Hot Chocolate

So, after tasting cardamom hot chocolate as part of a dessert at Indebleu, I decided to make it at home. This was especially appealing to me since it was in accord with my need for simplicity and minimalism (*cough* laziness *cough*). The idea was simple and elegant: add cardamom to my hot chocolate. So, I did and the result was highly satisfying.

The short recipe:

1. Prepare your hot chocolate as you normally would. Use plain hot chocolate. No flavored ones, please.
2. Towards the end of the heating period, add 1/4 tsp. of finely powdered cardamom to the hot chocolate. If you microwave your hot chocolate, I don't want to know about it.

The more complete Viren recipe:

1. Measure 1 cup of milk (preferably 2%) and pour into pot.
2. Slowly heat up the milk on a medium low setting.
3. As soon as vapors start rising from the milk, slowly mix in 3 tablespoons of Dagoba Hot Chocolate mix into the milk. Ensure that the milk never boils.
4. Keep stirring slowly the entire time that the milk is being heated.
5. Just before removing the hot chocolate from the stovetop, add 1/4 teaspoon of finely ground cardamom powder. I sometimes add a little more cardamom depending on my mood, but more than 1/3 tsp. would be a bit much.
6. Froth up the hot chocolate either with a molinillo or a hand blender.
7. Pour into a big mug -- the better to wrap your hands around.
8. Go stand outside in the cold.
9. Drink!