Finnish glögi rarely has citrus peel as a flavor component like its Central European cousins, but cinnamon, cardamom and cloves are essential. I added a few spices that aren’t all that traditional – dried mint, pink peppercorns, and star aniseed – just because I personally love them, and they did add a certain freshness to the flavor. I also cut down on the amount of cloves, since often there’s a whole tablespoonful of them in a similar recipe, and I think their taste can get wildly overpowering. I would use the recipe below as a starting point and tweak it to your own tastes.

The kind of juice that is used as a base also has an important role – we use a red currant juice concentrate that Heikki’s mother has made from her own berries, and it lends quite an authentic color and flavor to the drink. Grape juice or even lingonberry or cranberry would surely be worth trying out. This spice infusion would probably be lovely added to some warmed up apple juice, or black currant juice for the sneezy days, and I can see it spicing up my cup of tea even. Finns often add some almonds and raisins in their glögi mug, but I prefer mine without.

This is what I used:

• 5 slices of fresh ginger
• 4 cloves
• 1 teaspoon crushed cardamom seeds
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon (or 1 stick)
• 2 teaspoons pink peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon dried mint
• 1 star aniseed
• a pinch of allspice
• 3 dl water

I placed all the above in a small cooking pot, brought to a brisk boil, and lowered the heat so that the mixture was barely bubbling. Now I covered the pan and let the spice mixture simmer for half an hour, and then sieved it through a cheese cloth into a small jug.

To make a cup of glögi, I use about 3 tablespoons of the spice infusion, 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of red currant juice Heikki’s mom has made, and 1 and 1/2 dl of hot water. It all depends on how sugary the juice is. This recipe yields about 2 dl of the spicy mixture, which I would say is enough for about five glögi portions. I store what’s left over in a small bottle in the fridge. An alcoholic version could be made with half red wine and half fruit juice, or by adding a little bit of vodka (or another spirit of choice) in the glögi mug.

Actually there is another little secret to the greatness of this cocoa: a tiny pinch of salt. It makes all the difference!

The Ingredients for 1 cup:

• 2 dl plain, sweetened soy milk
• 1 tablespoon good cocoa powder (Green & Black’s is nice)
• 1 tablespoon raw cane sugar
• a tiny pinch of salt
• 2 drops peppermint extract

I first heat the soy milk in a little cooking pan until it’s almost boiling, and then whisk in the sugar and the cocoa. I keep on whisking until the sugar’s melted and there are no cocoa lumps visible. Then I stir in the peppermint extract and salt, and enjoy my cup of hot cocoa.

And this drink is really really good, especially when sweetened with agave syrup. Some believe that sugar isn’t good for a flu, but I don’t think a teaspoon or two of agave syrup ever hurt anyone. I have a feeling that this would be a great summer drink too, only chilled and served over ice.

My Tea Recipe:

• 1/2 l water
• 2 tablespoons ginger, chopped
• (1/2 teaspoon ginger, grated -optional)
• 1 teaspoon whole cardamom seeds (or a few crackled pods)
• 1 cinnamon stick
• juice of one orange
• (agave syrup to taste)

First I let the 2 tablespoons of chopped ginger, cardamom, and cinnamon simmer in the water for ten to fifteen minutes, then remove the pot from heat, and add the orange juice. I sometimes add the extra grated ginger and let the drink steep for 5 more minutes to get a fresh ginger bite as well. Then I filter it in a jug, and sweeten with some agave syrup.

I often double the recipe, and sometimes use the dried ginger root called sonti – it has an even more potent and fiery taste than the fresh root, but takes a little more effort to ground.

Sometimes I don’t like the commercial chai mixes, because they have too much clove for my taste. The strongest flavors in my combination of spices come from star aniseed and ginger. I have doubled the recipe a few times to serve both me and Heikki, using only one star aniseed but double amounts of everything else.

Here’s what I put in the pot:

• 2 dl sweetened soy milk
• 1 dl water
• 1 star aniseed
• 1 clove
• two slices of a fresh ginger root
• 4 whole cardamom pods
• 1 cinnamon stick (the inexpensive kind from the Asian grocery)

First, I pressed the cardamom pods with my fingers so that they crackled a little, and broke the cinnamon stick in a few pieces. Then I placed the spices and the water in a cooking pan, and brought it to boil. I let it boil, covered, for five minutes, then added the soy milk to the pan, and heated on medium heat until bubbling. Now, I removed the cooking pan from heat, let the beverage sit for a few more minutes, then poured it in a glass through a tea strainer, and enjoyed my drink.