Brrrr! It was 38 degrees when I got up this morning, and that put the kibosh on my morning bike ride. I’ll wait until it warms up later in the afternoon for the ride.
My friends have been nonplussed to hear that I bought my first winter coat when I lived in Tucson in early ‘70s. I rode the bus to work in those days, and it was shivery to wait at the bus stop in the early mornings. I remember that coat so well: It was tan canvas lined with fake fur, with big pockets and a hood that was also fur-lined. By the end of the day, it was warm enough to carry that coat home instead of wearing it. Its bulk was annoying to carry but I loved it anyway.
On chilly mornings like this one — and on chilly evenings when the sun goes down and the desert cools quickly — I like this spicy hot chocolate to warm me up. If I have them on hand, the spicy double chocolate cookies make a fine match.
The tradition of combining chocolate and chiles is ancient, dating back to the Mayans. They used a molinillo, the intricately carved wooden tool that is rolled between the palms to whisk and froth the chocolate. My mother gave me a lovely molinillo many years ago when she lived in Mexico for half the year. I sometimes use it to froth my hot chocolate but it’s a bear to clean, so I mostly admire it for its workmanship and use a whisk instead.
You may wonder why I don’t use Mexican chocolate disks instead of the bittersweet chocolate and cocoa in these recipes. The answer is that I don’t love the other ingredients in those disks — soy lecithin, palm oil and artificial flavoring.
Fiery hot chocolate
Makes about 6 servings
You can make this ahead of time by whipping the cream and combining the cocoa, half-and-half, cayenne and cinnamon, then refrigerating both until serving time. When you’re ready to serve, add the cocoa mixture to a large saucepan, whisk in the remaining half-and-half or milk, and proceed with the recipe from there. Add a jolt of bourbon or rum to each mug before you top with whipped cream if you’re feeling daring.
Ingredients
⅔ cup cold heavy cream
1 tablespoon plus ¼ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup cocoa powder
⅛ teaspoon salt
4 cups half-and-half or whole milk
7 ounces bittersweet chocolate (65% to 70% cacao), finely chopped (about 1¾ cups)
½ tsp. ground cayenne
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
Preparation
In a medium bowl, beat the cream and 1 tablespoon sugar with an electric hand mixer on medium speed to medium-soft peaks. Refrigerate while making the cocoa.
Put the remaining ¼ cup sugar, the cocoa powder, and salt in a heavy-duty large saucepan. Add ¼ cup of the half-and-half or milk and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Pour in the remaining half-and-half or milk and whisk to combine. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the chocolate and cayenne and reduce the heat to low. Whisk until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is a little frothy, 1 minute. Add more cayenne to taste if you like.
Divide the hot chocolate among six mugs and top each with a dollop of the whipped cream. Sprinkle a bit of cinnamon and additional cayenne on top.
Chocolate cookies with a kick
Makes about 24 cookies
This recipe calls for butter, but you can substitute shortening or lard, if you wish. Butter will make the cookies spread out, while cookies made with shortening will be taller and less crisp. These cookies have a lot of flavor going on, so you won’t miss the butter flavor. Or split the difference and use half of each.
Ingredients
1¾ cups white sugar, divided
1 cup softened butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, divided use
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, divided use
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Preparation
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Beat 1½ cups sugar, butter or shortening, vanilla extract and salt together in a bowl until fluffy. Beat in eggs; add baking soda. Beat in cocoa powder, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, and ½ teaspoon cayenne powder. Beat in flour. Stir in chocolate chips.
Mix remaining ¼ cup sugar, ½ teaspoon cinnamon and ½ teaspoon cayenne in a bowl.
Roll heaping tablespoons of dough into balls. Roll balls in the sugar-cinnamon-cayenne mixture and place 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
Bake in the preheated oven until centers are set and edges crack slightly, about 10 minutes. Cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes.
