Hard Hot Chocolate

I have a cold. Bleh and boo. (sniff)

Two nights ago, while in search of something comforting to drink (I'd been tea'd out), I decided to make hot chocolate (with water, not milk...sigh) and add some Fireball.

Disclaimer: I really like Fireball Cinnamon Whiskey. It's one of the only shots I actually like (I'm not a big shot person). I really like cinnamon in general...and Fireball has a nice cinnamon spicy flavor.

So going into this I expected to like the hot chocolate-Fireball combo...and I did. A lot. It was a great warm, sweet and spicy drink that perfectly qualified as a "comfort drink."

For the sake of comparison, it kind of tasted like a strong Mexican Hot Chocolate. If you've never had Mexican Hot Chocolate, I'd highly recommend it. Traditionally it's cocoa, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla. A couple of the recipes I saw online included a pinch of cayenne, but the ones I've tried didn't use cayenne. It's Hot Chocolate...with flair! :)

I ran across a list of recipes on Fireball's website and can I just say, yes please! :)  Here are some that sounded particularly amazing:

Angry Balls1 shot Fireball Whisky
1 pint Angry Orchard Crisp Apple Hard Cider

Combine shot with pint and enjoy.

Atomic Apple
Fireball & Apple Schnapps
1 part Fireball Whisky
1 part Apple Schnapps

Mix. Chill. Shoot.

C-4 Shot
Fireball Whisky
Coffee liqueur

Mix together for a shot or pour over ice.

Chai Ball

Chai Tea Latte with a fiery twist…
1 part Fireball Whisky
2 parts Chai Tea Mix
2 parts Milk

Heat milk & chai mix in coffee mug, and then add Fireball. (Or, just pick up a chai tea latte at your local coffee joint, and add Fireball.)

AppleBall Pie
A good ‘ol American apple pie infused with Fireball Whisky!

Fireball Whisky (enough to completely immerse the sliced apples)
8 fresh apples of your choice
4 tablespoons of butter
1 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup flour
Refrigerated piecrust

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Peel and slice apples thin like you would for any apple pie. Soak apples in a shallow pan/bowl, completely immersed, for approximately 4 hours.

Drain apples, reserving ALL of the liquid. Some of this will be added while cooking, the rest is absolutely delicious to drink while baking this incredible pie.

Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in large pan. Add Apples, 1 cup granulated sugar, 2/3 cup light brown sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg. Cook down for about 10 minutes.

Add approximately 1/2 -1 cup of drained Fireball from apples. Add 1/4 cup of flour to thicken mixture. Add additional flour as needed.

Spoon filling into crust lined pie dish. Top with second crust and press edges.

Follow traditional baking instructions – Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 40 minutes.



The next time I make a pie, it shall be AppleBall Pie. Sounds amazing! :)


What are some of your favorite comfort foods or drinks?

~ Katie

Song of the day: For some reason this all makes me feel like posting something feisty by Enrique Iglesias...so here's the Spanish version of "Bailando." The actually music video is a tad more sketch than I'm willing to post (though it's better than most of his music videos...yikes!), so this is just a lyric video. Enjoy.