If you are a serious chocoholic, read on!
Yes, this Spiced Hot Chocolate with Rum is a drink for hard core chocolate lovers! You have to love chocolate like there’s no tomorrow. Or, at least (if not a chocoholic), be willing to venture over to the dark side once and a while. And, that’s what I got tempted to do when I saw this recipe in a magazine recently.
I should mention at this point that sadly, I can’t cite the magazine – it was one of those situations where you’re in a medical waiting room and have only moments to scribble down the ingredients before you’re called in. Oops. Anyway….
Imagine it’s a cold, wintry night…
You’re rugged up on the couch, a warm blanket over your knees, and the cat’s rolled up in a ball on your lap. It’s then that you want to take a sip of this syrupy dark chocolate concoction warmed with chilli, cardamom, clove and vanilla spices and spiked with a hit of dark rum. It’s a definite ‘oooooh yeah’ moment.
There is a slight ‘but’ though… As you can imagine, this is an incredibly rich drink. So much so that, if you stay with the recipe, I’d recommend serving it in little demitasse cups rather than mugs. Or, if you want to stay with a full serving, go with a combination of two thirds milk/one third cream to reduce the richness.
Then again, if you’re a hedonist at heart and ready to dive head-first into a mug of thick, dark, liquid chocolate, I say…
Go for it!
We all deserve a little treat now and again don’t we! Enjoy.
SPICED HOT CHOCOLATE
Ingredients
- 20.2 fl oz heavy cream*
- 1 vanilla pod, seeds and bean
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 chilli, split in half
- 4 cloves, bashed
- 2 cardamom pods, bashed
- 2 strips orange peel
- 2 tbsp brown sugar (I used dark muscovado sugar)
- Whipped cream and shaved dark chocolate, to serve
- 150 g dark chocolate, chopped roughly
- Optional: 2 shots dark rum, 1 shot = 2-3 tbsp, or to taste
Instructions
- Put everything except the chocolate and rum into a large saucepan and bring to the boil (watch that it doesn’t spill over).
- Turn heat down to low, put lid on saucepan ajar, and simmer for 5 minutes (continue watching that it doesn’t spill over).
- Stir in the chocolate until melted. Stir in the rum (if using).
- Strain the mixture and pour into cups. Top with a dollop of whipped cream, sprinkle over some shaved dark chocolate, and serve.
