How I prepare my Tsokolate de Batirol

I woke up to a chilly morning today that a having cup of hot chocolate sounds like a good idea over my usual (3-in-1 instant) coffee.  And I wanted to have the "real thing", not the Swiss Miss kind! I am talking about making hot chocolate using tablea (it is a Spanish word which means tablet), which are chunky chocolate discs/blocks that are made from pure cacao beans.  

Back home, we actually use the chocolate "paste" kind that comes in bottles.  I think that the one that we use has ground peanuts too besides the cacao.  I say this because there was one time, when I was a little girl, I remember seeing my dad grind some peanuts (using a stone mill) to be used for the chocolate paste. What makes this chocolate drink (we call it tsokolate de batirol) unique is how it is prepared.  

My mom uses a wooden molinillo (all these years I thought it was called a batidor!) to whisk together the chocolate, milk and water in a pitcher-like vessel made of brass called . . .batidor! (so this is the batidor!  If you're like me who didn't know too, well, isn't it nice that we learned something new today?!  Haha)  I just learned about these things today while writing this post.  Thanks to Chocolate de Batirol's website!

Image from Chocolate de Batirol's website

I haven't tried preparing this kind hot chocolate on my own (because my Mom or Ate Fely were always there to do it, teehee) until I moved to LA.  Armed with the chocolate tablea my Aunt gave me and the things I remember from the many times I've seen it being prepared at home, I tried my best to make one and hoped that its taste would be close to what I had at home. 

I used the following ingredients:

2 pcs of tablea

1 cup of water

Evaporated milk - depends on how milky you want your drink

2 tbsp of white sugar

1 tbsp peanut butter - Yes, you read that right!  Peanut Butter!

* Since I don't have a molinillo and bitador.  I just used a wire whisk and a saucepan.

Boil the water over medium heat and add the tablea pieces.  Using a wire whisk, stir the mixture continuously until the tablea completely dissolves.  Add sugar and evaporated milk and stir.  Over low hear, simmer for a few  minutes. 

Then add the ingredient that makes this hot chocolate simply the best. . . .peanut butter!

Whisk and stir until the peanuts butter blends with the mixture. 

The peanut butter gives this hot chocolate a really nice nutty flavor and a thick consistency which I am looking for.

I am so, sooooo happy how my cup turned out!  

Was it good?

What I can tell you is. . . . I was home.