Yesterday, I had a really terrible hot chocolate. I mean awful.
It was surprising because it was at a cafe where the food is quite good. It was on the menu, for $3.50, advertised as "hot chocolate with whipped cream". Yum.
But when it was delivered, there were some things wrong.
First, there was no whipped cream.
Second, it was made with a mix. Already bad enough, but to add insult to injury, it was improperly mixed, and still lumpy.
Third, it was made with water, not milk. Gross!
So, I sent it back. They were apologetic and offered to re-make it...but I declined. And I got to thinking: what makes a really good hot chocolate? Is it the chocolate itself? The milk? The temperature? The texture? Well, kind of all of the above. For me, it's a rich drinking chocolate like I had at Cafe Angelina in Paris.
What about you? What is your ideal hot chocolate?
Feel free to chime in, and you'll be entered to win a copy of this AWESOME book by Lara Ferroni entitled Real Snacks: Make Your Favorite Childhood Treats Without All the Junk
This time, she's back with homemade versions of popular snack treats. Sweet and savory. Some examples:
I do believe I spied a unicorn on those pages!
OK. So, to review:
Leave a comment telling me about what makes the ideal hot chocolate, in your opinion (is it from a place? Made with heavy cream, at home? Or perhaps it's just Swiss Miss? I'm curious!). And on October 15 at 5pm EST, I will choose one lucky winner (at random) to get a copy of this great new book by Lara Ferroni. Due to the price of shipping overseas, I can only open this one to US residents.
UPDATE: THE WINNER!
The winner, chosen at random, was Melissa C, who said "The best hot chocolate can be found on the streets of Spain. It is served warm and has almost a pudding like consistency. It is served to accompany a very special treat: The fresh, hot and dazzling cinnamon ladden churro....."
Yum! Thanks for playing!