Dec. 16--Hot chocolate isn't just for kids. Add the right alcohol to a well-balanced hot chocolate, and it's elevated to a comforting adult cocktail.
Balance can be a matter of taste, but too-sweet drinks can be cloying. Chicago's D'Noche has a concoction spiked with reposado tequila and hazelnut liqueur that uses Abuelita Mexican Chocolate as its base. To keep it from being too sugary, bartender Jose Mendoza pulls back on the preparation suggested by Abuelita. "(We use) half the chocolate, more milk," says bartender Jose Mendoza.
A range of liquors can pair well with chocolate flavors, from vodka to whiskey. Chicago's NoMI Lounge offers a hot chocolate bar during the winter, with five hot chocolate cocktails. The drinks start with a deliciously rich hot chocolate as the base. "We toast off our spices, and then we also steep it overnight, so it's got a nice rich flavor to it," pastry chef Greg Mosko says. He uses several kinds of chocolate to give the finished drink more depth of flavor.
To add savory notes, Mosko and NoMi's food and beverage director David Samuel suggest adding black salt, salted caramel or chili spices. Smoke is another possibility. "Mezcal is a very good component that has that smoky flavor," Samuel said. "Or if you like bourbon, or single malt whiskeys, something like a Laphroaig 10 Year Old is a very smoky whiskey."
The order of adding ingredients is important, says David Bailey of Baileys' Chocolate Bar in St. Louis. "Start with the base of what you're making: so the milk, the sugar, the vanilla. Leave the chocolate to the side," Bailey says. "And then pull it from the heat, add the chocolate and stir vigorously." This prevents the chocolate from scalding.
Other tips: Don't boil the milk and don't be heavy-handed with the alcohol, it should enhance and not overwhelm the hot chocolate.
Althea Legaspi is a freelance writer.
Maple bourbon hot chocolate
Makes: 1 drink
NoMI Lounge's drink takes on buttery notes from Blis Bourbon Maple Syrup, a bourbon barrel-aged maple syrup. You may sub with regular maple syrup. The bourbon-maple syrup combo here is added to NoMI's version of hot chocolate, below.
3/4 ounce (1 1/2 tablespoons) bourbon
1/4 ounce (1 1/2 teaspoons) maple syrup
8 ounces hot chocolate, see recipe
Heat maple syrup until warm, add bourbon and stir. Pour into a mug of hot chocolate.
Everyday hot chocolate
Makes: 8 servings
5 ounces 64-percent chocolate, such as Valrhona or Cocoa Barry
5 ounces milk chocolate
1 ounce cocoa powder
2 ounces sugar
1 teaspoon salt
Seeds from 1 vanilla bean
4 ounces each: milk, whipping cream
1 Finely chop the chocolates; mix together with remaining dry ingredients. This is your hot chocolate mix.
2 For 1 serving, heat milk and cream to a simmer in a saucepan. Place 3 heaping tablespoons of chocolate mixture in a mug; fill with the liquid mixture, stirring until chocolates melt.
