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Warm the Cockles of Your Heart with Krupnik Honey Vodka


Krupnik (pronounced "kroop-neek"), or honey vodka, is a Polish drink that can be served warm or cold and is traditionally imbibed on Easter, Christmas, and other special occasions. It was also used by Polish soldiers in World War II as a medicinal disinfectant; that's how you know it's good. 

Krupnik originated in 1600s in what is now Belarus but what at the time was known as the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The original recipe for the drink is believed to have been created by Benedictine monks at a monastery in Niasviz. And while there is no official documentation of this, I think it’s safe to say that Wojtek, the WWII Soldier Bear who served alongside humans in the Polish 22nd  Artillery Supply Company in the Battle of Monte Cassino, probably found his way into some krupnik at one time or another. Wojtek (pronounced "voy-teck"), whose name means "happy warrior," was known to smoke and eat cigarettes, drink coffee and beer, salute, march, and carry crates of ammunition, after all, so drinking a little krupnik from time to time doesn’t seem like too much of a stretch. You can read more about this amazing bear here.

I had been hoping that this Easter would be a time to celebrate the worst of the pandemic being over, but now we find ourselves once again living in the shadow of war. At least I can take heart in hearing stories like the one that appeared in the Axios email newsletter this week about three Chicago chefs—Paul Kahan of Publican, Tony Priolo of Piccolo Sogno, and Giuseppe Tentori of BOKA—who recently travelled to Poland to cook for Ukrainian war refugees in a World Central Kitchen facility in Przemysl. You can read more about World Central Kitchen and support their cause here.

Back on the home front, we can wish our loved ones a Happy Easter or Happy Spring and share some krupnik with them. Some recipes suggest serving krupnik warm with a pat of butter and even a piece of chocolate. I’ve tried both ways, and they are both delicious. The krupnik recipe on the Great British Chefs website suggests serving krupnik “on chilly nights to warm the cockles.” This is my new favorite phrase. I don’t know about you, but my cockles can use all the warming they can get right about now.

The krupnik recipe I made this year was adapted from the 1976 edition of the Culinary Arts Institute Polish Cookbook: Traditional Recipes Tested for Today’s Kitchens. Thank you to Jane Schafer-Kramer for submitting this recipe. I bid you all a Happy Easter and Happy Spring…and may your cockles be forever warmed.

Krupnik (Honey Vodka)

Ingredients:

1 c. honey

2/3 c. water

1 tsp. vanilla extract

¼ tsp. nutmeg

8 cinnamon sticks

2 whole cloves

6 strips of lemon peel that are about 1-inch long each

2½ c. vodka

Instructions:

Combine the honey, water, vanilla, spices, and lemon peel in a medium-sized saucepan. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the vodka. Remove from heat. Serve warm or chilled. 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

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