDY HISTORY

Warm alcoholic beverages such as glogg, mulled wine and toddies originated in Northern Europe, where beer, cider, wine and spirits were mulled with sugar and spices to add some cheer to cold winter days.

Northern Europeans took their cue from the Romans, who, by the 2nd century, were heating wine to warm themselves [source]. They occupied Britain from the first through fifth centuries C.E.

Over the centuries, the cold weather drink became a standard during the holiday season. It’s what you received when you were offered a “cup of cheer” or “holiday cheer” in Merrie Olde England.

Toddy Comes To The New World

Hot buttered rum was a favorite in Colonial America. Rum is a New World spirit* made from molasses, a by-product of sugar refining. Distilleries in the Colonies† were making rum from molasses by the 1650s, and “hot buttered rum” joined the toddies and nogs of English tradition.

Hot buttered rum is traditionally made with dark rum, which has been aged in oak barrels to develop a deeper, molasses flavor. You can use light rum or spiced rum for a milder or spicier flavor, respectively.

You may see recipes for, creamy toddies, which add cream or ice cream to the basic recipe. These are new interpretations, not traditional toddies, which were not cream beverages.

Toddies can be made of any spirit; bourbon, brandy, tequila, Scotch, and other whiskeys are popular, as is sherry.

Hot toddy’s relatives include glogg, mulled wine, nog, and other spirited drinks. Here are the differences.
 
 
RECIPE: CHOCOLATE HOT BUTTERED RUM (CHOCOLATE RUM TODDY)

This recipe was created by chocolatier John Anderson of Napa Valley’s Woodhouse Chocolate, using dark cocoa powder.

He notes: “You can adjust the cocoa in the recipe according to your desired chocolate intensity. Personally, I like a subtle chocolate flavor in this drink, but you can certainly go full chocolate if you so desire. This is just one more thing to be thankful for around the holidays!”

Base For 10-12 Servings

 
Ingredients Per Drink

[2] Hot buttered rum in a glamorous glass. In Colonial times, metal or stone steins were used (photo © Ron Abuelo).

[3] Do marshmallows work in a cocktail? Try this recipe from The Cookie Rookie.

[4] A conventional toddy. In Colonial times it was served in a stein (photo © Hella Cocktail Co).

1. MAKE the base: Beat the ingredients together in a mixer until fluffy and smooth.

2. PLACE the base into a mug (preferably a glass mug) and add the rum and the water. Stir vigorously until well-combined.

3. TOPP with whipped cream if desired, and serve.
 
 
MORE TODDY RECIPES

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*Bourbon, cachaça, mezcal, pisco, Tennessee whiskey, tequila and others originated in the New World.

†While rum was distilled in the Caribbean alongside the sugar plantations, Colonists imported cheap molasses to distilled their own [source].
 
 

[1] and [2] How many uses can you find for deviled egg plates and similar platters? Photo of “Naked Vegetables” at Vicia Restaurant | St. Louis | Facebook, credited to @ctroesser for @sophisticatedlivingmag. The dips are broccoli hummus, chorizo purée, strained yogurt, homemade butter and nasturtium salt (green).

[3] Shrimp cocktail bites in Chinese soup spoons (here’s the recipe from Gooseberry Mooseberry). Some 20 years ago, a creative caterer noted that these spoons stand up on their own, and used them to serve cocktail bites.

If you like to entertain, or to entertain your family with fun food concepts, we have an idea for you:

Find ways to re-purpose special-use plates and serving dishes.

We were inspired by these photos from Vicia restaurant in St. Louis, which led us to repurpose our deviled egg plate to serve crudités, petit fours, and other bites TBD.

In our early years of cooking, we bought everything we could possibly need to be a proper hostess. We modeled our entertaining after the formal French presentations of the day.

Fast forward over the decades: How times have changed! Even our fancy dinners aren’t that fancy anymore. Some things we haven’t used in 10 or 20 years!

