My girls picked out this recipe in their Southern Living Kids Cookbook a while back. Yesterday they asked me why they hadn’t been able to make anything for a while. Well, we’ve had a lot going on, but besides that they are not getting done with their school work. Well guess what? They got up early asked for their work ahead of time and then surprised me with, “Okay now we’re all done what can we make?” It’s motivation I guess. With one last burst of cold weather here in Texas I thought it would be a good time to let them make Hot Vanilla milk although in the summer it would be yummy cold. In my opinion it tastes like melted vanilla ice-cream!
Pour four cups of milk into a 1 quart microwave safe container. The Pyrex bowl makes it so easy to measure!
Add 1/3 cup of sugar.
Add 1/8 teaspoon of salt.
And last add 2 teaspoons of vanilla. (Mexican vanilla is our favorite!) Mix gently to dissolve the sugar. Place in the microwave for 5 minutes on high.
Pour into 4 mugs, add marshmallows if desired, and enjoy!
My kids said this is even better than hot chocolate!
I really like the idea of hot vanilla milk. It doesn’t have the caffeine of chocolate, it is quick and easy, and all of the ingredients are always kept on hand. In the summer make it cold! Either way the LaughWithUsBlog crew gives it two thumbs up!
Deb says
April 20, 2013 at 8:25 amHot vanilla milk does sound yummy….but us chocoholics prefer hot chocolate = )
Malinda says
April 21, 2013 at 6:03 pmI make ‘fantasias’ for my kids… Hot milk, flavored syrup like caramel, fresh nutmeg, all heated up and frothed with a french press. This is very similar. I’ll have to try this variation to keep the milk ideas fresh! Thanks!
Pary Moppins says
April 24, 2013 at 8:15 amOur family loves hot milk in the wintertime. We have it as a “Supper Drink” before bedtime. We scald the milk, add a bit of vanilla and top it with a dash of nutmeg. It is such a cozy drink. 🙂 Thanks for sharing.
Jenn says
April 24, 2013 at 10:15 amOh, now this looks divine! Can’t wait to try this 🙂
Lisa says
April 29, 2013 at 2:07 pmI can’t wait to try this! I know my kids will love it! 🙂 Thanks for linking up with “Try a New Recipe Tuesday!” I am featuring this recipe this week! Congratulations! 🙂 🙂 Be sure to stop by and grab an “I’ve been featured” button from my sidebar for your blog. The post will go live around 11pm tonight (Monday). I hope you will be able to link up with us again this week.
Candace says
April 29, 2013 at 9:38 pmI LOVE vanilla milk! Coffee Bean & Tea leaf has it (here in SoCal), and I’ve enjoyed it on cooler days/evenings for a couple of years. Thanks for your “at home” version recipe! Pary Moppins version looks great, too, I will have to try!!
Brie says
April 30, 2013 at 2:24 pmMaybe this is a silly question- but will the sugar dissolve if you make it cold?
EstherIrish says
April 30, 2013 at 2:28 pm@Brie, It’s not a silly question! We used a whisk, and it does take longer to dissolve if it’s cold, but it would just be like mixing sugar in a glass of iced tea. It just takes a little longer. The kids loved the recipe as is, but personally I like it better with less sugar so it depends on your sweet tooth! 🙂 It really did taste like melted vanilla ice cream to me!
Jackie Karlic says
May 15, 2013 at 4:15 pmHi! Found you on Pin It Tues link up. This looks great! I remember when I was a kid my mom would make warm milk and honey sometimes, this reminds me of doing that, but I prefer the flavor of vanilla over honey. Pinned and now following on FB 🙂
Trisha says
June 3, 2013 at 2:20 pmMy mom made us cold “vanilla milk” all the time when we were kids. Don’t know that she really had a recipe…just cold milk in a glass, couple teaspoons of sugar and a little vanilla extract. Stir & enjoy a pretty tasty treat! 🙂
katepickle says
June 4, 2013 at 9:50 pmMmm this sounds divine and a nice alternative to adding chocolate, especially before bedtime. Perfect for those of us in the southern hemisphere freezing in the middle of winter right now!
