Winter seems to last forever, and as much as you might love coffee or your stand-by hot chai, there comes a time when you wish you could get the benefits of drinking something warm while breaking out of your flavor rut. I mean, do all those mug-cradling Instagram folks just drink the same coffee concoction every single day? Where is their sense of adventure?
We’re right there with you. That’s why we poked around to find some of the tastiest drinks that might not have made it onto your radar yet. And no, you can’t get most of them at Starbucks — but that’s OK. Think of the time you spend preparing them as an opportunity to take a deep breath and refocus yourself. Or you could do some jumping jacks to get the circulation back in your toes again. Your choice!
From the increasingly popular golden milk to a drink made with wheat flour and a coffee made with chocolate, here are the hot drinks you’ve just got to try.
Golden Milk
Turmeric is super-popular right now with its well-known ability to reduce inflammation while also being delicious. Golden milk turns turmeric into a tasty tea by combining milk, turmeric powder, honey and black pepper.
Dandelion Root Tea
Dandelion root reportedly helps digestion, skin health and blood sugar and detoxes your body along with a host of other possible benefits. Another bonus? Dandelion root kind of tastes similar to coffee. This recipe brews up a batch with butter and cinnamon to make it extra creamy.
Hot Butterbeer
If you love Harry Potter but haven’t been able to make it to Wizarding World yet, this butter beer recipe will make you feel a little closer. What is essentially a sparkling, hot butterscotch milk beverage is perfect if you want to drink your dessert.
Lemon-Ginger Tea
You’ve probably seen lemon-ginger tea in the grocery store, but the fresh version tastes even better. It’s exactly what it sounds like: Lemon and ginger in boiling water. Honey adds a bit of sweetness if you’re into that kind of thing.
Cacao Coffee
Cacao is the purest form of chocolate, which also means it’s bitter and not much like the chocolate we think of at all. In this form, the bitterness gives it an almost coffeelike flavor. Or you could think of it as a healthy hot chocolate. Either way, we like this recipe that uses gelatin, coconut oil and cinnamon to give it a little something extra.
London Fog
A fancy name for what is essentially a tea latte, a London fog is Earl Grey tea with your milk of choice, hot and frothy, with vanilla syrup. The bergamot in Early Grey gives the drink an extra kick plain black tea wouldn’t have. This recipe uses what might already be in your cupboard in the form of vanilla extract and maple syrup.
Macadamia Yerba Mate Latte
Yerba mate is a tea made from the South American holly tree that has about as much caffeine as coffee. It’s got an interesting, earthy taste on its own, but we really love the idea of making it into a latte, like this macadamia yerba mate latte recipe.
Raab
Flour and butter in your tea? Yes, if you’re drinking raab. This traditional sweet Gujarati drink is made with whole-wheat flour, ghee (which is similar to clarified butter), ginger powder and a form of sugar called jaggery.
Mushroom Coffee Latte
One food you probably don’t think of drinking is mushrooms. But it turns out, in addition to having healing, medicinal properties, mushrooms taste remarkably like… coffee. This latte mixes mushrooms with cashew milk and maca powder to create a frothy, healthy drink.
Avena Caliente
What if you could drink your morning oatmeal instead? That’s what this traditional Dominican drink recipe allows. It’s got all your favorite winter spices — like cinnamon, nutmeg and clove — mixed with milk and oatmeal for a nutritious morning drink.
Cinnamon Tea
Cinnamon is one of the easiest spices to love, and this tea combines it with ginger, cream and honey to make a tasty, sinus-clearing hot drink for a chilly winter day.
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