We knew we had a lot of tableware to repurpose or retire. So we undertook a hunt through our kitchen and storage pantry, and here’s what we found:

 
No wonder we can’t open a cupboard or closet without a small landslide (we call it the “suicide leap”—packed-in items will do anything to get out of that cabinet).

Here’s our first resolution for the new year: Repurpose it or give it away.

So far we’ve repurposed:

Asparagus plates, oyster plates and toast racks: your time is up. And sorry, molcajete: you too. You’re a picturesque way to serve tortilla chips, but not as useful as our score of serving bowls.
 
 
TIP #2: AMUSE BOUCHE

Amuse-bouche (pronounced ah-MEEZ boosh) is French for “amusing the mouth.” It’s an hors d’oeuvre-size portion plated in a tiny dish, sent as a gift from the chef after the order has been placed but before the food arrives.

It’s just one bite; here’s more about them.

For years, caterers have been using Chinese soup spoons to serve cocktail bites. The spoons have a level bottom that stands up on a plate or platter: a creative way to serve.

We have lots of Chinese soup spoons (don’t ask!). Our “repurposing” task led us to a fusion idea: Use the spoons to serve a nightly amuse bouche at dinner.

The real creative idea here is turning whatever you find in the fridge into an amuse bouche—a rustic one, nothing fancy.

We repurpose leftovers or whatever we have in the fridge: a cube of cheese with herbs and spices, a piece of hard-boiled egg with curried mayo, a spoonful of leftover mac and cheese, a bite of chicken with fresh-cracked pepper.

It’s just a bite…and it’s easy to re-season leftovers with dabs of different condiments, herbs and spices. And may we add: We’re also using a shelf full of condiments that take up space (chile sauce, chutney, honey mustard, pesto….)

Get out those Chinese soup spoons and try it!

Purple may not be a theme color for the holidays, but we can’t resist the Stokes purple sweet potatoes that are in markets now.

Once a rarity outside of Asian markets, purple potatoes are now popping up in mainstream markets nationwide.

There are different varieties, which vary in shape and levels of moisture, density, richness and sweetness.

Some are brown-skinned with purple flesh. Others, like the Murasaki sweet potato, have a lovely violet skin, but the flesh inside is white.

The Filipino ube, which would seem to be part of this group, isn’t. It’s a yam, not a sweet potatoe; it grows on a vine above the ground, as opposed to under the soil.
 
 
WHY IS THE FLESH PURPLE?

The deep purple color comes from several anthocyanins, antioxidant pigments found in blueberries, cherries, red cabbage, strawberries, and other fruits and vegetables their color.

Note that not all blue-purple-red produce colors are from anthocyanins. Beets, for example, get their color from betalains, other pigments.
 
 
THE ARRIVAL OF THE STOKES PURPLE SWEET POTATO

Stokes potatoes are veiled in mystery. They were propagated by Mike Sizemore a grower in Stokes County, North Carolina, the nation’s largest sweet potato-producing state (who knew?).

He relates that one day in 2003, when he won a prize for his sweet potatoes at a state fair, an unidentified woman approached gave him some deep purple sweet potatoes.

At the time, there were already other purple-fleshed sweet potatoes on the market, including the Okinawan sweet potato, also known as the Hawaiian sweet potato and uala. Under its light beige-colored skin is violet-purple flesh.

Sizemore did not know the origin of the dark-skin potatoes he was handed, but propagated them and found that the potatoes kept their deep color remarkably well when cooked.

He obtained a patent on the potato and started marketing it commercially in 2006. In 2013 he licensed it to California’s largest sweet potato grower and distributor, and that company is now selling it exclusively through specialty produce distributor Frieda’s [source].

We are big fans. The Stokes are moister, have more density, and better color when cooked, than Okinawan sweet potatoes. They has a rich, almost winy flavor.

You can substitute them in any sweet potato, and many white potato, recipes. Mashed or french-fried, they’ll have more eye appeal than anything else on the plate.
 
