How to Make Hot Cocoa from Cacao Beans

Thanks to Bean Street in San Mateo, I've come to appreciate hot cocoa made from roasted cacao beans.  Next to cioccolata calda, it's my new standard in drinking chocolate.  

Personally, I find hot cocoa brewed fresh from roasted cacao beans to be a wonderfully inviting drink. With the consistency of coffee, it is different than the creamy and thick cioccolata calda, but has those same chocolate undertones which get lost in the over-sweetened, over-processed, pre-packaged hot cocoas on the market.   While I still enjoy hot cocoa (from powder) and hot chocolate (from bars), depending on my mood, I find my taste buds shifting.  My daily chocolate fix is becoming more hot cocoa from the bean, or as I am beginning to say, "hot cacao," to distinguish the difference.  

Brewed hot cacao from the bean is a new trend, and I agree with John Nanci, the Chocolate Alchemist, that it is a different taste experience.  He writes: "Brewed cocoa, regardless of source, is not an intense, thick mouth coating drink like many are accustomed to in hot chocolate or the other various processed chocolate drinks.  It’s more subtle and sublime than that.  It is its own drink.  If you compare it to hot chocolate, you may come away disappointed.  If you evaluate it for it own flavor and merits, I think you will come away impressed."

I know I am totally impressed, as I savor my fresh brew made this morning from my stash of earthy, organic, Fair Trade, Dominican Republic, “Conacado” 2010 cacao beans. As I explore and sample different beans and learn to describe the different flavor points, I know I am becoming even more of a cocoa connoisseur, a cacao enthusiast, and yes, I admit it, a "chocolate snob".  My taste buds are expanding and maturing, but more on the "mature" aspect of chocolate tomorrow.

For today, here's the method the baristas at Bean Street taught me which I've adopted for my home purposes and preferences.

1. Begin boiling water.  Turn off when done.

 

2. Select about 2 tablespoons of your favorite roasted cacao bean (About 20 beans. I find it easier to count than to measure).

3. Grind the beans in a standard coffee grinder for about 45 seconds.  After about 30 seconds you will begin to smell the rich chocolatey aroma of the cacao beans.  As the cocoa butter is released, the ground beans create an oil brown muddy sludge on the bottom and edge of the grinder.  That's how you know you're done.

 

4. Use a spoon to remove the ground beans and place in an espresso frothing pot, or a similar container.  You may also want to use a coffee brush to clean out the cacao grounds from the grinder.

5. Add about 1 cup (8 ounces) of boiling water into the pot with the ground cacao beans and give the brew a stir with a spoon.

6. Brew for about 4 minutes, longer if you want a more intense flavor.

7. Pour the brewed cacao through a fine strainer into a mug which is at least 12 ounces.  

8. Use a spoon to assist the hot cocoa as it strains and as the grounds clog the flow by moving the grounds and pressing the remaining liquid through the strainer into the mug.

9. Add a sweetner.  For simplicity, I use about 3 teaspoons of Torani's French Vanilla, but I've also used about 3 teaspoons of agave nectar with about 3 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract.  Both are great.  Other Torani flavors may also be used, but of the ones I've sampled, vanilla is the best.

10. Heat 1/2 cup of milk of your choice to 140-160 degrees using an espresso machine frother or any other method you prefer.  I found the espresso machine to be the easiest.

11. Pour the steamed milk into the mug and top with some froth.

12. Stir as needed, especially if using soy milk, and ENJOY!

If you'd like more insights on brewing cacao, check out Chocolate Alchemy's recent blog on the subject here.  And if you have questions, don't hesitate to ask by leaving a comment below.  Happy Chocolate Week!