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Warm Up On These Cold Winter Nights With A Cup Of Hot Mulled Chocolate

Betty Rosbottom Los Angeles Times Service

At this time of year, a hot chocolate party would be a simple but imaginative alternative to a more time-consuming dinner. It can follow a sledding or skiing outing or come after a cold-weather walk.

In the following recipe for mulled hot chocolate, milk, along with some chopped semisweet chocolate, is simmered with seasonings of cinnamon and nutmeg and then combined with cocoa powder, sugar and vanilla.

For serving, I added long cinnamon sticks as stirrers. The spices add a hint of sweetness as well as an enticing aroma. The semisweet chocolate pieces, which are melted in the milk, give extra richness to the drink.

For a hot chocolate party, I would serve a basket of biscotti (perfect for dipping in the warm brew), a plate of homemade or store-bought butter cookies and slices of pound cake topped with scoops of vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt.

Winter Mulled Hot Chocolate

6 cups whole milk (see note)

1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3 ounces good-quality semisweet chocolate, broken into chunks (do not use chocolate chips)

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch process cocoa)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup boiling water

2 teaspoons vanilla

Long cinnamon sticks for stirring

Heat milk, nutmeg, cinnamon and semisweet chocolate chunks in heavy medium saucepan, stirring constantly, until chocolate is melted. Set aside.

Combine cocoa powder, sugar and boiling water in large saucepan and stir to make thick paste. Whisk in milk mixture. Cook and stir over medium heat until well blended and hot. (Hot chocolate can be made several hours ahead. Cool, cover and refrigerate. Reheat, stirring, when needed.) To serve, pour hot chocolate into cups or mugs. Garnish each serving with a cinnamon stick.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings.

Note: Whole milk tastes better than 1 or 2 percent in this recipe, but if you are watching calories you can make it with lower fat products. On the other hand, if you feel like gilding the lily, try serving the cocoa garnished with dollops of whipped cream on top.