Hot Toddy!

This is probably the easiest hot toddy recipe on the planet.

Apple Cider & Whiskey

For snowy, cold days, start the crockpot! Add in apple cider, whiskey, and cinnamon sticks.

The proportions depend on how much you'd like to make and the size of your crockpot. I recommend using a 3:1 ratio for the apple cider and whiskey. There are lots of choices for whiskey, but I used Canadian whiskey. I added three cinnamon sticks to the crockpot, but you could certainly serve each toddy with a cinnamon stick.

Heat the mixture, but try not to let it boil. I started the crockpot on high but eventually turned it down to warm. Monitor the mixture to prevent it from boiling. If it boils, you'll burn off some of the alcohol. This is the best article that I could find on the topic of alcohol evaporation when cooking.

Stir. Test the temperature. Don't burn yourself. Serve by ladling into mugs.

Breakfast Pizza

Do you like fruit pizza? How about breakfast?

Well, this recipe combines the two.

I love this pizza, and I have made it at least five times now. It's to the point where I could complete the recipe by memory.

I first found out about this recipe while watching Giada on the Food Network.

The ingredients are simple. Have you cooked with mascarpone cheese? If you haven't, I recommend making this recipe to become familiar with the ingredient. That way you will be able to participate in conversations with food snobs.

I'm a big fan of prepping. I'm a planner. When I made this recipe recently, I had all of the ingredients chopped and ready to go. Who wants to spend all of their time in the kitchen when you have beautiful scenery like this? Hmmm.. watching a beautiful sunrise while fishing or slaving away in the kitchen?

Before leaving for a weekend at the lake, I mixed the Cinnamon-Sugar mixture (recipe for this mixture). Have you ever scraped the seeds out of a vanilla bean? If you haven't, please make this recipe in order to contribute to the food snobbery.

Next, I put two cups of berries in a container. I added all of these ingredients, butter, a lemon, cream, and store bought pizza dough to our cooler of beer.

When you are ready for breakfast, preheat the oven to 350. Roll out the dough onto a pizza pan or baking sheet. Brush the melted butter onto the dough. Then, sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the Cinnamon-Sugar (<-- Why is this a proper noun, Food Network?!) mixture onto the dough. Bake until it looks golden brown. It doesn't need to look pretty at this point (See photo). You'll be covering up the dough after it cools. Next, mix the mascarpone, lemon juice, lemon zest, and cream. Skip the lemon zest if you don't have it. I have had this recipe both with the zest and without. Spread this mixture onto the cooled dough. Then, you can get creative with the placement of the berries. Sprinkle the rest of the Cinnamon-Sugar mixture on top. This is seriously one of those recipes that you cannot screw up. Recommended drink pairing -- Coffee and Kahlua

Blueberry Vodka Drink

This is my favorite summer mix. My friend Katie taught me.

It's really easy, and it's heavenly on a hot summer day.

Ingredients:
Simply Lemonade
Blueberry Vodka (I prefer Stoli Blueberry, but I've enjoyed many other options like Absolut Berri Acai and Smirnoff Blueberry)
blueberries
Lots of *ice
Fill up a clear, glass pitcher with ice. Add about 1/2 cup of blue berries. Then, fill up about 1/2 of the pitcher with the vodka. Fill up the rest of the pitcher with the lemonade. Stir. Stir again. ENJOY! Let me know what you think.

*Trust me. This drink is really sneaky. The ice may save your life.