 
HOW TO COOK STOKES PURPLE POTATOES

Truth to tell, when we first brought home a bag, we couldn’t wait to eat them. We popped them in the microwave for 4-5 minutes.

The potatoes were long and relatively slender; they emerged moist and delicious. We didn’t even need to add butter!

Here are tips from Frieda’s:

[1] Stokes purple potatoes, baked (photo courtesy Frieda’s).

[2] Raw Stokes Purples (photo courtesy Specialty Produce).

[3] Your favorite potato dishes can now be charmingly purple (photo courtesy Frieda’s).

[4] Oven baked fries. Add red ketchup for a riot of color (photo courtesy Frieda’s).

 
Note that the drier texture of this potato lends better to high-moisture cooking methods.

The Stokes Purple sweet potato can be prepared like most sweet potatoes; however, their lower moisture content should be taken into account. Adding one or two tablespoons of liquid to the recipe will achieve a more desirable consistency.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF POTATOES

Millennia ago, thousands of varieties of potatoes grew wild in the foothills of the Andes Mountains of Peru.

Scores of varieties were cultivated around 3,000 B.C.E. by the Incas, including those with the pigments that create blue- and purple-fleshed white potatoes and purple sweet potatoes.

Today, purple potatoes are grown around the world. Here’s more about purple potatoes and a recipe for a colorful purple potato and beet salad.

Here’s a brief history of potatoes.

[2] Julienned sundried tomatoes (photo courtesy Sevillo Fine Foods).

Our holiday meals are known for too much food. We wish we could cut back on the number of dishes on the groaning board, but we can’t. We want them all.

But we do intersperse high-calorie dishes with equally delicious foods that healthy eaters and calorie-counters can enjoy in heaping portions; and everybody else will enjoy them as well.

This recipe from Melissa’s fits the bill: flavorful, colorful and healthful.

If you have guests who are picky about added sugar, don’t toss the dried cranberries* in the last step. Instead, create a circle of cranberries around the rim of the serving bowl, so people can scoop up the beans from the center.
 
 
RECIPE: CHRISTMAS TREE GREEN BEANS

Ingredients For 6-8 Servings

 
Preparation

1. BLANCH the green beans in boiling salted water until just crisp-tender. Immediately place them in a bowl of ice water to stop them from cooking.

2. HEAT the olive oil in a sauté pan and melt the butter. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onions are sweated and translucent.

4. ADD the beans and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the beans are heated through. Remove from the heat, stir in the cranberries and serve.
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*Dried cranberries are sweetened with sugar. That’s why they’re not mouth-puckering tart.

Beyond vanilla, chocolate and red velvet, bakeries all over the world are turning out cupcakes in flavors from lemon meringue to Margarita.

But this list, adapted from the Carolina Cupcakery in Norfolk, Virginia, tops them all..

Truth to tell, we haven’t seen such a long list of flavors from any cupcakery—and this is just a selection. See all 250 flavors.

A thought: Can there be too many cupcake flavors? (Not if your goal is to eat a different flavor every day of the year.)

We present this list as inspiration for everyone who would like to bake some cupcakes on this food holiday…or any other day of the year.
 
CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

A lavender cupcake from Hey Little Cupcake.

Chocolate Maple Bacon from Tee and Cakes.

[3] Grasshopper, from Carolina Cupcakery.

Root Beer Float, from Yummy Cupcakes.

Sweetened Goat Cheese & Caramelized Tomato from More Cupcakes.

 
 
COFFEE CUPCAKES

Pancakes & Bacon Cupcake With Maple Buttercream Frosting, from Yummy Cupcakes.

S’mores Cupcake from Treat Cupcake Bar.

Chocolate Cherry Cupcakes from Baked By An Introvert.

FRUIT FLAVOR CUPCAKES

 
 
Exhausted yet?

This is only 1/3 of the list at Carolina Cupcakery.

The real challenge, we think, is figuring out what selection to bake in any given week.

You, however, need to pick only one or two to bake right now.