Yahoo Lifestyle My Chef-Husband’s Secret Ingredient Hot Toddy Saves Me Every Cold & Flu Season
I rarely get sick but when I do, it's like the apocalypse has arrived. It's all out warfare for my body to try and stave off all the ailments that have attacked me tenfold and I mean every last one, from feverish night sweats to bone-crushing chills under five blankets.
We're only halfway through January and I've been sick for most of it. After attending a recent Denver Broncos game in negative-degree temperatures at the request of my chef-husband Luke, I came down with a nasty viral infection strep throat situation supporting him—and his favorite team.
Bedridden for days, I could barely swallow water let alone the butternut squash and vegetable soups he made for me. The only thing I would raise my head off my pillow for was his secret ingredient hot toddy.
Too weary to watch him make them for me, I just accepted the warming cocktail each time. A few sips of the soothing elixir was all I needed before going back to sleep. So, when he had to leave for a trip a few days into my illness, I was left to my own devices with the ingredients he left lined up for me on the counter.
Here's how I learned to make the world's best hot toddy, with a little coaching from afar.
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What's in a Hot Toddy?
For some reason, I always thought hot toddies were tea-based growing up. My mother loved them and was always nursing what I thought was a hot tea toddy when she was sick. I even bought her a hot toddy recipe book for Christmas one year but never actually flipped through it or had one myself—until this month when I caught the plague.
I don't know why I assumed hot tea was involved, but hot toddies don't contain an ounce of tea. Instead, they're made with boiling water, lemon juice, sugar or honey and alcohol. Usually a dark spirit like bourbon, rye or Irish whiskey, which was most certainly what my Irish mother was probably adding to hers.
After that, it's a matter of mixology, which I also learned when I googled how to make a hot toddy hours after Luke left me on my deathbed.
JK, he stocked the fridge with four quarts of homemade tomato, spicy coconut pumpkin, and French onion soup, along with a crock of meatballs and sauce, plus enough gourmet grilled cheese ingredients to open a sandwich shop. Gotta love him.
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How to Make My Chef-Husband's Hot Toddy
But back to the toddy. Halfway through a recipe I found online, I was convinced this was the easiest quasi-cocktail ever until I got to the end where she said you'll have to adjust the recipe to suit your preferences by adding more honey or less lemon. Given my foggy state, I was NOT up for tweaking anything and needed to nail this drink on the first try so I called Luke.
"I don't understand," I said, "how much more honey should I do than lemon?? Do I want more citrus or more sweetness? HELP."
"I don't use honey," he replied. "I left you my secret ingredient on the counter."
My eyes beelined to the corner where a bottle of whiskey was stashed. Check! And then found another bottle of some yellow-tinged liquid labeled Gifford Non-Alcoholic Ginger Liquor.
"This ginger stuff?" I questioned.
"Yep. I don't use honey. That's a ginger liqueur for more flavor. It takes the place of honey and adds zing," he said. "Just do a 2:1 ratio with the whiskey, pour in boiling water and add fresh-squeezed lime juice. That's it. That's the recipe."
It seemed simple enough. So that's exactly what I did by adding two shots of whiskey to a glass, along with one shot of the ginger liqueur and a squeeze of lemon, then I poured boiling hot water over the top and tried to wait a full minute until I wouldn't burn my tongue to take the first sip.
My Honest Thoughts About My Chef-Husband's Hot Toddy
I must confess, I hate hot tea. Iced tea I love, but hot? No thank you. So thinking a hot toddy was comprised of tea all these years definitely deterred me. This non-tea toddy on the other hand was life-changing. The mix of zippy ginger with hot water and lemon was like a liquid lozenge for my poor inflamed tonsils and obviously, the shot of whiskey added a boozy little kick that hopefully killed some of the virus or whatever was lurking back there.
I was hooked and the fact that the recipe only requires three ingredients (plus water) and takes all of five minutes to make was a total bonus when I was in such a delirious state.
I'm not going to say Luke's toddies completely cured me, but they definitely made a feisty flu that wouldn't quit much more tolerable.
Plus, I think my mom would have loved them.
Best Hot Toddy Tips
Add some honey: If you're a true toddy fan and used to drinking, ordering and making them then by all means stick with the classic recipe and include sugar or honey. The ginger liquor will just be a bonus.
Add a cinnamon stick: For extra flavor—and aesthetics—you could also add a cinnamon stick. I searched every cabinet looking for one while my water boiled but fell short. Then again, when you're that sick it's not about the Insta-worthy visuals.
Add fresh ginger: Too sick to run out for Gifford's ginger liqueur? I feel you. Adding a piece of raw ginger to the boiling water-lemon mixture could also work.
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