No amore for this hot cocoa

Today’s Hot Chocolate is Cocoa Amore’s Peanut Butter Brownie Cocoa Mix. First, I read the ingredients in preparation of today’s hot cocoa. Yikes! It’s has tri’s and di’s along with non-dairy creamer being the first ingredient of this mix. With that in mind, my expectations were reset.

After reviewing the directions, I appreciate them stating it will take a little work to blend this hot cocoa mix. Some mixes take forever for the liquid to adhere to the cocoa/chocolate and you are sitting their drooling waiting for that magic moment to take place.

After tearing open the packet, I poured the whitish powder with a speckle of brown into a foam cup. A slight whiff of peanuts poured into the air thus lifting my spirits a bit. Upon adding the hot water, I began to stir. Over time, the mixture darkened up and began to form a thicker consistency. Excellent! It is tasting time.

I took my first sip….Uhhh! Strange…I took another sip and decided “I’ll pass”. Darn it! I really needed hot cocoa today :<

Recipe Alert: Key Lime Spiced Hot Cocoa

I've been on a roll this week. I believe the trip to World Market Cost Plus over the weekend jump started a hot chocolate creating frenzy. Nonetheless, I picked up a World Market brand of Key Lime Seasoning during my recent shopping trip. This seasoning contains lime juice powder, lime peel, white pepper, black pepper, ginger, thyme, onion, garlic, cinnamon, mustard, mace, nutmeg, cayenne and all spice.

Now, I know many of would think, "why in the world would you make hot cocoa with that?" But of course I think, "why not"? One of my favorite hot chocolates is Xocolatl by Dagoba which contains chilies and cinnamon and another previously popular hot chocolate at our store was Green & Black's Maya Gold Hot Chocolate which contained ground cinnamon, nutmeg, black pepper and orange peel. Unfortunately, Green & Black discontinued their product last year which left a void in the spicy hot chocolate market.

Nonetheless, this hot cocoa recipe would definitely be one a Xocolatl or Maya Gold connoisseur would like, or at least I hope. If you want a sugary sweet hot cocoa, this is not for you!

Key Lime Spiced Hot Cocoa (Click here for a pdf copy of the recipe)

Yield: 1 Serving

Ingredients:

3/4 c Milk

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

1 tsp Key Lime Seasoning

3 tsp Cocoa Powder

1- ½ tbls Sugar

Preparation:

1. Heat Milk and Vanilla Extract in a double-boiler over medium/low heat.

1. Whisk in Key Lime Seasoning, Cocoa Powder and Sugar. Bring to a simmer, but do not boil.
2. Continue to stir mixture until smooth and hot.
3. Use a strainer when pouring the hot cocoa mixture in to a mug. Garnish and serve.

Personally, I found this recipe to be quite very savory. The blend of sweetness and spice lingers in your month. Since it is made with cocoa powder, the consistency is lighter which allows you to focus on the various bursts of flavor. After a few sips, I thought to myself, "not bad".

Indulge & Enjoy!

It looks real...

OK. So I have a slight obsession with kitchen gadgets this week. But this expense was justified! The other half broke my travel mug and as everyone knows I must have my hot chocolate on the run.

I picked up this faux disposable mug at Bed, Bath and Beyond. The Copco To Go Cup is reusable, BPA free and is double walled for enhanced insulation. Best of all, it is dishwasher and microwave safe. It costs $7.99, but you can get it for less with that 20% coupon Bed, Bath and Beyond sends out each week.

It's all in the measurements

The other half accidently broke my ounce measuring cup a few weeks back. Trying to convert cup measurements to ounces makes me crazy, so a shopping excursion was in order to replace the broken measuring cup.

After a trip to Crate and Barrel, I came home with two new toys: Adjust-a-Cup and Mini Measure. I can't wait to use these new gadgets this weekend on a new hot chocolate recipe.

Hidden behind the coffee

While searching the pantry for the hot chocolate of the day, I came across Café-Tasse’s Chocolat en Poudre or chocolate powder. This instant hot chocolate from Belgium is made with 32% cocoa and sugar. We used to carry this hot chocolate at our online store. However, it didn’t have a strong following. My husband uses the posted-dated hot chocolate to make mochas.

I forgot about this hot chocolate so it was a pleasant surprise to find this box. The cocoa powder has a reddish-brown tint with a sprinkle of white sugar crystals. The pet peeve I have with European hot chocolate mixes is that they rarely have directions placed on the box. So, I opted to use one heaping tablespoon of hot chocolate, filled my glass mug half way up with milk and hoped for the best!

After using the microwave to heat up my hot chocolate, I poured the beverage in a travel mug and headed to the office.

Once I settled in at my desk, it was time to drink up. Amazing! I forgot how lovely this hot chocolate was and how disappointed others have yet to appreciate it. It’s a robust instant chocolate with a splash of sugar. Very nice and very pleasurable!

Orange Ginger Hot Chocolate

Yield: 1 Serving of Orange Ginger Hot Chocolate

Ingredients:

¼ c 90% Dark Chocolate Bar

½ c Milk

¼ c Orange Juice

3 tbls Crystallized Ginger Root

Preparation:

1. Chop the 90% Dark Chocolate into smaller pieces.
2. Place the chocolate shavings into a double-boiler over medium/low heat until it is completely melts.
3. Whisk in Orange Juice, Milk and Ginger. Bring to a simmer, but do not boil.
4. Continue to stir mixture until smooth and hot.
5. Use a strainer when pouring the hot chocolate mixture in to a mug. Garnish and serve.

Today's hot chocolate: Fran's Premium Hot Chocolate

Seeking a little pick me up this evening, I decided it was time to enjoy a cup of chocolate. The selection of the evening was Fran's Premium Hot Chocolate made here in the USA with 100% Venezuelan chocolate. Founded by Fran Bigelow, this hot chocolate received the 2007 Sofi Award (formerly the NASFT Food Award) for Outstanding Hot Beverage.

It's been a while since I pulled out the double boiler, but I was ready. Although the directions said to add the chocolate to heated milk, I chose to melt the chocolate first. Ah! It was beautiful.

Now it was time to enjoy...opps... I added a little too much milk. Since the other half broke my ounce measuring cup, my measurements have been a little off lately. Dare I say a shopping trip is in order? :>

The hot chocolate was optimum balance of chocolate and sweetness. I gave my husband a sip and he said "it's too watery". If the non-cocoa connoisseur makes that statement, you know I added too much milk. Well, I kept on drinking my cup of chocolate and after that we had fun licking the chocolate off the spoon. What a way to close the evening.

Get your creative juices flowin'

It's that time of year again! Scharffen Berger just announced the return of The Chocolate Adventure Content. Last year, I tried to get my creative juices flowin' by creating a new recipe for the contest. However, I @#$ near made myself sick trying to be "exotic". Since I learned about the contest late in the game, I didn't have the opportunity to bounce back from my creative mishap. But this year, I will be ready!

And of course my inspiration will center around hot chocolate...