flipOld-Fashioned Hot Chocolate
Old-Fashioned Hot Chocolate
Why this dish? Thick chocolate, beaten with a moussoir, was the drink of writers' mornings and the cozy salons of the Belle Époque. France, a cabinet man bent over his ancient books on the Quai Malaquais, belonged to that cultivated bourgeoisie for whom a cup of chocolate accompanied reading and conversation.
A dense and frothy chocolate, barely sweetened, where the bitterness of the cocoa stands up to the roundness of the milk. It is drunk slowly, in small sips, like turning the pages of a beautiful book.
Chocolate, you see, is the companion of sedentary minds: it keeps thought warm. I wanted it thick, almost grave, beaten long with the moussoir until a brown foam crowned the cup. One added only a hint of sugar — for sugar is to truth what flattery is to wisdom: a little cheers, too much lulls. A pinch of cinnamon, and I returned to my books.
- •Cooking chocolate bar — a good piece (base)
- •Whole milk — one bowl (liquid)
- •Sugar — a little (moderate sweetness)
- •Cinnamon — a pinch (sweet spice)
Old-Fashioned Hot Chocolate
A dense and frothy chocolate, barely sweetened, where the bitterness of the cocoa stands up to the roundness of the milk. It is drunk slowly, in small sips, like turning the pages of a beautiful book.
Why this dish? Thick chocolate, beaten with a moussoir, was the drink of writers' mornings and the cozy salons of the Belle Époque. France, a cabinet man bent over his ancient books on the Quai Malaquais, belonged to that cultivated bourgeoisie for whom a cup of chocolate accompanied reading and conversation.
Chocolate, you see, is the companion of sedentary minds: it keeps thought warm. I wanted it thick, almost grave, beaten long with the moussoir until a brown foam crowned the cup. One added only a hint of sugar — for sugar is to truth what flattery is to wisdom: a little cheers, too much lulls. A pinch of cinnamon, and I returned to my books.
Ingredients (period version)
- Cooking chocolate bar — a good piece (base)
- Whole milk — one bowl (liquid)
- Sugar — a little (moderate sweetness)
- Cinnamon — a pinch (sweet spice)
Ingredients
- Dark chocolate 70% — 80 g (base)
- Whole milk — 50 cl (liquid)
- Sugar — 1 tbsp (to taste) (sweetness)
- Ground cinnamon — 1 pinch (spice)
- Cornstarch (optional) — 1 tsp (thickener)
Method
- Finely chop the chocolate.
- Heat the milk with the sugar and cinnamon without boiling.
- Off the heat, pour in the chocolate and whisk vigorously until fully dissolved.
- Return to low heat, whisk (or beat with a moussoir/blender) to froth and thicken; add a little dissolved cornstarch if you want it denser.
- Serve very hot in thick cups, with foam on top.
How it was made : Before industrial powdered chocolate, one grated or broke cooking chocolate bars and melted them in milk, then beat the mixture with a moussoir (wooden mill) in a spouted chocolate pot. The foam was the mark of a well-made chocolate.
The contemporary twist : Serve it in a vintage chocolate pot and present alongside a small glass of cold water, as in Viennese cafés — to better savor the bitter-sweet contrast.
Sources : Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, Physiologie du goût (1825)
Anatole France · Charactorium
