That being said, I have a few favorite drinks that do really well in cold weather.

Peppermint Hot Chocolate:

This ain’t your grandma’s hot cocoa. (Or maybe it is…) I like to add a few drops (or shots) of Peppermint Schnapps to hot chocolate for an immediate warm-up. Make the cocoa with milk if you like it creamier.

Cinnamon Vanilla Cream:

One day my love of Starbucks and alcohol collided, and this drink was born. I just poured some Cinnamon Schnapps into my Vanilla Crème, and – voilà – an innocuous looking brew. Yes, I did keep it all in the Starbucks container. You can make your own Vanilla crème by warming up milk, adding a drop or two of vanilla extract, sugar to taste, and topping it off with whipped cream.

Hot (Spiked) Apple Cider:

First, you need to find some alcoholic apple cider. It’s probably somewhere between the beer and wine sections. Two bottles is a good amount to start with. On the stove, get it simmering with two cinnamon sticks, a tablespoon of cloves, a little bit of sugar and some nutmeg. What really makes it piping hot though, is the addition of either rum or apple brandy. Be generous, ladies – the apple cider has lost most of its alcoholic content in the heating process.

Hot Spiced Wine:

Hot spiced wine is like Sangria, only warm. With cinnamon and cloves. You start by boiling about a ½ cup of sugar in a ½ cup of water (for a 2 bottle recipe). Once the sugar is dissolved into the water, add the wine and spices. When you feel that the mixture has sufficiently blended, turn off the heat and add orange and lemon slices and either rum or brandy to taste. Vodka works too, and you can get creative with the fruit you choose to put in. It is best if you make it an hour or so before you serve it.

For a more sophisticated cocktail try the Blushing Reindeer, or any one of these being made at the hippest New York bars. Personally, if I’m the one making the drinks, I shouldn’t have to work to get drunk. I leave the creative mixology to the bartenders.

Any of your own favorite recipes that you want to share?

[Always drink responsibly. Photo courtesy of countryliving.com]

Happy Black Friday! Are you out soaking up the sales and bitchy soccer moms Christmas Spirit at the mall? Or are you home attempting to digest the 6 pounds of food you ate last night? Maybe you are spending the day with family and friends.

Whatever you are doing, welcome to holiday season! Sure, you may not be able to shop, shop, shop like you usually do this time of year (thank you, Wall Street!), but that doesn’t make it any less glorious! There’s the music! And the movies! And the general good mood of everyone around you. We, like everyone else, loooove this time of year…and we don’t even celebrate Christmas!

What is your favorite thing about the holiday season? We asked our writers and here is what they had to say:

K – NYU: I love going home and catching up with the fam. Sometimes you just need a break from work/studying/life…

Kelly – UMass: My favorite thing about the holidays is watching my family open the presents I picked out for them!

Kathryn S.: Open-bar office Christmas parties! Woo hoo!

Carly – Grinnell: I know this is cheesy, but I live away from home and have for a while now, so my favorite thing is the feeling that comes from sitting in my living room back at home with my dad, my mom, and my brother. It’s just the best.

Lauren – University of Michigan: Holiday sales! (And not for gifts…for me!)

Elizabeth – UC Berkeley: An excuse to belt out Bing Crosby’s entire “White Christmas” CD.

Britt – Northern Virginia Community College: Christmas in a cup from Starbucks. I know it’s awful for me, but it tastes just like Christmas in a cup should taste. For a Grande: 3 pumps Vanilla, 3 pumps Gingerbread, Breve, No water, With whip, 4 pump Chai. Mmmm.

Elise – UCLA: Cinnamon and pumpkin flavored EVERYTHING! And scented candles!

Suzanne – Tulane: The constant replaying of Mariah Carrey’s Christmas song on the radio. “All I want for Christmas is yooooooooooou.”

Alex – Cornell: My favorite thing about the holiday season is candy canes…in ANY way, shape or form. Giant candy canes, candy cane hot chocolate, candy cane bark, candles, wrapping paper. What can I say; I’m obsessed!

Olua: I know I sound like I’m coming straight out of YET another Christmas Story, but I love how happy it makes everybody. Unlike a lot of people I know who share this sentiment, though, I really DON’T want it to last all year long. That ruins the special feeling-of-the-now, don’t you think?

Noa – CU Boulder: Mistletoe. And the Egg Nog milkshake at McDonalds.

