Sunday’s are Dominican day in this house! It’s my day to cook for my family and meal prep for the week. If you ask my granddaughter, the best way to start that day is with Dominican hot chocolate. What is Dominican hot chocolate?? Well…it’s hot chocolate but kicked up!
Here’s the perfect plate! A steaming cup of hot chocolate, delicious bread and a little butter. Not sure which part is my favorite…the bread or the hot chocolate????
Dominican Hot Chocolate
Ingredients:
- One gallon of milk
- 4 TBS good quality chocolate
- 4 TBS sugar
- ¼ tsp Dominican vanilla
- 2 sticks of cinnamon
- 6 cloves
- pinch of salt
- pat of butter
Notes on ingredients:
We use Lactaid milk and it is just fine. For the chocolate we use organic cacao, 4 heaping TBS because we love it rich. The vanilla, we brought it back from Dominican Republic. If you don’t have that luxury, just get some good quality vanilla. Skip the imitation stuff or if you have to use it, use more. For the cinnamon and cloves, do not use powder! It is not the same, opt for whole.
Let’s get started!
Add your milk to a pot. I prefer a heavy bottom so that it doesn’t scald the bottom. Turn your heat to medium. Add your sugar, if you like more or less sweet, feel free to change the amount I recommended. This is your treat, make it the way you want! Same for your chocolate, go ahead and scoop it in. Add in your cinnamon, cloves and vanilla. You may be asking about the last two ingredients. I know it seems odd to add salt to your sweet treat. You see, a pinch of salt brings out even more sweetness. Trust me, don’t skip it! Lastly is the butter. I. know….butter in my drink??? This gives the chocolate a deep richness. It is the crowning touch on this decadent treat.
Let your ingredients heat up, stirring frequently. The trick of knowing when it’s done is fun! It’s a thin line between milk rising and milk spilling. Don’t be afraid. Just watch your chocolate. You want it to start to rise. That’s what gives you that rich foam on top. As soon as it starts to rise, just slide it off the burner. It will NOT spill! Trust me. Now just pour into your mug and enjoy! I will post a video on my instagram for you to see how it rises.
What are you having with your chocolate?
We serve it with bread. You can choose any bread you like but in this house we LOVE Pan De Agua. It’s a very unique bread. It translates to “bread of water” and it literally feels like the name. It’s a light and airy bread. Not heavy at all which pairs perfectly with the richness of the hot chocolate. You can get this bread at most latin supermarkets. I have always chosen to live close enough to some great stores. A short drive and I can grab treats from so many countries! There are other breads that are delicious as well. Our other favorite is Pan De Manteca which translates to “bread of Lard”. It is the complete opposite of Pan de Agua. It is a rich, buttery bread. You don’t even have to add butter to it. It is delicious on it’s own. There is also Pan Sobao which is a sweet buttery bread if you really want to satisfy that sweet tooth!
Now get to dunking! Please comment if you have tried my recipe. Would love to hear about your favorite breakfasts too.
