RECIPES: Hot Cocoa a la Owl's Flower

It is really cold right now.

Kara's in Virginia, Ginger's in Illinois, and neither is warm. While we have our own preferences when it comes to warm-up drinks (Ginger prefers coffee, Kara prefers tea), we do agree on one thing: hot cocoa. As Ginger pointed out, it's sort of the happy medium between the two.

So while we're trying to regain some body heat, here are a few suggestions for hot cocoa variants you might find at Owl's Flower on cold days.

Herne's Honey Hot Cocoa

We already know from the first book that Herne loves Owl's Flower's specialty honey cookies. Mix in a spoonful of honey and a few drops of vanilla for a sweet variant. Bonus points if you use local honey: save a little for spring to help fight off allergies when the flowers start blooming again!

Gingerbread Hot Cocoa

After baking up sheets of gingerbread cookies for the shop, Iris gets a bit of a craving. There are a couple ways to go about this, the easiest being to use store-bought gingerbread spice. Mix a tablespoon per cup into your favorite hot cocoa mix. Alternatively, you can mix up equal parts cinnamon, ginger, and allspice for a do-it-yourself version. A little maple syrup or molasses really makes it work.

Peppermint Mocha

For the nights when you want something seasonal but also want to stay awake a little longer. Instead of water or milk, mix your cocoa of choice with coffee and a dash of milk. Then drop in a mini candy cane and let it melt for an extra dose of Christmas flavor.

Will you be trying any of these? What's your favorite stay-warm drink? You can always chat with us on Facebook and Twitter!

BONUS RECIPE: Potato Stuffing

If you've read our first two books, you know that they come with recipes in the back. (And if you haven't read them... they come with recipes in the back!) The first two feature custom-made dishes by Angela Pritchett, but our third will will have something a bit different: a recipe that, in the story, comes from Iris's cat-having neighbor Ms. Waters.

In reality, the recipe comes from a Lebanese cookbook made by the women of St. George's Orthodox Church in Charleston, WV — in other words, the church built by Kara's family! We're looking forward to giving this family recipe (and perhaps others) a new life with new people. And today, with Thanksgiving around the corner, we thought we'd share another recipe from Kara's family.

This is an old favorite: a mashed potato-based stuffing whose recipe was passed down from Kara's great-grandmother. Does that mean it's a traditional Lebanese dish? Not quite... that's the impression we got at first, but it turned out great-grandma got it from a New England cookbook. Regardless... it's a family recipe, it's delicious, and you should all get to try it.

Here you go!

Ingredients
- 4 lbs. potatoes, peeled and mashed
- 3 cups cracker crumbs*
- 1 cup butter, melted
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 chopped white onion
- 1 egg
- Dash nutmeg
- Salt to taste

Directions

1. Add cracker crumbs a bit at a time to mashed potatoes in a large pot.

2. Add butter, celery, onion, and egg. Mix well.

3. Add nutmeg and salt to taste.

4. Divide the mixture. You should have enough to stuff a decent-sized turkey and to bake in a casserole dish.

* If you're crushing up the cracker crumbs yourself, use unsalted crackers.