[PW] Tea and ice cream at St. Louis [Scanned]

[Dayle Henshel]

Usually the easiest is to just open a packet of hot cocoa mix (I usually use Swiss Miss rich chocolate w/ no sugar added, but there are lots of varieties out there) and pour in half or whole (really to taste), and stir energetically with straw or spoon or stick (I use a wooden chopstick) until blended and kind of foamy. It takes a bit of work, but it's worth it. Another way to mix is to use a jar or glass with top and shake!

Other options: in Starbucks, I take the top off the chocolate powder container and pour a bit into plastic glass - and stir with two or three stirrer sticks. At home, sometimes I add Ghirardelli chocolate powder (not the cocoa), which is also wonderful on ice cream. Other option to hot cocoa mix packets is a spoon or two of Nestle Quik (blends a little better and faster - also good on ice cream). I've also recently sometimes started adding a little bit of pure Dutched (blends better) cocoa powder to enrich hot cocoa mix. 

What I never do is use the chocolate syrups. I've never found one that doesn't taste off or fake or too sweet to me. I guess you could make a syrup of sorts by adding water or coffee ahead of time to the Ghirardelli chocolate powder (the closest to the Starbucks chocolate powder I've found) or perhaps Quik. That would definitely facilitate the blending. 

I'm now craving the last of my recent batch of cold-brewed iced coffee. Off to the kitchen to indulge (and start a new batch) on this very hot day in NYC...

dayle

-----Original Message-----
>From: Edith Bailes <edieb at suscom-maine.net>
>Sent: Aug 18, 2008 11:52 AM
>To: list at project-wombat.org, Dayle Henshel <dayleh at sprynet.com>
>Subject: RE:  Tea and ice cream at St. Louis [Scanned]
>
>>> My favorite cold drink is strong [espresso strong] iced coffee with
>>> milk/sweetener and sometimes chocolate. 
>- - - -
>
>How do you add the chocolate? As syrup or powder, or what? What kind?
>
>Edie in Maine
>