Notes from Ruth Alegria: Mexican chocolate is composed of bitter chocolate, sugar, cinnamon (soft bark) and almonds. Well-known brands available in the United States are Ibarra and Abuelita.
In some places like Oaxaca the chocolate is sold as an artisanal product. This means you walk into a molino (mill) where they grind the cocoa beans together with your favorite ingredients in the ratio you specify. The mix emerges still hot from the grinding and is a super sensory shock if you have never tasted hot ground cocoa.
Ingredients
4 cups water or milk
240 grams of Mexican-style chocolate, crumbled (a meat mallet works well)
Instructions
Heat water or milk. Add crumbled chocolate and stir vigorously with a molinillo until the chocolate melts and the mixture becomes foamy. Remove from the heat and serve hot.
A molinillo is a wooden beater with a round grooved end beneath several loose rings.
Recipe courtesy of Ricardo Muñoz and translated by Ruth Alegria
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