Making
hot chocolate from scratch can be tricky, but worth it, because you get a smooth, frothy drink instead of a chalky or granular one.
Adapted from Pierre Herme's recipe for Chocolat Chaud (Vogue Magazine, February 2000).
- 2 1/4 cup milk
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3.5 oz or 100 grams dark bittersweet chocolate, like Scharffen Berger, Valrhona, or Lindt. Go and splurge as much as you can on this. Trust me. Don't get the cheap stuff. Get something that is 70% cocoa.
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder (you're supposed to use premium brands here, but I get good results with Hershey's or store brand powder, if I use an expensive chocolate bar)
Additional equipment:
Chop up the chocolate bar with a
serrated bread
knife. Combine the milk, water, and sugar in a pot.
Stir, and bring to a boil. Now add the chocolate and the cocoa. Reduce
heat to very low. Stir until the chocolate
melts.
Froth it up with your mixer for
five minutes, or ladle it into a blender and
whip it for
30 seconds.
Makes 4 5-ounce servings, but five ounces is all you need. Serve it in a teacup, not a mug. This is sipping hot chocolate. You can make this up a day ahead, refrigerate, and then heat and froth when you're ready to serve.