Grammy's Recipe Book Drinks

Hot Buttered Rum

From Phyllis Caramanica

Prep
20 min
Cook
5 min
Total
25 minstart to eating

Times are our estimates for Grammy's recipe, with unhurried prep.

Grammy's handwritten page for Hot Buttered Rum
Page 6 · full size

As written

Word for word from her page, with her spelling and line breaks. [?] marks a word we couldn't read.

Hot Buttered Rum
- Phyllis Caramanica

1/2 lb softened butter
1/2 lb light brown sugar 1 & 1/2 cup
1/2 lb confectioners sugar = 1 1/2 & 1/4 c.
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 pint high quality vanilla ice
cream
cinnamon stick for each mug

Combine butter, sugar, & spices.
Beat till fluffy. Add softened
ice cream & blend. Keep in
freezer.

To serve: 3 tbsp. of mixture
into each mug. 1/2 - 1 jigger
light rum. Fill with boiling
water.

Grammy's recipe

Her recipe, typed out to cook from: her amounts and her words, with abbreviations spelled out and the steps numbered.

Ingredients

Batter (keeps in the freezer)

  • ½ pound (2 sticks) softened butter
  • ½ pound light brown sugar
  • ½ pound confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 pint high-quality vanilla ice cream, softened

For each mug

  • ½ to 1 jigger light rum
  • Boiling water
  • A cinnamon stick

Method

  1. Combine the butter, sugars and spices and beat till fluffy.
  2. Add the softened ice cream and blend. Keep in the freezer.
  3. To serve: put 3 tablespoons of the mixture into each mug, add ½ to 1 jigger of light rum, and fill with boiling water. Add a cinnamon stick.

Modernized

A present-day cookbook version, with missing steps filled in. These are suggestions, not her words.

Ingredients

Batter (about 24 mugs; keeps 3 months frozen)

  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated if you have it
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 pint good vanilla ice cream, softened

For each mug

  • 3 tablespoons batter
  • 1½ ounces dark or spiced rum
  • ¾ cup boiling water
  • Cinnamon stick

Method

  1. Beat the butter, both sugars, spices and salt until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
  2. Beat in the softened ice cream until smooth.
  3. Pack into a freezer container and freeze. It stays soft enough to scoop straight from the freezer.
  4. For each mug: add 3 tablespoons of batter and the rum, pour in boiling water, and stir with a cinnamon stick until melted.

Ideas to play with

Twists and variations to try. Suggestions, not hers.

  • Alcohol-free

    Skip the rum and use hot apple cider instead of water. The kids can have it too.

  • In coffee

    A spoonful of batter melted into hot coffee is a Christmas-morning treat.

  • Bourbon

    Swap the rum for bourbon and add a strip of orange peel.

  • Gift tubs

    Freeze in small deli containers with the instructions on the lid.