Hi;

I found a great recipe for spicy Aztec hot chocolate that uses no
sweetener ( the big source of calories for most chochlate ). Trouble
is, it uses fresh ingredients and I would like something I can keep in
my desk and use with our hot water tea spigot

I can use water instead of milk, but how much vanilla powder/extract,
chili powder, cinnamon powder and plain cocoa would I used to
substitute for each of these ingredients?.

* 1 2/3 cups milk

* 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

* 1 red chili pepper, split with seeds removed

* 1 cinnamon stick, around 3-4"

* 1 1/2 oz chocolate (bittersweet)

Thanks in advance

Steve

In article . com>,
says...
> Hi;
>
> I found a great recipe for spicy Aztec hot chocolate that uses no
> sweetener ( the big source of calories for most chochlate ). Trouble
> is, it uses fresh ingredients and I would like something I can keep in
> my desk and use with our hot water tea spigot
>
> I can use water instead of milk, but how much vanilla powder/extract,
> chili powder, cinnamon powder and plain cocoa would I used to
> substitute for each of these ingredients?.
>
> * 1 2/3 cups milk
>
> * 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
>
> * 1 red chili pepper, split with seeds removed
>
> * 1 cinnamon stick, around 3-4"
>
> * 1 1/2 oz chocolate (bittersweet)
>
> Thanks in advance
>
> Steve
>


This sounds interesting- how do you make it? Could you post the
instructions? [What kind of chili do you use- those long thin red ones,
or a jalepeno that has turned red?)

I don't think you can make a dry mix- the chocolate bar (even tho
bittersweet is already sweetened) provides sugar and fat. I imagine the
richness of the milk/chocolate compensates for some of the loss of
sweetness. [Tho if you used whole milk powdered milk (see below) it
might be okay on the fat content]

I make regular hot chocolate both ways- with cocoa powder/sugar/milk and
bittersweet chocolate/milk and they taste/feel totally different.

You could try an artificially sweetened cocoa mix and add the spices.
(The mix may already have vanilla, so you wouldn't have to add that.) I
would try a dried red chili instead of powdered chili.

Or you could try a regular recipe for hot chocolate and cut some of the
sugar. I would cut the sugar in half and see if that tastes ok. Oh,
and if you do make your own mix- use powdered milk. It won't taste good
with just water.

One last thing- I don't know what type of hot water dispenser you have,
but most of them I've run across are not very hot at all- you may be
better off microwaving a cup of water. I find tea is much better with
really hot water, since more of the flavors get extracted. Probably
same thing with your spices.

Hope this helps! Please do post the original recipe- I'm eager to try
it.

Louise

wrote:
> This sounds interesting- how do you make it? Could you post the
> instructions? [What kind of chili do you use- those long thin red ones,
> or a jalepeno that has turned red?)

http://coffeetea.about.com/od/chocol.../aztecchoc.htm

> You could try an artificially sweetened cocoa mix and add the spices.

That is what I need help with. I am inexperienced with converting
amounts for "fresh" ingredients into amounts for dry ingredients.

I've successfully used organic cocoa powder with ginger, and a pinch of
stevia extract to kil lthe bitterness. I would like to get rid of the
sweetener altogether. I'm hoping the spices will reduce the
bitterness of plain cocoa powder. I just need an idea of how much of
each spice to start with. I want to use dried spices so I can make it
at work. The aforementioned combo works fine with the tea spigot I
have at work.

In article . com>,
says...
>
> wrote:
> > This sounds interesting- how do you make it? Could you post the
> > instructions? [What kind of chili do you use- those long thin red ones,
> > or a jalepeno that has turned red?)
>
> http://coffeetea.about.com/od/chocol.../aztecchoc.htm
>
> > You could try an artificially sweetened cocoa mix and add the spices.
>
> That is what I need help with. I am inexperienced with converting
> amounts for "fresh" ingredients into amounts for dry ingredients.
>
> I've successfully used organic cocoa powder with ginger, and a pinch of
> stevia extract to kil lthe bitterness. I would like to get rid of the
> sweetener altogether. I'm hoping the spices will reduce the
> bitterness of plain cocoa powder. I just need an idea of how much of
> each spice to start with. I want to use dried spices so I can make it
> at work. The aforementioned combo works fine with the tea spigot I
> have at work.
>

I'd try .5 teaspoon of each of cinnamon and vanilla extract and a dash
of finely ground hot pepper. [hot pepper is really variable- both fresh
and the ground spice can be very different depending on the type of
pepper (and your tolerance), so it is difficult for me to judge this
one.] That may be too much cinnamon- but you may want that flavor a bit
stronger since it is sweet. I think you'll still need stevia though...
Anyway, try it and compare to the "real" version, and adjust up or down.
Also, if your dried spices aren't fresh, you may need to add more.

Thanks for the recipe.
Louise

According to >:
>I can use water instead of milk, but how much vanilla powder/extract,
>chili powder, cinnamon powder and plain cocoa would I used to
>substitute for each of these ingredients?.
> * 1 2/3 cups milk
> * 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
> * 1 red chili pepper, split with seeds removed
> * 1 cinnamon stick, around 3-4"
> * 1 1/2 oz chocolate (bittersweet)

Other than the milk, I don't think any of the above items would have
a problem sitting about on your desk! cinnamon sticks, in my experience,
have the same shelf life as powder. Not sure about vanilla beans, but
you seem to be able to buy them in the same kind of container as the
other spice powders, so I would expect it to last ok.
--

Vicky Conlan > wrote:
> Other than the milk, I don't think any of the above items would have
> a problem sitting about on your desk! cinnamon sticks, in my experience,
> have the same shelf life as powder. Not sure about vanilla beans, but
> you seem to be able to buy them in the same kind of container as the
> other spice powders, so I would expect it to last ok.

I think the reason Steve wants to use powders instead of whole spices
is that he's making his hot chocolate by pouring hot water in, rather
than by simmering. I'm not sure you can really extract much flavour
from a cinnamon stick just by sitting it in hot water. I could be
wrong though! I also wonder whether using a cinnamon stick as a
"stirrer" in addition to the powdered cinnamon might add something to
the drink, if only aroma. And you could dry the stick out and reuse
it over and over, probably, if there aren't going to be any dairy
products in the drink.

Kake

According to >:
>I think the reason Steve wants to use powders instead of whole spices
>is that he's making his hot chocolate by pouring hot water in, rather
>than by simmering. I'm not sure you can really extract much flavour
>from a cinnamon stick just by sitting it in hot water. I could be
>wrong though!

Ah, I see what you mean. I assumed he was worried about it 'going off'
rather than being ineffective.

To go back to the original post - to convert from the 'real' items to
the powdered version, it's probably only possible to do by trial and
error, as a lot of these things are a case of personal taste anyhow.

--