HONDURAN HOT CHOCOLATE: PART I

A special case for the special flavor hot chocolate today. To begin with, this is the first time in 20 years of the Hot Chocolate Festival I've used single-origin chocolate. This means the cocoa beans came from a single farm and farmer, which in the big, bad global chocolate world, is extremely rare.

We know the backstory of the chocolate, because of the special person who procured the beans in the first place, brought them stateside and created the finished chocolate. That person is Shawn Askinosie, and his company, Askinosie Chocolate is one of the more remarkable companies in the food industry and fair to say, any industry. The Askinosie story is worth reading about in Shawn's own words.

We're serving the Honduran Hot Chocolate right now, and I'm comfortable to say it's quietly spectacular. The flavor - sweet and rich and a little brutish - is one thing, but the color is extra treat - a gorgeous deep/chocolate/red-umber. I've never had a hot chocolate that tastes like this, and never one to look like this.

I'll write later this afternoon about working with Shawn's chocolate for the first time ever to make this drink, but in the meantime, if you're reading this right now in New York City and have a chance to divert to City Bakery today, you should. This Honduran Hot Chocolate is worth a special trip.