Allison says
June 24, 2013 at 12:39 amSooo thankful for this recipe! I’m allergic to chocolate and pray I do not pass the curse on to my 3mo old daughter but can’t wait to try this and other goodies with her as she grows. Thanks again
Kimber McKinney says
June 26, 2013 at 3:09 pmI love this idea considering my lil ones love chocolate but I’m allergic so now we can have a “special” drink that I can have too.. 😀
Adessa says
July 1, 2013 at 1:04 pmDid anyone have a version of this for single servings?
EstherIrish says
July 1, 2013 at 1:19 pmThe recipe makes 4 cups so I would just quarter the recipe for one serving. 1 cup milk, 1 tablespoon of sugar, dash salt, 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla. Personally, I liked it better with less sugar, but the kids loved it as is! 🙂 Enjoy!
Heather says
August 7, 2013 at 10:02 pmI didn’t realize there was a recipe. My grandmother, my mom (and now me) make this in single cups and call it magic milk. They use to make it when we were little to fill up our tummies before we went to bed. They told us the sugar would help us to have sweet dreams – that was the magic. I still make it for my boys when they don’t feel good, or just need an extra warm hug before bed. But NOW – now I can make a big batch and add marshmallows. Who doesn’t love marshmallows??!!!!
Kathy Aufleger says
August 9, 2013 at 7:21 amMy daughter loves warm vanilla milk. We make it with the vanilla syrup used to flavor coffee.
Anna says
August 28, 2013 at 4:18 pmWhat kind of milk do you use?
emily says
September 7, 2013 at 2:18 pmAwesome! My husband is allergic to chocolate so we always have to find alternativees for him this would be great!
Christina says
September 8, 2013 at 9:23 pmReally good with some grahmn crackers to dip in! (:
Natasha says
September 10, 2013 at 6:10 pmohhhh my goodness! To die for!! having some right nowwww 🙂
Robin says
September 24, 2013 at 8:39 amHi what kind of vanilla do you use? the one that you ave linked is not available where i live. Will vanilla essence do the same thing?
Thanks
EstherIrish says
September 29, 2013 at 6:26 pm@Robin Hi! I’m not familiar with Vanilla essence but I would think any vanilla used in cooking would work.
Team Southerland says
September 29, 2013 at 6:44 pmYum, yum! I am running to go make a glass of cold vanilla milk for me! 🙂
Team Southerland says
September 29, 2013 at 6:49 pmOkay- that was really yummy! Thank you! 🙂
robinski says
September 29, 2013 at 7:53 pmI have to say.. my dad made something very much the same as this, but would put it in the freezer for a couple of hours till it got slushy.. awesome treat this way too…
chasetiy says
October 5, 2013 at 11:53 pmCan you use imitation vanilla or ?
EstherIrish says
October 6, 2013 at 8:57 amYes, imitation vanilla will work just fine. I like the flavor of real vanilla or Mexican vanilla better, but imitation vanilla works!:)
Christine says
May 20, 2019 at 11:08 pmDelicious looking recipe!
A word of caution though – pure Vanilla extract contains a very high percentage of alcohol!! Please be careful when serving to children, pregnant women, or anyone avoiding alcohol.
Judith Earl says
October 20, 2013 at 8:43 amThis sounds like the recipe that my granddaughter told me that she would like to try. When I was much younger, my grandmother always had us drink hot milk with pepper in it if we had a stomach ache. Still drink it for the same reason today. Don’t know about the medicinal value, maybe just cause she had us do it, but it usually works. I usually use about a quarter teaspoon of pepper in the cup of milk.
Jen says
October 23, 2013 at 10:36 pmMilk already has a lot of sugar in it, so I don’t see the need for extra. But will try the recipe minus the extra sugar……too many diabetics in the family.
kate says
November 5, 2013 at 12:03 amIf I can add a suggestion, I added pumpkin pie spice to mine, it would be amazing with vanilla almond milk, and the spices it would be like the pumpkin pie almonds from costco
tricia says
November 14, 2013 at 10:15 pmThat first photo looks DELISH!!!!!!! Pinning- Making- 🙂
Krickitt says
November 20, 2013 at 2:57 pmLooks Yummy! I can’t wait to try it!