Sara – NYU: Taking ridiculous pictures of my boyfriend and me for the “cards” I will definitely “forget” to send out.

Liza – Grove City College: BAKED GOODS! And a license to be totally sappy and cheesy without (too much) judgment.

Sara C – Fordham: Watching “It’s A Wonderful Life” on television with my family. It’s my absolute all-time favorite movie, and it just doesn’t have the same resonance if you watch it in July.

What’s your fave?

My personal favorite is mulled cider, which is super easy to make and, when you need that extra kick, goes very nicely with a little bit of rum.

Here’s what you need to get started:

A small saucepan

Apple Cider (the dark brown cloudy kind, don’t use apple juice!)

Brown sugar

Allspice

Cloves

Cinnamon sticks

An orange

Cheescloth

Rum (optional)

You can find Allspice, cloves and cinnamon in the spice section of any grocery store—make sure to buy them whole, not ground or powder! Cheesecloth is a bit harder to find—if you’re stuck, just get yourself a small strainer that has very fine holes.

Fill the saucepan about ¾ full with cider, and heat on the stove—don’t quite boil it, but get it nice and hot. Add a little bit of brown sugar (a couple pinches will do, more if you are making a larger batch). Place about a quarter cup each of your whole spices on a piece of cheesecloth and tie the four corners together, making sure there’s no space for the spices to fall out (If you have a strainer instead, just throw the spices directly into the pot). Add a couple of very thin orange slices directly to the pot, give it a stir, and let the whole thing simmer on a low heat for about half an hour.

To serve, ladle out a few spoonfuls into a mug and add an orange slice. If you didn’t use cheesecloth, just place the small strainer over the mug and carefully pour the cider in. If you really want to warm it up (and, ahem, you’re over 21!), just pour in a little bit of dark rum and enjoy!

[Photo courtesy of the Food Network]

This year, on the day Starbucks started serving their pumpkin spice latte (also known as the best day of the year), it was 88 degrees in Boston. Not exactly pumpkin-eating weather. But did that stop me from ordering a large steaming hot pumpkin spice latte and sipping it in the sun? Obviously not.

Don’t let the all too short pumpkin-eating season pass you by! Indulge. Just don’t indulge so much you start to turn orange. What? Trust me, it happens.

There is more to pumpkins than pumpkin pie:

Pumpkin Coffee: Of course there’s the classic pumpkin spice latte that almost every coffee shop (worth my business anyway) serves. But lots of coffee shops are also coming up with other pumpkin-flavored drinks. All are worth trying, but if you’re concerned with the calories and fat in a latte, just ask for a regular coffee with a little bit of the pumpkin-flavored syrup. It’s perfect when you just want a cup of coffee with a smidge of flavoring. And it’s usually much cheaper than ordering a latte too.

Pumpkin Fudge: Go to your local specialty candy shop and demand that they make pumpkin fudge if they don’t already. Because, as you can probably guess, pumpkin and chocolate is an amazing combination. My favorite candy store with pumpkin fudge just shut down this year (oh the horror!), which means I’m going to have to go on a major hunt this year.

Pumpkin Beer: Another duh choice. Pumpkin plus beer? I’ll have a 12-pack. My favorites are the Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale and the Southern Tier Imperial Pumpking Ale (tastes like pumpkin pie!). Really want the true pumpkin experience? Pour your chilled pumpkin beer into a mug and rim the mug with cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle some nutmeg on top too!

Pumpkin Pastas: Go online and scour the menus of your local restaurants to try to find which serve pumpkin items. Italian restaurants often add a little pumpkin to their pastas. My favorites include pumpkin ravioli (especially in a creamy sauce with nutmeg and cinnamon) and pumpkin gnocchi.

Pumpkin Butter: Start your day off right. Instead of buttering your morning toast and spreading some jam on top, eat your toast with pumpkin butter. Trader Joe’s carries an awesome one that’s just the perfect consistency and not too overpowering. Eating your pumpkin butter toast while sipping on your pumpkin coffee practically ensures that you’ll have a good day! Pumpkin butter is also fabulous on any carbohydrate-based product and is especially delicious atop pancakes. Bonus points for pumpkin pancakes with pumpkin butter on top!

[yummy photo from www.countryliving.com]

It’s definitely nice to know that the Times was thinking about regular people and regular grocery stores when they made this list (for example, you won’t find any pleas to track down and eat foods like arrowroot or Cornish game hens), but honestly, who is going to read this list and think, “Swiss chard and fresh beets! Now that I know this, I’d better get a move on to the grocery store!”?

