This holiday season, you should try some beverages, warm or cold. Eggnog is a good one. It originated in medieval Britain and is usually served around the Christmas season. Its made of eggs, sugar, cream, milk, and vanilla extract. Its usually topped with cinnamon or whipped cream. So if you’re looking to try a new drink this season, eggnog is a great option!

There’s also a Vegan Eggnog for the people that don’t like dairy. Vegan Eggnog is made out of nondairy milk, ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, sweetener of choice, silken tofu, a pinch of salt, and pure vanilla extract. The results of an informal poll, the best brand you can buy in the supermarket is Blue Diamond Almond Nog available at Kroger.

Another Christmas beverage is hot chocolate its also known as hot cocoa or drinking chocolate. It’s a shaved or melted chocolate or cocoa powder, heated milk or water, and usually a sweetener. You can make hot chocolate however you would like.

Hot Chocolate recipes:

Homemade Hot Chocolate- https://celebratingsweets.com/homemade-hot-chocolate/ 

• Place the milk of your choice in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Using milk instead of water, makes this hot chocolate extra creamy and flavorful. I prefer whole milk or 2% milk, but you can choose any milk that you choose (I’ve even used unsweetened almond milk).
• Whisk in cocoa powder and sugar, and heat until warm.
• Once the milk is warm, add chocolate chips, whisking until they melt into the milk.
• Add a splash of vanilla extract.
• Serve immediately, topped with your favorite garnishes: marshmallows, whipped cream, chopped chocolate, crushed candy canes or more.

Creamy Hot Chocolate- https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/20211/creamy-hot-cocoa/

• Sugar and cocoa powder: This sweet and creamy hot cocoa starts with white sugar and unsweetened cocoa powder.
• Salt: A pinch of salt enhances the chocolatey flavor, but it won’t make your hot cocoa taste salty.
• Water: Pour boiling water over the sugar, cocoa powder, and salt.
• Milk: You can use whole, 2 percent, or the alternative milk of your choice.
• Vanilla: A dash of vanilla takes the decadent flavor over the top.

• Half-and-half: Half-and-half is added after the hot chocolate is poured into the mugs, creating a rich texture and cooling the cocoa to a drinkable temperature.

French Hot Chocolate- https://www.wellplated.com/french-hot-chocolate/

• You must use real, good-quality chocolate bars. Homemade hot chocolate recipes contain very few ingredients, and the largest ingredient is chocolate, so be picky.
  Use dark or bittersweet chocolate. Milk chocolate will be too sweet, at least for most European tastebuds.
•  That said, this is YOUR hot chocolate. If you prefer sweet and want to go with milk, I say, cheers!
• I have the most success with a blend of whole milk and cream. Some recipes call for almost entirely cream, but that was a bit much for me. I recommend a blend of the two.
• Do not use water. This might be OK for a packet mix in a pinch, but we are in the business of REAL hot chocolate today, and real hot chocolate needs milk.
• Need dairy-free hot chocolate? I recommend full-fat coconut milk for a similar experience. I haven’t tried this recipe with dairy-free chocolate bars yet, so I’m afraid I can’t say how that would work out. (But if you do try, I’d love to hear how it goes!)