Michelle says
February 2, 2014 at 9:48 amDoes this work ok without the salt? My kids are on a low sodium diet due to illness. I would really hate to waste milk if it does not. 🙂
EstherIrish says
February 2, 2014 at 7:55 pm@Michelle, Yes it works without the salt.
Brenda says
February 8, 2014 at 9:37 pmI love doing taste tests, so I compared this recipe with another that was on pinterest. The consensus among my taste testers was this recipe hands down. We will look forward to having this again soon.
Terri says
July 1, 2014 at 8:43 pmThis is the recipe our child psychologist gave to me when my daughter had insomnia. She said the combination of milk, sugar, and vanilla helped induced sleep. I gave my daughter a warm cup each night. Worked like a charm!
Nita says
September 21, 2014 at 11:58 pmMy mom made the cold version of this to encourage me to drink more milk. She would also let me color it with food coloring. I thought it odd (and a little sad) that most of my friends only drank white milk. 😉
EstherIrish says
September 22, 2014 at 12:02 am@Nita, How fun! My kids were just playing with food coloring today!
Sheena @ Hot Eats and Cool Reads says
October 10, 2014 at 3:38 pmI love this!! Pinning to try soon! 🙂
Alexa Royle says
October 21, 2014 at 8:47 pmreminds me of snow cream! Love that stuff. That is made with fresh snow, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla or chocolate or caramel or whatever flavor you want really!
Lisa says
November 10, 2014 at 8:11 pmI just made this for the first time tonight. Because I am sensitive to caffeine, hot chocolate is not an option for me in the evenings. I made a single serving with 1/4 tsp. vanilla and just because I had it on hand I also added 1/4 tsp. of maple extract. I also did not have marshmallows so I used a dollop of cool whip. It was awesome!!! After reading some of the other comments I am going to try some of the other suggestions such as nutmeg or pumpkin pie spice. Can’t wait for tomorrow night.
EstherIrish says
November 10, 2014 at 9:03 pm@Lisa, I’m caffeine sensitive too and I know some of my kids are. Hot Chocolate at night and I’m in real trouble. lol Your additions sound delish!
Holli Eggert says
November 16, 2014 at 1:31 pmCan this recipe be made with almond milk?
EstherIrish says
November 16, 2014 at 10:05 pm@Holli, We’ve never made it with Almond milk, but it sounds like it would be good!
Anastasjia says
December 29, 2014 at 12:37 amThis is excellent to drink before bedtime the warm milk and try replacing sugar with honey and you will be sure to have a good night’s sleep!! I drink warm milk with honey before bedtime and some times with turmeric.
Have fun -Anastasjia ♥
Criston says
January 31, 2015 at 10:51 amhi, just wanted to say my mom has made this for me since I was small. However we did it in single batches with a spoonful of sugar and a little vanilla, and no salt. Also we drank it cold, and yes it is delicious cold. I will have to try your recipe for making it hot, I can’t wait.
Whatever says
February 28, 2015 at 3:47 pmI F YO UC A NRE ADT HI S YO UA RE VE RYSM AR T. YO UA R EAL S OIN TEL LI GEN T. J USTWA NT E DT O GI V EYO UA N E XT R ACH A LL E N GE. B YE 🙂 😉 Also made the recipe. So good.
Claudia says
January 25, 2016 at 1:49 amIt looks so delicious and the best part is that the ingredients are easy to find and they’re not expensive, thank you!
Tessa W says
March 6, 2016 at 12:54 pmI know this is an older post but I’ve been browsing your blog a bit. I’m a total vanilla lover. I make my own vanilla extract and, since my eldest was about 3 and decided he wanted “coffee” in the morning sometimes, I’ve used it to make vanilla milk. I often just do a splash of vanilla in milk and they drink it hot or cold. I don’t even add sugar most of the time lol If I do feel like sweetening it, I add some maple syrup or raw honey. Just heat the milk with a splash of vanilla in it and then mix in a spoonful of honey. That way they get all the good stuff from the honey in addition to a delicious drink. Yum! I think I’m going to make some for myself right now…
Shawnda says
October 16, 2016 at 8:36 pmIf you want it really rich, add a teaspoon of butter (not margerine) per cup of milk. Absolutely delicious!