Hot chocolate recipe

Here are some tips from top pastry chefs on how to make delicious hot chocolate that will make your heart skip a beat.

Quality chocolate

Not just any chocolate is suitable for making the ultimate hot chocolate. The better the quality of the ingredients, the tastier the hot chocolate. So don''t feel bad about spending a euro more, because quality chocolate is the first and most important thing on the list of tips for making the best hot chocolate. But don''t be fooled by the high cocoa content, as it doesn''t necessarily mean quality chocolate. The best way to find out what it tastes like is to try it before you make your hot and intoxicatingly fragrant drink.

Use chocolate powder

Many people use cocoa powder in their hot chocolate, which is a by-product of chocolate making that is made by extracting cocoa butter from the cocoa beans. If you''re one of them, we''d like to suggest that your hot chocolate will taste much better if you use chocolate powder instead.

Decide how strong or sweet you want your hot chocolate to be

The proportion of cocoa in the chocolate you choose is of paramount importance when making hot chocolate, so don''t skimp on the cocoa. Use chocolate with a cocoa content of at least 60%, or much higher - the higher the cocoa content, the stronger the flavour of the drink. Of course, it can be made with dark, milk or even white chocolate, depending on how sweet you are.

If you want to make a hot chocolate with a rich but sweet taste, use dark chocolate as the base, but you can add some milk chocolate instead of sugar.

The choice of milk is also important

As good quality chocolates are rich in cocoa butter, adding milk with a higher fat content is not necessarily better than adding milk with a lower fat content - again, of course, this depends on each individual''s taste. Just as the chocolate must be of good quality, so must the milk.

RECIPE.

Hot chocolate recipe - ingredients:

• 450 ml whole milk
• 70 g finely grated chocolate with at least 60 % cocoa
• 30 g grated good quality milk chocolate
• 75 ml whipping cream
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of salt

Preparation:

1. Heat about 150 ml of milk over a medium heat and stir it into the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is completely dissolved in the milk, then whisk the mixture with the remaining milk and cream.
2. Continue stirring until the mixture is hot (not boiling). Then add the cinnamon and salt. Pour into a cup and serve while still hot.

And here are a few more useful tricks for making hot chocolate

Here are a few more simple but important tricks for making the perfect hot chocolate - luckily you don''t need anything but a stove, a whisk and a prawn.

Heat the milk in a saucepan over a high heat, but make sure it doesn''t boil, as this will overcook it and cause it to lose its thickness. Once it is heated to high temperature, add the chocolate that you have previously kept at room temperature and heat both again. Slowly add the chocolate and stir until it is completely melted - but be careful not to burn it. You can also avoid this by simply pouring the hot milk over the chocolate and stirring well.

There are a hundred and one ways to serve hot chocolate - top it with different fruits, nuts, biscuits, or a splash of your favourite spirit. You can add whipped cream, or sprinkle cinnamon or nutmeg on top, or even pepper it for the more adventurous. It''s unusual, but sounds interesting!