I made my abuela's champurrado recipe, and it's 10 times better than hot chocolate

For the recipe, you'll need:

• 6-8 cups of 2% milk or water

• 1 8-ounce piloncillo cone

• 2 cinnamon sticks are preferred, but if not, use 2 teaspoons of cinnamon powder

• 1 tablespoon of crushed cloves

• 2 Nestle Abuelita Authentic Mexican Hot Chocolate Drink Tablets

• ¾ cup of flour or corn masa

• A splash of Mexican vanilla blend or vanilla extract equivalent

You'll need 6 to 8 cups of milk or water based on your preference. Pour those into a medium-sized pot.

For this recipe, you'll use an entire 8-ounce piloncillo cone. This ingredient is typically used as either a sweetener or a spice. Aside from traditional Mexican desserts like champurrado, it is used in flan, capirotada, and atole.

Piloncillo, often called Mexican brown sugar, is unrefined white sugar with molasses. It is made by boiling cane-sugar juice that is then poured into cone molds, before it cools and hardens.

Piloncillo isn't the easiest ingredient to track down, but it can be found at specialty Mexican grocery stores. In larger chain stores, there is a chance that piloncillo may be in the Mexican or international sections, or it can be bought online.

We typically use cinnamon sticks.

In my experience, crushed cloves tend to work better. They can be added straight to the pot of milk or water.

Then, heat the ingredients over medium heat until the liquid comes to a boil.

You'll need two Nestle Abuelita Authentic Mexican Hot Chocolate Drink Tablets for the recipe. Stir until the piloncillo and the tablets have melted into the milk mixture.

These round tablets of rich, thick chocolate feature hints of cinnamon and vanilla. Thankfully, they have become much more mainstream, so you will likely find them in large chain grocery stores, either in the hot-chocolate or Mexican aisles.

Now it's time to toast your flour. Measure ¾ cup of flour into a medium-size pan on high heat and stir the flour around until it browns a little. This can take up to 15 minutes.

I would actually recommend using corn masa instead of flour if you have it, as it gives a sweeter, nutty depth of flavor.

I stirred the milk mixture, while my abuela toasted the flour in a pan next to me.

You can't just add all the flour straight into the champurrado.

Instead, you need to mix the flour with cold water. This is very important: If the water is hot, or even lukewarm, you'll get clumps.

Then slowly scoop that mixture in spoonfuls into the champurrado. Repeat until you've used all of the flour.

You should end up with a creamy, clump-free texture.

The last step is to add just a splash of Mexican vanilla or, in a pinch, vanilla extract.

You should stir intermittently until it comes to a simmer.

The collective experience of making the champurrado (as it is never a one-person job), pouring it into my favorite mug, and sipping it on a cold day is almost indescribable. It's like a warm hug.

Much like any special dish, it carries memories for me: memories of running in after school on a chilly day to see the big Mexican pot on the stove; memories of my cousins and I gathered around my abuela, sipping champurrado as she retold the stories of her childhood in el pueblo; and even now, making memories of learning how to toast the flour on my own … only to realize I forgot to turn on the stove and for my mom, abuela, and I to descend in a fit of laughter.

Champurrado is more than just the taste of thick chocolate and the aftertaste of vanilla, or the aroma of clove and cinnamon.

To me, it's what brings family together during my favorite time of the year. And, if you try it, it will surely have you wishing for cold weather every day.