Without further ado, I present to you the list and my own personal commentary on each food:

1. Beets. I’m not going to lie; I actually kind of like beets, but I haven’t eaten them for years, not since they were prepared for me from a can in my school’s cafeteria. Actually, that’s not true—I did buy some actual fresh beets a few weeks ago and try to cook them in the oven, but it was a disaster. They ended up not softening enough and dyeing those hard-to-reach spots between my fingernails fuchsia for two days.

2. Swiss chard. I hear this is good stuff, nutritionally. I have never heard that it is good stuff taste-wise, though. I mean, a friend has never leaned toward me conspiratorially and said, “Know where you can get some great Swiss chard?” For that reason (and for the reason that I am intimidated by leafy greens in general—I don’t like the texture), I will not be busting out the chard anytime soon.

3. Turmeric. Because my boyfriend is Indian and I make volumes of curry at home, I use turmeric in dishes at least once or twice a week. I am still perplexed, though, as to how ½ tsp of turmeric per week can make any kind of healthful difference. That’s such a small amount. Turmeric is pretty expensive, too, and it makes everything you eat fluorescent yellow, so it seems like this will not catch on among the masses.

4. Cinnamon. I eat this, but so does everyone else. Cinnamon? Seriously? This list should be limited to things that people do not eat.

5. Cabbage. I do love a little bit of cabbage every now and then, but again, it’s one of those foods that you just have to work into your diet. Nobody answers “cabbage” when you ask, “what’s your favorite food?”

6. Pomegranate juice. I’m not even sure if I know what this is, but if it was tasty and affordable, I might be able to get into the habit of drinking it.

7. Pumpkin seeds. Oh, man. Don’t people fry these up and eat them at Halloween? Apparently they’re good for you.

8. Prunes. I totally ate these all the time as a kid! I should resurrect them… I always did like prunes. They leave a kind of nasty sticky substance on your hands, though.

9. Frozen blueberries. I am not making this up—the article actually specifies that the blueberries are frozen (because that way they’re available year-round, it claims). But it’s summer. What’s wrong with fresh blueberries?

10. Sardines. Yeah—uh, no, thank you. Never. Ever.

11. Canned pumpkin. This makes great cookies, but somehow I don’t think that’s what the New York Times had in mind. Oh, well!

[pom pic from www.tradinorganic.com] 

Aside from my bed, I could pick up and go at any time to start over in another overpriced, undersized apartment. This feeling is surprisingly liberating in the “world is my oyster” sense. Wee! I can go anywhere! My options are limitless, budgeting excluded!

After rigorously going through my wardrobe and neatening my bedroom, I took stock of my kitchen. I really have nothing to take with me, save for my toaster oven, which was a birthday gift from my roommate and is my favorite appliance of all time. As I lovingly patted the top of it, assuring her that her new home would offer her counter space, I thought how much easier takeout is than cooking. Food out is so much better. Food at home is so… bland.

Why? Because spices are freaking expensive and salt and pepper can only do so much. But really, overall, I could save tons of money if I would stop getting delivery and started grocery shopping. After some serious contemplation, I comprised the following list of spices that must be staples to my future creative kitchen:

Garlic—Great for Mexican and Italian food, even good if you feel like slathering a toast with butter and adding a little kick. Garlic is also great in Asian foods and stir-fries.

Cumin—Essential for amazing fajitas, it’s what gives tacos their taco flavor.

Chili powder—Used for the same fajitas, chili of course, as well as Indian or Thai food if you feel fancy.

Crushed red pepper—I cannot, will not, eat pizza without it. It’s good with just about everything if you love spicy-as-in-hot food.

Basil—Essential for any homemade marinara sauce. Great with pasta in olive oil, add some garlic, a little salt, some oregano, and yummm.

Oregano—Another spice critical to an Italian menu.

Cinnamon—Love it on toast, applesauce, in pancakes, anything.

Cocoa powder—Make your own homemade hot chocolate, or good to just have if you want to start baking.

Sugar—Great to pair with that cinnamon on toast, and nice to have if people are over and you’re offering tea or coffee.

Vanilla extract—Adds a nice flavor to pancakes and even hot chocolate.

The above won’t take up an entire cupboard, but it gives you enough options where you can spice up any dish just a little. Any spices you couldn’t live without? Let us know!