Mingari-Spiced Owlbear Milk

• doses: 4 cups

Ingredientes

½ cup old-fashioned oats

1 cup water

4 cups milk (see Cook's Note), plus more as needed

2½ tablespoons granulated sugar

1½ tablespoons light brown sugar

1 pinch kosher salt

3 cinnamon sticks, plus ground cinnamon for sprinkling

Instruções

In a dry medium saucepan over medium heat, toast the oatmeal, stirring constantly, until very fragrant, 4 to 5 minutes (take care to avoid burning it). Remove from the heat, add the water (it will spatter), and gently swirl the pan. Add the milk, both sugars, salt, and cinnamon sticks and stir to mix. Return the pan to medium heat and bring to a low, steamy simmer, stirring often, about 7 minutes. Adjust the heat to low and continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until cooked through and soft, about 5 minutes. (If the mixture threatens to boil over, remove the pan from the heat until the foam recedes and then continue.) Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool to room temperature. Scrape into a large wide-mouth jar with a tight-fitting lid, seal, and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.

Remove the mixture from the refrigerator. Remove and reserve the cinnamon sticks. Scrape the mixture into a blender (keep the jar handy) and blend on high speed until as uniform and smooth as possible. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer back into the jar, working it with a fier ble spatula until just a couple of teaspoons of oat paste remain. Disch the paste, return the cinnamon sticks to the jar, cover, and refrigerat cold, about 1 hour.

Remove the jar from the refrigerator and vigorously shake it. Adjust the consistency of the mixture, if desired, by adding up to 3/4 cup milk, 1/4 cup at a time, shaking after each addition to blend. Remove the cinnamon sticks and pour the milk into glasses (over ice, if desired). Sprinkle with ground cinnamon before serving.

Notas

While conventionally prepared with a base of owlbear milk, other types of milk such as yak milk, buttermilk, rice milk, and even nut milk are all suitable substitutes in this creamy, cozy concoction. But no matter which milk you choose, there is no alternative for Mingari spice, culled from the inner bark of Mingari trees. Likened in both flavor and scent to cinnamon, Mingari spice is a rare but highly sought-after seasoning indigenous to southeast Faerûn. Although rare, this strong, aromatic spice is incredibly versatile, at home in both sweet and savory dishes, and thus it has spread throughout the Realms and beyond. However, satisfying Mingari-Spiced Owlbear Milk requires merely a dash of this scarce but potent accent. Travelers in search of a day starter, an alcohol-infused night capper, or even a medicinal stomach soother, invariably relish a tall mug of this nourishing milk.

COOK'S NOTE

Any type of milk-from skim to whole-is fine, depending on how rich a drink you want. If you fancy a light, tangy drink, substitute 1/3 cup buttermilk for the same amount of regular milk.