While I can’t really recommend spiking your morning coffee, particularly if you’re at work and want to keep your job, there are afternoons, evenings and weekends that just beg for the addition of a little something in your coffee. Especially in fall as we adjust to the days growing shorter, the weather turning colder and the approach of the holidays.

It’s easy enough to pour a shot of kahlua in your coffee and call it a day, but why stop there? Make it special, sit back and enjoy it. Any combination of a fireplace, cozy afghan and Miles Davis on the stereo is optional but highly recommended.

The following are from “Cooking With Coffee” by Carol Foster, published in 1992.

Viennese Coffee

4 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, grated
1/4 cup cream
4 cups brewed dark roast coffee
sugar to taste
1/2 cup brandy [*she says optional, I say otherwise]
1/4 cups whipped cream
cocoa powder or ground cinnamon (optional)

Melt the chocolate with the cream in a heavy small saucepan over low heat. Stir until the mixture is smooth. Blend in the coffee, taste, and add sugar if desired. Pour into 4 warm cups. Add the brandy. Top with whipped cream, and garnish the cream with a dusting of cocoa powder or cinnamon, if desired.

Spiced-Rum Coffee

2 cups brewed dark roast coffee, hot
2 tablespoons sugar or to taste
2 whole cloves
2 strips orange zest
2 ounces dark rum
1/4 cup whipped cream
freshly grated nutmeg

Pour the coffee into 2 warm glass coffee mugs. Add 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 clove, and 1 strip of orange zest to each, and stir until the sugar dissolves. Blend 1 ounce run into each mug, top gently with the whipped cream, and sprinkle the cream with a bit of nutmeg. Serve immediately.

From around the web:

Cafè Amore or French Connection Coffee with cognac, amaretto, cream and almonds

Roman Rasta Coffee with sambuca, rum and cream

Traditional Irish Coffee
Orange Truffle Cafe Corretto with grand marnier and semisweet chocolate

Want to venture into the world of creating your own signature coffee cocktails? Start with Coffee Mixology: A Primer, over on The Atlantic, which walks you through the ingredients and methods and lets you loose to create a little caffeinated magic.

Finally, if you really just aren’t that into coffee, try this Chai Toddy made with chai tea, vanilla vodka and cinnamon schnapps