Hot chocolate with a kick

Mark Twain is thought to have said, "The coldest winter I ever spent was summer in San Francisco."  Whether or not he did say it, the fact remains: the City by the Bay is damn cold in June and July.  Five days a week, I commute from Silicon Valley, which I love for its hot blue summers, to San Francisco's financial district, which is almost always foggy in the morning and breezy come midday.  It's now starting to settle into September, when the weather traditionally heats up--the past week in the city has been sun-kissed and stunning--but for most of the past few months I've been wind-blown and cranky, mourning the loss of my inland summer.

So, when I come home for the weekend, I make hot chocolate.

Real hot chocolate--made with warm milk, good cocoa, and just enough sugar to take off the edge--is a comfort like no other.  It's also delightfully flexible.  A bit of vanilla extract is always welcome, as is a teaspoon or two of instant coffee; a splash of hazelnut syrup makes it outright decadent.  During my last, thesis-crazed Interterm at Amherst, my friends and I would lace our hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps, an extra warming bite against the back of our throats as the freezing wind whined against the windowpanes.

But my hands-down favorite hot chocolate tweak is Mexican: a dash of cinnamon, less of cayenne pepper, maybe a whisper of almond extract if it's on hand.  I like my hot chocolate bracing and dark, so I skimp on the sugar and add a little more spice. This, to me, is how chocolate was meant to taste: rich, complex, even a little dangerous.  For a disappointingly cold summer, it's a drink that soothes and refreshes at the same time.

And if, unlike me, you live someplace with summers sweltering enough to make hot drinks temporarily unthinkable, not a problem: you can let the chocolate cool, skim off the skin that forms on the top, and put it in the fridge.  Voila--chocolate milk for grown-ups.

Mexican Hot Chocolate (serves 2-4, depending on how greedy you are)

1 pint (4 cups) low-fat or reduced-fat milk
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 cinnamon sticks or 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
a pinch of cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon sugar, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)

Pour milk into a small saucepan.  Add in all other ingredients; the cocoa powder tends to lump, so stir vigorously with a whisk or a wooden spoon to make sure everything's dissolved.  Warm the mixture on medium heat just until you see small wisps of steam coming off the surface; remove from heat and serve with mini marshmallows on top, if desired.