Cocoa Honey Recipe

After-school drinks that tame snack attacks

Comforting drinks are a delicious way to welcome your children home after a hard day of the three R’s. These recipes are quick and easy. They’re also a good way to make sure you meet all your kids’ pals.

Just make sure you have enough to go around. You can mix and refrigerate these the night before, ready for the afternoon’s  first “Mom! We’re hungry!” And you can serve them chilled or warm. Heat the drinks yourself, or let the older kids handle microwave or stove duties. With a couple of graham crackers, these snacks will help to tame appetites until dinnertime.

Drink an apple

Mixing unsweetened apple cider with applesauce might seem repetitious, but this layering actually concentrates the fruity flavor. The applesauce also contributes body to the finished drink. After enhancing the flavor with a little honey and cinnamon, we whipped the mixture in a blender. This drink tastes good cold, which makes it perfect for early September, when summer is still hanging on. By October, you and your brood will appreciate this drink warm, stirred with a cinnamon stick.

Combine the cider, applesauce, ground cinnamon and honey in a blender and whip until frothy. This can be served chilled or warm. Heat the mixture in a microwave on high for about 30 seconds. Or place the liquid in a saucepan and bring it to a high simmer on the stove. Pour into two mugs and garnish each with a cinnamon stick for stirring. Serve warm. Makes 2 servings.

Sweetly does it

Hot cocoa is a sure thing for autumn, and banana is a way to bolster nutrition. Bananas and chocolate are natural partners, so we found lots of recipes pairing them. Our version calls for placing one 6-inch banana, peeled and chopped, and 1 1/4 cups of 2 percent milk in a blender. Add a rounded tablespoon of Dutch-processed cocoa, a half teaspoon of honey and a pinch of cinnamon. Whip until frothy and smooth.

Served cold, this tastes like fancy chocolate milk. It can be microwaved in mugs or simmered in a saucepan.

This recipe is for two servings, but it tastes quite rich, even though it uses low-fat milk. So you might serve three with this amount. We garnished each mug with banana discs and a Maraschino cherry.

HVG Chocolate Festival Recipes | Justine Schofield

 Serves: 3-4 as an entree

Cooking: 15 minutes

1kg (about 12-14) chicken wings, wing tip removed and bone cleaned

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 ¼ tsp. smoked paprika

½ tsp. chilli powder

½ tsp. ground clove

Zest ½ an orange

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

2 tbs. honey

2 tbs. tomato sauce

2 tbs. dark mushroom soy

1/2 tbs. good quality cocoa powder (I use Valrhona)

Extra cocoa powder, for garnish

Mixture of black and white sesame seeds, for garnish

1 cup corn kernels

1 small Lebanese cucumber, seeds removed & finely diced

¼ cup finely chopped coriander

½ chilli, finely chopped

1 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice

2 tbs. extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper

 To make the salsa: combine corn, coriander, chilli, lime juice, oil, salt and pepper

To make the marinade: combine the cumin, paprika, chilli, cloves, zest of the orange, garlic, honey, tomato sauce, soy and cocoa powder.

Add the chicken pieces to the marinade and coat each shank really well. Cover with cling wrap and allow to marinade for a couple of hours or even better overnight.

Pre heat oven to 180˚C

Arrange the chicken shanks in a greased baking dish. Lightly sprinkle with the black and white sesame seeds. Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before arranging on a small mound of corn salsa. Finally dust with a little more cocoa powder.

Makes:  15-18 small pieces

Cooking time: 30 minutes

100g butter, melted

3 eggs

110g caster sugar

150g plain flour

Zest of 1 lemon

Zest of ½ orange

1 tbs. honey

½ cup of condensed milk

100g good quality dark chocolate, roughly chopped

1 tsp. milk

1 shot of strong coffee

½ cup Chocolate popping candy, finely chopped (you may use chopped chocolate)

¾ cup of fresh ricotta

1 tbs. cream

1 tbs. icing sugar

To make the ricotta filling combine chocolate, ricotta, cream and sugar and mix until smooth. Once combined, place in a small piping bag and reserve in fridge until ready to use.

 Pre heat the oven to 190˚C. Grease and flour a Madeleine tin* (if you do not have one of these mini cup cake trays are fine).

1,000 Jewish Recipes

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