Hot Buttered Coffee

Coming up with ideas for recipes is a lot like travel: I don’t always know exactly where I am going. In this case, I started out thinking about grog—more specifically, "the grog that doesn't make you groggy." But then I was worried about cooking the coffee long enough to steep in the spices as you would for traditional grog (also, there is a citrus element that I wasn't sure about). So my idea shifted over to more of a hot-buttered-rum approach. You start with a "batter" of dark brown sugar, butter and spices that is ready to go at room temperature and can be made ahead of time. It’s a great recipe to keep around for parties, because you just put a spoon into a mug, add a shot of dark rum, cover with hot coffee and everything stays fresh.

Yield: Enough for about 12 mugs

Ingredients

For the batter:
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups dark brown sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. dried orange peel
1/8 tsp. ground clove
A pinch of cayenne pepper
A pinch of salt

Fresh-brewed coffee
Dark rum

Place batter ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl and cream together (using a spatula) until well combined. If making ahead, transfer to a container with a tightly fitting lid and refrigerate. Pull out of the refrigerator about an hour before serving to let the mixture warm up to room temperature.

For each mug of coffee:
Scoop a tablespoon of batter into a mug, add a jigger of rum (approximately 2 ounces) and pour in hot, fresh-brewed coffee. Stir to combine. Works especially well when mixed in a big thermos, ready to pour.