Frothy Delicious Hot Chocolate

It seems that the making of certain milk-based hot (and cold?) drinks has become a serious art and science. I guess I am old-fashioned. No maybe I’m just old…I like to keep things simple and easy.

I had never had a milk steamer until maybe 6 weeks ago when I was visiting East Lansing, Michigan. The drink I sampled had a touch of almond flavoring. It was wonderful!

Since that experience, I have wondered what it takes to make a steamer and if I could re-create the experience at home. Well, as you probably already know there are an endless variety of expresso machines as well as automatic, battery-powered, and manual frothers that one can purchase to make such things as cappuccino, caffe latte, and milk steamers.

Hmmm…I just wanted to make a slightly novel cup of hot chocolate with healthy cocoa. I decided to experiment with Nestle Toll House Cocoa ( 100% bitter unsweetened cocoa) and Ghiradelli Premium Baking Cocoa (sugar, unsweetened cocoa, and a touch of vanilla). These are the two I happened to have on hand in my cupboard.

I heated a little more than a cup of skim milk on the stove top till the milk was beginning to form small bubbles but was not boiling. Then I added 1/2 cup at a time to a blender with 1/2 tbsp. of each cocoa mixture. It was easy to make the milk frothy but not a microfoam as the professionals make by any means. And I’m not thrilled with having to clean up the blender.

The results? The Nestle unsweetened cocoa was strong flavored and bitter. With no added sugar it was not exactly my idea of appealing. A little added sugar or sugar substitute would help. However, I did like the dark chocolate color of the hot drink.

The Ghiradelli hot chocolate was delicious! Yes, the first ingredient is sugar and not cocoa. But with both drinks I decided to add only a small amount of cocoa so the overall the nutrient break down is not bad. As such (with only a small addition of cocoa powder) the Ghiradelli hot chocolate drink is light colored and not exactly my image of a hot chocolate drink but who cares?

I recommend reserving the Nestle cocoa for baking (as it was intended. Three tbsp. of cocoa powder plus 1 tbsp. oil is the equivalent of one ounce of unsweetened baking chocolate.) However, in a pinch this cocoa would be usable for hot chocolate drinks with added sugar.

Here’s the ingredient and nutrient breakdown:

Ghiradelli Sweet Ground Chocolate and Cocoa:

1 cup skim milk
1 tbsp. sweet ground chocolate and cocoa

121 calories
8 grams of protein
21 grams of carbohydrates

Nestle Toll House Cocoa

1 cup skim milk
1 tbsp. cocoa

101 calories with no added sugar
9 grams of protein
15 grams of carbohydrates

If you are older like me or someone needing to watch your caloric intake and you are willing to skip the added marshmallows or cream, the Ghiradelli Premium Baking Cocoa makes a fairly nutritious, low calorie, and satisfying hot drink for a mid-morning or afternoon snack on a cold day.