Rich, spicy hot chocolate a decadent treat

Advertisement

Advertise with us

Today for Homemade Holidays, we have a spicy and satisfying stovetop hot chocolate recipe from Free Press reader Sandy Rubinfeld. Hot tip: if you don’t finish the whole pot, you can store the leftovers in the fridge and mix it into your morning coffee for a fancy faux-mocha — make sure to stir well, as the hot chocolate thickens further in the cold.

Read this article for free:


or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Subscribe and receive a limited-edition Free Press branded hat or tote.

Digital Subscription

One year of digital access for only $205*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/12/2024 (615 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Today for Homemade Holidays, we have a spicy and satisfying stovetop hot chocolate recipe from Free Press reader Sandy Rubinfeld. Hot tip: if you don’t finish the whole pot, you can store the leftovers in the fridge and mix it into your morning coffee for a fancy faux-mocha — make sure to stir well, as the hot chocolate thickens further in the cold.

“This is the very best hot chocolate I have ever tasted! It is perfect for a chilly Winnipeg winter day. It is incredibly rich, like a hot chocolate pudding, so I save it for rare occasions. I came across it decades ago in The Vegetarian Epicure Book Two. It is authentic to northern Spain,” writes Sandy.

(Eva Wasney photo)

(Eva Wasney photo)

Castilian Hot Chocolate

Submitted by Sandy Rubinfeld

Ingredients

  • 125 ml (½ cup) unsweetened powdered cocoa
  • 250 ml (1 cup) sugar
  • 35 ml (7 tsp) cornstarch
  • 125 ml (½ cup) water
  • 1 litre (4 cups) milk
  • 1 ml (⅛ tsp) red pepper flakes (optional)
  • 5 ml (1 tsp) cinnamon (optional)

Directions

  1. Mix the cocoa and sugar together.
  2. Dissolve the cornstarch in lukewarm water. Combine this with the cocoa-sugar mixture in a medium-sized saucepan. Stir until it forms a smooth paste.
  3. Slowly begin heating this mixture. Continuously stir with a whisk. Gradually pour in the milk. Continue stirring, as you bring it to a simmer.
  4. Simmer, stirring often, for at least 10 minutes. If using, you can add the cinnamon and red pepper flakes at this point.

The cocoa is ready when it thickens, and is a glossy, smooth, rich chocolate colour. The consistency should be like a chocolate pudding that didn’t quite set.

eva.wasney@winnipegfreepress.com

Eva Wasney

Eva Wasney
Reporter

Eva Wasney has been a reporter with the Free Press Arts & Life department since 2019. Read more about Eva.

Every piece of reporting Eva produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.

Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.

Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.

Report Error Submit a Tip

More Stories

Student union coalition scrutinized, accused of providing minimal benefit for fees paid

Maggie Macintosh 5 minute read Preview

Student union coalition scrutinized, accused of providing minimal benefit for fees paid

Maggie Macintosh 5 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 8:36 AM CDT

Despite being labelled as “permanently closed” online and maintaining a website filled with outdated information, a coalition of student unions is defending itself as an active entity deserving of fees in spite of its low profile.

The Canadian Federation of Students and its local chapter, better known as CFS-MB, collect annual membership dues from campuses across the province to support their advocacy work.

Alan Saji Koshy’s advice to new and returning students to the University of Winnipeg? “Start asking questions.”

“We pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for practically no benefit and students don’t even know (CFS-MB resources) exist,” the recent graduate and former student association president said.

Read
Updated: Yesterday at 8:36 AM CDT

A new chapter: Renamed Winnipeg Book Festival takes to The Forks this fall

Ben Sigurdson 5 minute read Preview

A new chapter: Renamed Winnipeg Book Festival takes to The Forks this fall

Ben Sigurdson 5 minute read Yesterday at 4:22 PM CDT

Winnipeg’s long-running annual literary festival returns this fall, once again featuring a slate of authors, local and beyond, ready to engage with readers.

New this year is pretty much everything else, including a new name, executive director and team of staff — as well as a shift to a tight, condensed timeline and a move to hold all events under one roof.

The festival formerly known as Thin Air/Livres en fête is now the Winnipeg Book Festival; the event takes place Oct. 1-4 at The Forks Market, with most events offering free admission.

It’s a lot of changes for the stalwart literary festival, which was run for more than two decades by Charlene Diehl, who stepped away in late 2025.

Read
Yesterday at 4:22 PM CDT

Arcade bar to open in former downtown Keg

Gabrielle Piché 4 minute read Preview

Arcade bar to open in former downtown Keg

Gabrielle Piché 4 minute read Monday, Aug. 10, 2026

Smash burgers and Skee-Ball will replace steaks as the former downtown Keg transforms into an arcade bar.

Read
Monday, Aug. 10, 2026

Spotty service, U.S. roaming charges leave Somerset woman calling for answers

Nicole Buffie 6 minute read Preview

Spotty service, U.S. roaming charges leave Somerset woman calling for answers

Nicole Buffie 6 minute read 5:37 PM CDT

A southwestern Manitoba woman is voicing her concerns about cell service in the area after she was billed more than $100 in U.S. roaming charges despite never leaving her community.

Teresa Acheson received a notification on her phone Monday at about 7:30 a.m. saying she had entered the United States and would be charged $13 per day for unlimited calls and text messages.

The only problem is that she was not in the U.S. She was lying in bed at her home near Somerset, some 50 kilometres away from the U.S. border.

“People have said to watch if you’re driving close to the border because you’ll get dinged, but I was sitting at home,” she said Wednesday.

Read
5:37 PM CDT

Frustrated owners won’t rebuild demolished Boujee

Nicole Buffie 4 minute read Preview

Frustrated owners won’t rebuild demolished Boujee

Nicole Buffie 4 minute read Monday, Aug. 10, 2026

The co-owner of a former Main Street restaurant vows he will not rebuild in Winnipeg’s downtown, owing to constant crime and vandalism in the area.

Kanish Sood, who is one of three partners of the now-demolished Boujee Restaurant and Bar, said he did everything he could to keep the building safe from vandals after it was hit by arson last October.

“After that (fire), there is about already 15, 20 times there has been break-in in the property,” Sood said Monday. “We have been informing police continuously that there is continuously break-ins. People are trying to go inside the building and stealing things, but there was no action.”

After Boujee was torched, Sood and his partners locked the building and boarded it up. They also hired private security to monitor it. The break-ins continued.

Read
Monday, Aug. 10, 2026

Long-awaited supervised drug consumption site opens quietly after months of loud opposition

Malak Abas 11 minute read Preview

Long-awaited supervised drug consumption site opens quietly after months of loud opposition

Malak Abas 11 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 5:57 PM CDT

After three years of planning, delays and constant controversy, Manitoba’s first supervised drug consumption site quietly opened its doors Tuesday morning.

Read
Updated: Yesterday at 5:57 PM CDT