Cold Day/Hot Chocolate

Today began cold, cold, cold, inducing memories of Angélina's chocolat chaud l'Africain. I closed my eyes and recalled entering the belle époche tearoom at sunset on rue de Rivoli near the Tuileries. The tourists have left for the day and it's too early for the dinner crowd. I could see myself in the gilded mirrors as I was led to a tiny marble-topped round table. And yes, there was the glass of water with ice cubes (unusual in Paris), the bowl of frothy sweetened whipped cream and the pitcher of hot chocolate, thick as a melted chocolate bar, with the texture of soft velvet and that unforgettable taste.

I have a bag of Angélina's hot chocolate mix, but I can't bring myself to use it up. So I searched for recipes. Jeremiah Tower Cooks (2002, p.277) lists this as the recipe for Angélina's chocolat chaud:
"1 cup heavy cream
4 ounces very best quality bittersweet chocolate
1 tablespoon superfine sugar
pinch salt
1 cup milk
Put the cream, chocolate, sugar and salt in a metal bowl over barely simmering water. When the cream is hot to the touch (but never boiling), gently whisk the chocolate until it is thoroughly mixed. Take teh bowl off the heat and whisk the mixture for 2 or 3 minutes. The mixture can be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to one week, but don't add the milk until ready to serve. Then heat the milk (without boiling) and whisk in the chocolate mixture until it is hot and frothy. Serve immediately in demitasse cups. Serves 2 to 4."

The famous chocolate expert David Lebovitz (Living the Sweet Life in Paris) states that "contrary to popular belief, most versions of Parisian hot chocolate are made with milk rather than cream, and get their luxurious richness from lots of top-quality chocolate." Check out his recipe here.

Other Angélina hot chocolate recipes on the net are similar to his. It's hard for me to believe it's possible to achieve the richness of Angélina's l'Africain without cream. I'll have to try the various recipes and see which is the closest. But I'll start with Jeremiah Tower's.