Winter has announced its arrival with cooler temperatures, cold winds, and rainfall and snowfall in the mountains. It is now time to warm up with hot drinks.

While adults indulge in tea and coffee, kids are made to drink warm milk, which can get boring soon. They can always experiment with different flavours and ingredients to make something warm and welcoming, such as hot chocolate.

Today’s recipe is a healthy and nutritious take on hot chocolate, but without the addition of chocolate or lots of cream, to avoid piling it up with calories. The flavour is enriched by the addition of coffee, cocoa powder, Milo powder and just a touch of cream, to make this hot chocolate into malt caffè mocha.

Malt caffè mocha sounds a very fancy kind of a drink, but it’s very simple. A combination of coffee and cocoa or chocolate is popularly known as caffè mocha, generally with milk or coffee froth floating on top to give it a luxurious feel. The distinctive milk froth of the coffee mocha is deliberately skipped here to make the recipe easier for youngsters to make on their own. But if you want milk froth on top, you can always make it with a milk frother, or whisk hot milk until your hands hurt. I didn’t have a frother, nor did I want my hands to ache, so I skipped it. Moreover, I prefer breaking down lengthy and complicated cooking processes into simpler and quicker ones, and I am sure most of you do too.

You are sure to find this recipe a simple and delicious one, so let’s check out how to make malt caffè mocha.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 tablespoon Malt powder or Milo
• 1 teaspoon coffee
• 250ml milk
• 4 tablespoons cream
• Cream and malt powder for topping

Method

Take a small saucepan, add milk and all the ingredients. Whisk well while heating on medium flame. Bring it to a boil, lower the flame and let it simmer for a minute. Turn off the heat and either pour immediately into a heat-proof mug or heat-proof glass, or wait for a couple of minutes, like I did, and then transfer into the serving mug.

Top with cream frosting and sprinkle some Milo powder and/or coffee, and let it warm you up with its sweetness. This can be enjoyed both hot or chilled with ice, depending on the weather and your mood.

The ingredients are enough the make one large mug, and you can adjust the measurements, as well as ingredients, to suit your taste.

The writer Instagrams @the_experimentalcook

Published in Dawn, Young World, November 19th, 2022