Recipe: Mayan Hot Chocolate

Ingredients

• 1 fresh chili pepper, cut in half, seeds removed
• 2 cups water
• 5 cups milk or half-and-half
• 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
• 1 to 2 cinnamon sticks
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate or 3 tablets Mexican chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons sugar or honey or to taste
• 1 tablespoon almonds or hazelnuts, finely ground

Preparation

1. Add chili pepper and water to small saucepan; heat to boil. Cook until liquid is reduced to 1 cup, about 15 minutes. Strain out chili pepper and any stray seeds. Set liquid aside.
2. Combine milk, vanilla bean and cinnamon stick in medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat until bubbles appear around edge of pan. Reduce heat to low. Add chocolate and sugar; whisk occasionally until chocolate is melted and sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes.
3. Turn off heat; remove vanilla bean and cinnamon stick. Stir in ground almonds. Add chili pepper liquid a little at a time until desired flavor and heat is reached. If chocolate is too thick, thin with a little more milk.

Nutrition information per serving:

Calories: 340	Fat: 17 g	Saturated fat: 10 g
% calories from fat: 46	Cholesterol: 17 mg	Sodium: 105 mg
Carbohydrates: 36 g	Protein: 10 g	Fiber: 3.2 g