Once you’ve made some Spiced Apple Cider, or if you simply happen to have a bottle of storebought cider in the back of the fridge, it is a snap to make one of my favorite wintertime drinks, Caramel Apple Cider. I was first turned onto this drink on a visit to Starbucks, where it is generally available year-round but is often featured on the menu boards during the winter. The drink seems to retain heat much better than just about anything else, so not only does it taste great, but it keeps your hands warm when it is snowy outside!

The Starbucks version of this drink is made by steaming apple cider until it is very hot, then adding caramel and whipped cream. I start mine with homemade cider and heat it up in a saucepan if I am going to be serving a crowd and in a mug in the microwave if I’m only serving myself. Once the cider is steaming hot, stir in about 1 1/2 tbsp caramel sauce, then add whipped cream and another drizzle of caramel. Use any kind of caramel for this drink, whether it’s homemade sauce or your favorite topping brand - I’ve even melted solid caramels into it in a pinch and it turned out very well. I often add a very small pinch of salt to the caramel on top for that salted caramel effect, too.

The sweetness of the caramel highlights the sweetness of the apples in the cider, while the whipped cream on top is a nice, cool contrast to the steamy beverage below. And the caramel on top? Why, that’s just an excuse to eat even more caramel. As though I needed one.
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I generally like my milkshakes in classic flavors like vanilla, strawberry and chocolate, with the former two being slightly favored over the latter. When you have a really good milkshake, these flavors really shine. But as with all things, variety is nice, too, and as good as a plain vanilla milkshake is, it’s nice to be able to dress it up a bit with other flavors from time to time. This particular milkshake was inspired by a melted peanut butter cup - recently purchased and apparently sitting in a sunny spot in the car on the way home from the market. I considered popping it in the fridge to firm up, but ended up tossing it into the blender and turning it into a milkshake.

This milkshake isn’t super thick, nor is it so intensely flavored that you have to stop drinking after three or four sips. It is cool and refreshing, with just enough peanut butter and chocolate that you know what you’re tasting. It has a little bit more peanut butter flavor than chocolate, much like a peanut butter cup. The actual peanut butter cup called for in the recipe is a nice touch (whether yours is melted, like mine, or not) but is optional. If you prefer your milkshakes to be very thick, add an extra scoop of ice cream and even a few ice cubes, if necessary.
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I always like to plant a little mint in my garden because it’s easy to grow (gives me confidence with some of the trickier plants), smells great and is perfect for making mojitos. Mojitos are one of my favorite summertime drinks. They’re easy to make with just a few ingredients that can be put together by hand, and the combination of fresh mint and fresh lime juice is incredibly refreshing.

Mojitos are start by muddling - or mashing - mint leaves and sugar at the bottom of a cocktail glass to release their natural oils. Fresh lime juice and rum are added to the mixture, then the cocktail is topped off with club soda. Like other cocktails, it’s fun to dress up the classic every once in a while with a little twist. In this case, I put a raspberry twist on my mojito. I added fresh raspberries to the sugar and mint leaves at the bottom of the glass and muddled them all together before adding the liquids. This added a little extra sweet fruitiness (and a lot of color), without losing any of the refreshing elements of the classic.

Sometimes, I will use a bigger glass and increase the amount of club soda in the drink so that I have something I can sip for a long time on a hot afternoon (usually a better option than having multiple drinks!). If you want to make a nonalcoholic version of this drink, I would recommend using either lime-flavored sparkling water or a soda like sprite in place of the club soda. The lime sparkling water would be my first choice, since it’s not too sweet. Either option will add some extra flavor to the drink that you lose when you omit the rum.

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An Orange Julius is a frothy cold orange juice drink that tastes kind of like a creamsicle, except much lighter and much better. The company that makes them - also named Orange Julius - has been making these drinks since 1926. I remember getting so excited when I was a little kid and saw an Orange Julius stand. Absolutely nothing was more refreshing on a hot day. These days, O.J. is owned by Dairy Queen and, for whatever reason, there really aren’t any in my area anymore. So when I want one, I make up a batch at home using fresh orange juice.

The first time I made an Orange Julius at home was four years ago, almost to the day. At the time, I used a recipe from a Top Secret Recipes book, but I ended up tweaking it just a bit over time to get the exact consistency I want. The changes are very minor because the recipe is very simple: orange juice, water, sugar, egg white, vanilla and ice. Fresh orange juice is the key to getting the best flavor possible, so use it if you can. The egg is the key to the drink’s consistency. I still use a whole egg white in mine, but any pasturised egg white product will give you the frothiness that makes the drink unique.

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Drinking chocolate is a variation on hot chocolate that is usually richer, and less sweet than hot cocoa. The main ingredient, aside from milk, is chocolate, rather than cocoa powder or sugar. It’s a great cold weather treat because it’s basically a liquid dessert, a hot liquid dessert that warms you up with every sip!

I use a combination of dark chocolate and milk chocolate to get a good balance of intense chocolatiness and sweetness. I find that using only dark chocolate can make the drink too bitter and require the addition of a lot of extra sugar. Milk chocolate might be too sweet on its own, but it adds some sweetness and some additional creaminess to the drink. I do add some sugar to my drinking chocolate, as well as some cocoa powder. The finished drink is very creamy and chocolaty, but it’s not so rich that you can’t drink a whole mug full of it. A bit of whipped cream on top is a nice finishing touch.

You can make a single serving in a mug as long as you stir well to mix in all the chocolate, but it’s a bit easier to make this drink in a small saucepan - especially since you can double the quantities to serve some friends or family. As with most chocolate-centric treats, use good quality chocolate because you can really taste it.

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Limeade isn’t nearly as common as lemonade, but everyone I know that is a fan of the lemon juice drink is at least as appreciative of limeade, if not moreso. The drinks are virtually the same - lemon/lime juice, sugar, water and ice - but limeade is a bit brighter and tangier than lemonade. It often tastes less sweet than lemonade, even with the same amount of sugar put in as a sweetener. For me, this makes it even more refreshing. It is perfect for cutting through rich or spicy foods.

Just as with lemonade, limeade is best when you start out with fresh limes.  Real lime juice gives the drink a fresher flavor than prebottled does.  If you’re going to try prebottled lime juice, you may as well just start out with a whole bottle of limeade and save some time (Simply Limeade is one of my favorites, if you are looking for a good bottled brand). Once you have your juice, you only need to stir in some sugar and dilute the mixture with water before chilling and drinking. I usually make a simply sugar syrup for lemonade, and I do pretty much the same thing for limeade, heating some of the water used just enough to dissolve all the granulated sugar. Sugar should be adjusted to taste, of course.

Limeade is great on its own, but can also be a good mixer for margaritas and other cocktails. It’s summery, but there is no reason that limeade can’t be enjoyed all year round as long as you can find juicy limes to start with.

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