Happy Monday, people!  I hope your Superbowl Sunday was magnificent — full of chicken wings and merriment, just like mine was.

Just a quick recipe today for y’all.  If you’ve been reading this blog for a bit, you know I love wintertime, especially the holidays.  One of the things I look forward to all year long are the holiday beverages that arrive at my favorite coffee shops around late November.  One of my favorite things to do when the weather starts to turn cold is head to Starbucks for my custom-made Christmas beverage.  While I find a traditional gingerbread latte to be just a bit too sweet, I love combining a dash of the gingerbread syrup with a touch of white mocha in a grande coffee — it’s like a hot and spicy holiday cookie you can drink!  Yum.

Generally, I have to go without this treat for about 10 months out of the year (which makes January exceptionally depressing).  But then one cold, gray morning a few weeks ago, I realized that I could probably re-create my favorite coffee drink at home.  So I brushed off my barista apron and got to work.  After a little research, I came up with an easy-peasy recipe for homemade, all-natural gingerbread simple syrup.  Now I can have Christmas coffee anytime I want.  And so can you!

Gingerbread Simple Syrup*

• 3/4 cups sugar (I used TJ’s Organic Cane Sugar)
• 1 cup water
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp each, ground: cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan.  Bring just to a boil, then reduce heat to low and let simmer for 15 min, stirring occasionally.
2. Remove from heat and let cool, then store in an airtight jar in the fridge.

Chelsea’s Christmas Coffee

• 1 oz/4 tbsp white baking chips (I’ve used TJ’s and Ghirardelli — the TJ’s ones melt better, but they’re really hard to find)
• 1/2 oz/2 tbsp gingerbread simple syrup (recipe above)
• 6 cups dark roast coffee
• Half and half

1. Prepare 6 cups dark roast coffee.  (I like my coffee extra-dark, so I use 2 heaping tablespoons of fresh, finely ground beans per 6 oz of water (which is 1 cup in a coffee maker).  And, of course, I prefer to use Starbucks Christmas Blend for this recipe, but any dark, spicy roast will do.)
2. Combine baking chips and gingerbread syrup in a small saucepan over low heat.*  Heat slowly, stirring constantly, until chips are melted and combined with syrup.  Pour coffee into saucepan with syrup and chips mixture, then stir to combine.
3. Transfer coffee mixture into mugs, top with half and half to taste, then enjoy!

*Note: Being very lazy, and highly annoyed by what a pain it is to melt white chocolate (not to mention my eternal goal to dirty as few dishes as possible), I’ve started adding the chips and gingerbread syrup directly into the coffee carafe before brewing.  I’ve found that the slow drip of the coffee brewing seems to have the perfect temperature for melting white chocolate.  The only thing to note about this is you can’t leave the coffee sitting on the burner for hours afterward, as you’ll end up with a burned-sugar taste in your batch of coffee.  (Not that you’d ever leave the coffee just sitting there that long…)

**For a traditional gingerbread latte, in a 16 oz/2 cup mug: combine 1 oz/4 tbsp gingerbread syrup with 2 oz/shots espresso, then top with warm milk of your choice.  If you want to be extra-fancy, top with a little whipped cream and a dash of ground nutmeg.  Deeeelish.