As promised here is a recipe for churros and Caribbean hot chocolate, we need comfort food still now in Spring, because London and most part of Europe are still freezing. Let’s be patient and drink hot chocolate with rum, we have an excuse it’s so cold !

Churros (for 20 small)

Ingredients :

-250 ml of water

-60g of butter

-1 pinch of salt

-60g of granulated sugar

-225g of flour

-2 eggs

-sunflower oil

 

Method :

1. Bring the water, butter, salt and 2 pinches of sugar to the boil.

2. Put the flour in a big bowl, make a little volcano, pour in the boiling water while whisking with a wooden spoon. You will obtain a thick but homogeneous dough. Incorporate the eggs beaten, mix and set in the fridge for an hour.

3. Heat up the oil (ideally to 180°), if you don’t have any thermometer, when the oil is very hot, put the heat a bit down and wait 2 min. the fact that the dough is cold and contain water could make projections of oil when you will put the dough inside, just be careful not to put your face on the top of the frying pan).

4. Put the dough in a piping bag fluted. Drop some little bands of around 10cm in the oil, cut with some scissors between two because the dough can be a bit sticky and cook them for 2 min on each side. Drain on an absorbent paper, and sprinkle with sugar while they are still warm.

Caribbean hot chocolate serves 4-6

Ingrédients :

-800ml of milk

-200ml of double cream

-100g of dark chocolate, broken into pieces

-3 tbsp soft dark brown sugar

-1 cinnamon stick

– 1 vanilla pod

– About ¼ tsp of grated nutmeg

-3tbsp of dark rum

To serve :

-400ml of double cream

-2tbsp of dark brown sugar

Method :

1. Put 200ml of milk into a saucepan with the cream, chocolate, sugar and cinnamon stick. Slit the vanilla pod open in lengthways with a sharp knife and scrape the little black seeds into the milk mixture using the handle of a teaspoon or the tip of the knife.

2. Heat the milk mixture gently, stirring to help the sugar to dissolve and the chocolate to melt, until completely smooth. Add the remaining milk and bring to just under the boil. Turn the heat off, add the nutmeg and leave for 15 minutes or so to allow the flavors to melt.

3. Whip the cream for serving very lightly and then mix in the sugar with a large metal spoon

4. Heat the chocolate milk again, right up to the boil then add the rum. Remove the cinnamon stick and vanilla pod. Pour into cups and swirl the cream on top. Serve immediately.

French people have that typical (and shocking according to English people) mania, we deep our croissant, bread, biscuits in our coffee. English always look at me probably thinking ‘what the hell is she doing? it’s disgusting!’

Actually it’s delicious, just try once to deep your churros in your hot chocolate and you will think about me, I am sure !

Plate, cups and spoons from ‘Ceramica Blue’ 10 Blenheim Crescent, London W11 1NN.