On the last day of January, as I write this, I’m already moving on to spring…yet the weather report says we’re still in the clutches of WINTER. Sigh. I guess I need to resign myself to the fact that we’ve got a bit more (months more?) cold weather ahead of us….and if that’s the case, we might as well have something warm to drink, right?

Here are three tasty, healthier-than-usual warm winter drinks to give you some tasty varieties on those days between here and warm sunny days. I’ve been drinking all of them this winter and loving them. I can’t even pick a favorite, I don’t think. They’re all three delicious. And they contain real, good for you ingredients. Try them all and let us know your favorite (if you can pick only one!).

Spiced Coconut Milk:

1 cup coconut milk, unsweetened (or any milk you normally use)
Less than one drop of cinnamon essential oil (dip a toothpick in to the bottle of oil and swirl it around in the milk)
Less than one drop ginger essential oil (use the toothpick method above)
Pinch of cayenne
2 teaspoons real maple syrup (adjust to taste)
1 Tablespoon almond butter

Combine in small pan and heat until warm. Stirring to melt and stir in the nut butter.

Real Food Hot Chocolate:

1 cup coconut milk, unsweetened (or milk of your choice)
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
1 Tablespoon raw cacao powder (add more if you like darker chocolate)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon maple syrup (adjust to taste)
Less than one drop of cinnamon oil (see above recipe)
Dash each of cayenne pepper, vanilla extract and salt

Combine in small pan and heat until warm.

Golden Milk:

3 Cups coconut milk, unsweetened
1 teaspoon turmeric
Less than one drop cinnamon oil (see first recipe)
Less than one drop ginger oil (see first recipe)
1 teaspoon honey (adjust to taste)
Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon coconut oil

Combine in medium pan and heat until warm. Let sit for 10 minutes to infuse. (You’ll need to stir this one as you drink it as it wants to separate, but it’s worth the stir.)

Coconut oil, turmeric, honey, cinnamon and ginger all have wonderful health benefits for your body. Drink up!

PS Thank you Muddy Fish Studio for lending me some of your lovely wood kiln fired mugs. If you like them as much as I do, you might want to check her site out.