Nothing Warms Your Grandchild’s Soul Better Than These 9 Cold Weather Treats

Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but inside Grandma’s house, it is warm and delightful! Don’t you love this cozy time of year with the grandkids? Sure, it is nice to play outside with them, but I also love the opportunity to cuddle up indoors and bake and eat lots of delicious treats! 

While you probably have your own arsenal of yummy winter-weather treats, I wanted to share a few of my (and my grandkids’) favorites, including: 

1. Classic hot chocolate

Ingredients:

• Milk
• Cocoa powder
• Sugar
• A pinch of salt
• Vanilla extract
• Marshmallows for topping

1. Heat the milk in a pot.
2. In a separate bowl, mix cocoa powder, sugar, and salt.
3. Add the cocoa mixture to the warm milk and stir well.
4. Stir in vanilla extract.
5. Serve in mugs and top with marshmallows.

2. Homemade apple cider

Ingredients:

• Apples
• Water
• Sugar
• Cinnamon sticks
• Allspice

1. Quarter the apples and place them in a large pot.
2. Add water to cover the apples.
3. Stir in sugar, cinnamon sticks, and allspice.
4. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 2 hours.
5. Mash the apples and continue to simmer for another hour.
6. Strain the mixture and serve warm.

3. Baked cinnamon bananas

Ingredients:

• Bananas
• Cinnamon
• Honey

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Slice bananas and place on a baking sheet.
3. Drizzle honey over bananas.
4. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
5. Bake for 10-15 minutes.

4. Gingerbread cookies

Ingredients:

• Flour
• Baking soda
• Ground ginger
• Cinnamon
• Cloves
• Salt
• Butter
• Brown sugar
• Egg
• Molasses

1. In a bowl, mix flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and salt.
2. In another bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Beat in egg and molasses.
3. Gradually blend the dry ingredients into the wet mixture.
4. Chill the dough, then roll it out and cut into shapes.
5. Bake at 350°F for 8-10 minutes.

5. Pumpkin spice muffins

Ingredients:

• Flour
• Baking soda
• Pumpkin spice
• Salt
• Pumpkin puree
• Sugar
• Oil
• Eggs

1. Mix flour, baking soda, pumpkin spice, and salt in a bowl.
2. In another bowl, combine pumpkin puree, sugar, oil, and eggs.
3. Blend the wet ingredients with the dry.
4. Pour into muffin tins.
5. Bake at 350°F for 20-25 minutes.

6. Maple syrup snow candy

Ingredients:

• Maple syrup
• Clean snow or crushed ice

1. Boil maple syrup until it reaches 235°F.
2. Drizzle the boiled syrup over packed snow or crushed ice in lines.
3. Let it harden, then lift off and enjoy.

7. Warm rice pudding

Ingredients:

• Cooked rice
• Milk
• Sugar
• Butter
• Vanilla extract
• Cinnamon

1. Combine rice, milk, and sugar in a pot and cook until thick.
2. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla.
3. Serve with a sprinkle of cinnamon.

8. Mini apple crisps

• Apples, peeled and sliced
• Lemon juice
• Sugar
• Cinnamon
• Nutmeg
• Old-fashioned oats
• Brown sugar
• Butter, softened
• A pinch of salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Toss the apple slices with lemon juice, a sprinkle of sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Place them in individual ramekins.
3. In a bowl, mix oats, brown sugar, butter, and a pinch of salt to make the crumble topping.
4. Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the apples in the ramekins.
5. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the topping is golden and the apples are tender.
6. Serve warm, perhaps with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream.

9. Homemade Chai tea

Ingredients:

• Water
• Black tea bags
• Whole cloves
• Cardamom pods
• Cinnamon sticks
• Fresh ginger, sliced
• Honey or sugar
• Milk

1. In a pot, bring water to a boil.
2. Add the tea bags, cloves, cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks, and ginger slices.
3. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes.
4. Strain the mixture to remove the spices and tea bags.
5. Add honey or sugar to taste.
6. Stir in milk until the chai reaches your desired creaminess.
7. Serve warm in mugs, perhaps with a cinnamon stick for garnish.

Conclusion

These treats are not just delicious (if I do say so myself!) but a wonderful way to create warm, loving memories with your grandchildren. Enjoy this special time in the kitchen with those sweet grandbabies!