Happy 2013, everyone! This last week has been a bit strange, with half of it a holiday and half not. Yet somehow every day still felt like it should be Sunday. New Year’s Day was the perfect time to stay in pajamas for as long as possible — until we decided to go sledding (when Felix was bouncing of the walls). When we got back it was time for hot chocolate.
Prepping the hot choc, I spied leftover candy canes sitting on our counter. Truthfully, I was going to ditch them but instead I put them to good use, and made peppermint cocoa. The results were so good that now, despite being a long-time candy cane hater, I may be on the hunt for more. (I am sure there is one stuck to the bottom of my new purse)
Recipe: Peppermint Hot Chocolate
Makes 1; multiply for as many cups as you need.
Ingredients
1 cup milk
½ standard-size candy cane, crushed
1 heaping teaspoon cocoa powder
½ teaspoon sugar
You can wing this if you want to — it’s that easy. I filled an average mug with milk (and measured it, in order to confirm it was about 1 cup). I put that in a small saucepan and heated slowly over medium.
Candy time! I roughly chopped half a cane (the standard-size candy cane) with my chef knife. I am sure you could also bash it with a rolling pin, if you have frustration to get out of your system. I put that into my warm milk with a ½ teaspoon sugar.
Next, I added a heaped teaspoon of real cocoa powder and a ½ teaspoon of sugar and began to whisk until everything was combined (and the candy bits melted). Keep this at a simmer, or you will get that unwanted milk “skin” on your drink.
On its own the hot chocolate did not look festive enough to follow an excellent afternoon of sledding, so I added some mini-marshmallows and a little bit of candy cane for stirring. It was subtly minty and very satisfying — and it took about 5 minutes. My kind of reward.
Recipe: Peppermint Hot Chocolate
Makes 1; multiply for as many cups as you need.
Ingredients
1 cup milk
½ standard-size candy cane, crushed
1 heaping teaspoon cocoa powder
½ teaspoon sugar
Instructions
Warm milk over medium heat in a small saucepan.
Add the crushed candy cane, cocoa powder and sugar. Whisk while milk simmers, until cocoa is combined and candy is melted.
Pour into mugs and serve with mini-marshmallows on top.
Sue Riedl is a Toronto-based food writer with a passion for cheese who writes a column called The Spread for The Globe and Mail. She loves to push stinky cheese on her 4-year-old.
Related:
Posted:
by Sue Riedl