Recipe: Holiday Hot Toddy
Essential Takeaways
- Treat yourself to this warm and spicy cocktail that also doubles as a home remedy to help fight off cold and flu symptoms.
- Created with Elix TCM advisor and Chef Zoey Gong, this recipe was crafted with a holistic food therapy approach rooted in plant-based Chinese medicinal cuisine.
- Let us know if you recreate this recipe by tagging us @elixhealing @zoeyxinyigong on Instagram!
Cap off any holiday get-together with a smokey, citrus cocktail that will warm you right to your core. This twist on a classic Hot Toddy is made with whiskey, warm water, honey, lemon, and spices that work wonders if you feel a cold coming on, or want to decompress from holiday festivities, traveling, and end of year stress.
While this drink is already popular for its health benefits, our recipe includes a few drops from our Get Well tincture to increase immune support without compromising taste. The best part is that this recipe uses a lot of simple ingredients you probably already have on hand, and comes together in minutes. Feel free to swap the whiskey for a citrus-based kombucha to make a non-alcoholic version for the whole family to enjoy.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Benefits:
- Dispel cold and gently warm the body
- Improve digestion
- Healthy dose of vitamin C
Holiday Hot Toddy Recipe
Ingredients (1 mug):
- 1 large piece of lemon peel
- 4-5 whole cloves
- 1.5 cups citrus-based kombucha*
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup if making it vegan
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 3 squeezes of Elix Get Well Tincture or Ginger Aide Tincture
- Rosemary (optional as garnish)
*For an alcoholic version, you can use 3oz of whiskey.
Method:
- Push 4-5 whole cloves onto the lemon peel.
- In a small pot, heat kombucha, lemon juice, honey or maple syrup, cinnamon stick, and lemon zest over medium-low heat.
- When the liquid is warm, serve in a mug and mix in Elix Get Well.
- Garnish with the clove lemon peel and rosemary. Serve immediately
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This article was reviewed by Zoey Gong.
Zoey Gong is a Traditional Chinese Medicine nutritionist, food therapist, and chef. Her recipes have been featured in various publications, including the cover of Food & Wine magazine in the February 2023 issue. She’s the author of The Five Elements Cookbook: A Guide to Traditional Chinese Medicine with Recipes for Everyday Healing, where she guides readers in the basics of TCM through encyclopedic entries on common ingredients and 50 nourishing recipes.