Dear Precipitation: Make up your mind or get lost. The only kind of “wintry mix” I approve of is a hot toddy.
That’s what I was muttering to the moody skies this morning as I sloshed and slipped along the sidewalk—and on my way home again this afternoon (a few hours early) in a gale of freezing rain. When I got home and slowly unclenched my numb fingers from my too-wet-to-be-useful umbrella, I thought: What, exactly, is a hot toddy? I’ve only read about them in books, but they sound like the perfect antidote to a day that’s alternated between rain, thunderstorms, snow, ice and everything in between.
According to the dictionary, a toddy is either the fermented sap of an Asian palm, or “a usually hot drink consisting of liquor (as rum), water, sugar, and spices.” Epicurious has a recipe for a hot toddy with bourbon, and a book I got from the Museum of the American Cocktail calls for a hot toddy to be made with brandy, lemon juice, and a sugar cube rubbed against a lemon rind. Alas, I had no fermented Asian palm sap, bourbon, brandy, or even a sugar cube on hand. But I had something better…
Maple Hot Toddy
1.5 oz maple liqueur, such as Sapling
1 Tbsp maple syrup (the real stuff — no fake aunts or cabins, please)
Juice of 1/2 a fresh lemon (preferably Meyer, which are sweeter than typical lemons)
4 oz boiling hot water
Prewarm a glass mug with hot water. Pour in first three ingredients, stir, then add hot water and stir again. Garnish with a lemon wedge or curl of lemon zest. Top (yourself) with a blanket, a good book, and a smug smile at the frightful weather outside.
The Editor Eats 
Oh geez, my girlfriend would love this. I got her maple candy for christmas and she lost it 🙂 Nice post!
OF COURSE you’d pick the maple hot toddy recipe — or is that truly the only kind? How did your husband like it? Seems like winter is really settling in on the East Coast this year. Maybe you should escape to Kenya! 🙂
I made up the maple version, it’s definitely not the only kind. The husband wasn’t a fan — but that just meant more toddy for me! 🙂 And I would LOVE to escape to Kenya and visit you…
Oh, goodness. A maple syrup hot toddy sounds like heaven. Isn’t it funny how sometimes the limitations of the pantry results in the most wonderful food and drink concoctions… out of necessity… 🙂
Hi Amanda,
I read your piece in NG about the portable micro-solar light sticks and I would like to donate some money to purchase some of these for this region. Can you tell me which organization I can contact to do so? Thank you.
Sorry to be so late in replying, but check out the website Lighting Africa for more information on “microsolar” lights. The one pictured in the article comes from a group called Solar Aid which distributes them in parts of Africa through something called the Sunny Money program. Thank you for your interest!