On the final evening of 2011, Eskimo dancing and storytelling were featured in the school gym before Point Hope ushered in the new year with a display of fireworks over the frozen sea. We braved the -20 degree walk to school to see the activities in the school gym. The return walk home, with the wind in our faces, convinced us to try to watch the fireworks through the windows of our cozy, warm home while enjoying snacks and a hot beverage.

In our lower 48 life, we would have torn open a package of instant hot cocoa and pepped it up with peppermint schnapps. Necessity is the mother of invention up here: 4 1/2 tablespoons of Ghirardelli cocoa powder, 3 cups of vanilla soy milk, 2 tablespoons of sugar and 6 leftover candy canes crushed to powder with a meat mallet, all placed in a small pot and heated while whisking the ingredients and Voila! Three Arctic hot chocolate “dry” Snugglers – creamy and sweet with a lovely hint of mint.

And for a crunchy snack to go with our drinks: 2 cups of almonds, 1 cup of sugar, 1/2 cup of water and 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, cooked in a pot on medium high heat until the water was evaporated (about 15 minutes). Cool on a waxed-paper covered baking sheet. The cinnamon almonds were reminiscent of the nuts one might have purchased from a street vendor during a Victorian Christmas in years past.

Best wishes to all for a terrific 2012!