Hot Toddy
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Warm up with this cozy hot toddy recipe—boozy, lemony, and a touch sweet, all brought together with spices for the ultimate comforting drink. Perfect for chilly nights or when you need a little pick-me-up!
A hot toddy is a classic and warming whiskey cocktail infused with honey, lemon, and spices. My grandmother swore by it as a cure-all for colds, insomnia, or whatever ails you. But it’s also just the thing to warm yourself up on a chilly evening.
This hot toddy recipe is adapted from one of my favorite cocktail books, Give Me Liberty and Give Me a Drink! by C. Jarrett Dieterle. More than just a collection of delicious cocktail recipes, this book is also a look at the wacky and outdated liquor laws still in place across America. (Did you know that in Utah, cocktails must be mixed behind a “Zion curtain” that separates the bartender from the patrons and hides the mixing process?) If you’re looking for a fun gift for the cocktail lovers in your life, this book is a great choice—especially paired with a bottle of booze.
“WARM & WONDERFUL! We enjoyed this in December around the holidays…It is perfectly spiced, lemony and delicious by the fire.”
What You’ll Need To Make a Hot Toddy
- Bourbon: A type of whisky, this is the base spirit that gives the hot toddy its warmth and depth. Any good bourbon will work—choose one you enjoy sipping on its own!
- Fresh lemon juice: Adds a bright, refreshing tartness that balances the richness of the bourbon and honey. Always use fresh lemon juice for the best flavor.
- Honey: Sweetens the drink and adds a smooth, comforting element. Feel free to adjust the sweetness to your taste.
- Boiling water: Dilutes the mix and helps everything come together. Adjust the amount for a stronger or milder drink.
- Spices (cinnamon stick, cloves, and star anise): These garnishes add warmth and spice.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make a Hot Toddy
Simply combine the bourbon, lemon juice, and honey in a mug and add boiling water. Stir until the honey is dissolved and the ingredients are combined. Garnish with the cinnamon stick, cloves, and star anise pod. Sip, warm up, and enjoy!
Wondering what to serve with hot toddies? They pair wonderfully with a variety of treats. Try them with gingerbread cookies, shortbread, a cheese platter, spiced nuts, or pound cake.
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Hot Toddy
This hot toddy is the perfect whiskey cocktail to warm you up, with a soothing blend of flavors and spices.
Ingredients
- 2 oz (¼ cup) bourbon
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
- 1 tablespoon honey
- Boiling water, to fill a mug (6 to 8 oz)
- Cinnamon stick for garnish
- 3 to 4 cloves for garnish
- 1 star anise pod for garnish
Instructions
- Combine the bourbon, lemon juice, and honey in a mug and add the boiling water (use more or less, depending on how strong you'd like the drink to be). Stir until the honey is dissolved and the ingredients are well combined, 10 to 15 seconds. Garnish with the cinnamon stick, cloves, and star anise pod.
- Note: When serving, I recommend warming up some heavy mugs by first filling them with boiling water. Once they’re nice and toasty, spill out the water and fill with the cocktail. This will help the drinks maintain their cozy warmth a bit longer.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (1 servings)
- Calories: 207
- Fat: 0 g
- Saturated fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 18 g
- Sugar: 18 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 0 g
- Sodium: 1 mg
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I have tried several hot toddy recipes and this one is my favorite! It comes out well every time. I’ve also received compliments from my friends on how delicious it is! Highly recommend.
What a welcome beverage to celebrate the cozy holidays!
Now this is excellent. Easy. Perfect for a gray, cold day. I can also see how it would cure about anything, too.
Wonderful. Made with the spices that I had, prehistoric cinnamon stick and equally ancient cloves. Perfect drink for sipping on a cold wintry evening. Just added star anise pods, whole cloves and cinnamon sticks to my grocery list!
I’ve got home-grown satsumas that are a bit tart this year (drought?), so I used those instead of lemon juice. What a delicious drink! Thank you for the recipe – I can’t wait to share this drink with my sisters.
About that cinnamon stick: Lots of recipes call for them but they’re very expensive. I wouldn’t waste one on a hot toddy. Or do you reuse them? Thanks!
Hi Brianna, You can reuse them.
If you are in the United States, consider visiting a local ‘ethnic’ grocery stores that caters to a group that uses lots of spices in their cooking. Spices are usually much cheaper and even available in bulk in these places. I live in an urban area with Mexican, Middle Eastern, and Indian grocery stores. They all sell cinnamon sticks for a good price. I’ve even bought specialty spices like high-quality saffron and aleppo pepper at lower prices at these stores.
Also, there are 2 types of cinnamon: you don’t need to buy the real, fancy type for this recipe. Cassia cinnamon or cinnamon from Saigon is cheaper then Ceylon/ Sri Lankan true cinnamon.
When we make Hot Toddies, we use Fireball whiskey, gives the drink a yummy cinnamon flavor!
That sounds delicious!
Same! Drinking one now. I didn’t add the honey because Fireball is already so sweet.
Jenn there is a typo in the paragraph starting ” To make a hot Toddy…” In the parentheses it should say “which IS a type of bourbon. Just thought you would want to know!!
Thank you, Sandy!
I love a nice hot toddy! Your grandmother was right, they cure so much. 😂 Some people use tea as well. What are your thoughts on this?
Yes, love it with tea — that’s how my grandmother made it.
Do you substitute the brewed tea for the hot water?
And last night, with snow covering my yard, I enjoyed mine in an insulated coffee cup. Kept it warm till the last sip!
Yep 🙂
Love it especially with ginger tea. : )
Hi Jen! Huge fan from Salt Lake City here. The Zion Curtain is real and absolutely arcane, but it applies to restaurants only (where minors might witness the horrors of seeing a cocktail mixed!), not bars.
As a drinker in Utah, I can’t wait to try this hot toddy recipe. Thank you, and happy holidays! 🙂
So funny — hope you enjoy the recipe!