Dark Heart of Cocoa

[liralen]

I made up my own hot chocolate mix after experiencing several mixes in a row that all fell far short of what I really wanted. The Ghirardelli double chocolate was very close but far, far too sweet. Alton Brown's mix has powdered milk and doesn't have the right body without that, but with it, it has that strange, powdered milk taste. Straight van Houten, maybe with a touch of anise or almond or mint, double the sugar was great for water-based cocoa, but doesn't have quite the body, either, for milk-based hot chocolate. Mexican hot chocolates have the opposite problem, too much body and... well, honestly, crunch than I really wanted in a cup of cocoa. And after The Polar Express's description of a hot chocolate like a melted chocolate bar... I had expectations.

The Ghirardelli's double chocolate was like a melted chocolate bar, if all you liked and wanted was milk chocolate.

I love dark. So this is my recipe for a hot dark chocolate:

1 part finely grated 70% cocoa solids "bittersweet" chocolate
(I used Scharffen Berger)
1 part Dutched cocoa
(I used VanHouten, bought in France)
1 part superfine sugar
1/8 part vanilla powder
a sprinkle of ground chipotle chile (the sweet smokiness goes better with chocolate, I think, than the simple, sharp heat of cayenne)

I mixed it up by the heaped tablespoon into a sealable container, and then shook it until well mixed. Then I just used a heaping tablespoon of the stuff in a cup of hot milk. Depending on how finely you grate the bittersweet, you may or may not get speckles in your cup. I find that another fifteen seconds in the microwave, of active heat, will make those go away, or an active whisk works pretty well, too. You could even blend it if you like, but that's too much trouble for me.

It's not kid cocoa. Mmmm...

Comments

[johno.livejournal.com]

Have you tried the Scharffenberger's (http://www.scharffenberger.com/recipes.php) Hot Chocolate recipes.

[liralen.livejournal.com]

The cocoa one is what I do, but with water and a Dutched cocoa. I find that natural cocoas (not Dutched, which, I think is the only kind they offer) are too acidic.

The chocolate one I've tried as well, but I don't like all whole chocolate for drinks, it's too fatty for me. I also use 1% milk, not whole or half and half for the same reasons. Some folks love the richness, and I'd highly recommend their hot chocolate recipe for those that want more than mine gives.

[shaterri.livejournal.com]

mmMMmm; I'll definitely have to try this one. Richard Donnelly -- my domestic god of chocolate -- suggests blending himself, but that's almost always too much work for me too. Maybe if I weren't as lazy as I am about cleaning the blender after... anyway, he clearly shares your preference for less sweetness in his cocoa, so it's worth a look.

[liralen.livejournal.com]

I've blended with a stick blender and it's sometimes worth the trouble. :-)

I love Donnelly's chocolates, every time I go to Santa Cruz, I have to stop by his shop and have a chocolate accident. That's where I sometimes get Valharona cocoa, too, as they'll sell it by the 8 oz bag. Yum.

[mightymutt.livejournal.com]

Mmmm...sounds nummy!

[bwb-archive.livejournal.com]

On my way to the airport. Be there in a few hours. Keep the cocoa warm.

[archangelbeth]

Ahhhh, I wish I could do that! O:D

[liralen.livejournal.com]

Me, too. :-)

[liralen.livejournal.com]

Yeehaw!

Definitely.

[space-parasite.livejournal.com]

Did you see misia's recipe for Aztec Fire Chocolate?

I thought she had a hot chocolate recipe along similar lines, but I haven't been able to find the entry, so maybe I imagined it.

[liralen.livejournal.com]

Oooo.. that sounds delicious and dangerous, all in one. Mmmm... I do like her choices in chiles.

[exterra.livejournal.com]

that recipe sounds divine.
i love bitter hot chocolate.
all the mixes, even the fancy ones, are way too sugary for my taste.
so far droste is my favorite kind of cocoa powder, what's yours?

[liralen.livejournal.com]

I love Droste, it's just got all the basics. I like Valharona a lot, too, as it's a bit fruity.

My standby is VanHouten, it's a very clean and clear cocoa, no muddy flavors, my husband bought me two boxes of it from when he was in France for a business trip, so I don't know if it's the same as the stuff sold here in the too-cute cans. Of course, the Dutching process was created by Van Houten... so I'm not sure if that's actually the name or if that's just "dutched" cocoa? It's signed by Jean Houten Looz(?) and reads Cacao non sucre pour pattiseries et boissons chocolatees, probably something prosaic like for baking and cooking chocolate things. :-) And ends with Noble-Tradition.

When or why did you settle on Droste?

[exterra.livejournal.com]

I haven't been too fond of the Van Houten I've bought here (it has a flat/alkaline-bitter flavor I don't like), but have never had any other kind.

I don't remember how I found Droste, but the first time I made a cup of cocoa with it, I was absolutely charmed -- it has such a nice full, rich chocolatey flavor. I haven't tried Valharona though, I'll have to keep an eye out for it.

[liralen.livejournal.com]

Cool to know that the local stuff isn't the same. Thank you! Donnelly's in Santa Cruz used to stock the Valrhona cocoa (I spelled it wrong the first time, tsk) on a regular basis and Chocosphere (http://www.chocosphere.com/Html/Products/valrhona-chef.html) seems to carry it, too.

[that-david.livejournal.com]

Mmmm...hot chocolate...*purr*