fourteen short years ago, i married an excellent mixologist, whose mad cocktail skills have only increased over time! mr. dearie makes the best cocktails around, but my favorite beverage during the cold nights of winter, hands down, is his hot buttered rums.

mr. dearie's recipe makes one serving of this classic, spicy hot cocktail, although it can easily be doubled with excellent results. while precise measurements are provided, this is a very flexible beverage. feel free to increase or decrease the ingredient amounts to your personal taste preferences. also, it’s imperative, absolutely imperative, that you only use real butter for optimal results and avoid margarine at all costs.

mr. dearie’s hot buttered rums

1.75 oz. spiced dark rum
1 thin slice unsalted butter
1 tbsp. dark brown sugar (light will do)
pinch ground cinnamon
pinch of freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. real vanilla extract*
6 oz. hot water
star anise (optional, mr. dearie indulges me because i love them so)

*we like to use pure bourbon vanilla extract from trader joe’s

place butter, brown sugar and vanilla extract into a heavy glass or crystal tumbler. add a dash of ground cinnamon and a dash of freshly ground nutmeg to your glass. blend ingredients in glass until creamy.

add boiling hot water by pouring water over a metal teaspoon and fill glass until nearly 3/4 full. add rum and mix well.

garnish with a star anise pod (optional). additionally, because this is a piping hot beverage, mr. dearie likes to wrap a cloth napkin around our crystal old-fashioned glasses to protect against burned fingers.

cheers and enjoy! mr. dearie adds, “you are welcome.”