All I need *

It's strange what I miss being away from home. Besides my family and friends, what I miss the most are the small things. The way the sun shines gloriously in Greece, the way the rain smells when it hits the rocky hills of Athens, the way the sea glistens under the moonlight at Batis beach.






It's the small things in food, too. I miss our sardines and anchovies, they taste like nothing else in the world, my favorite feta, aged in large wooden barrels, that I buy from a shop in my neighborhood, and Miranda biscuits, which I crave when it's really cold outside and all I want is to drink a hot cup of cocoa.






Sure, Holland is famous for its cookies and pastries, but nothing beats Greek Miranda cereal biscuits. When I was little, my mom would make for my brother and me her famous hot cocoa, always with Van Houten, and she'd give us a box of Mirandas. We would use the hot cocoa as a dip, dunking the rectangle-sized biscuits in it, allowing them to soften and then devouring them in one huge bite.






When my mom visited me this past August, among the numerous foodstuff she brought with her, she also brought me Mirandas. Needless to say, I was ecstatic when I saw her taking the boxes of biscuits out of her overstuffed suitcase. My instinct, even if we were in the middle of a heat wave, was to immediately go into the kitchen and make myself a hot cocoa, or better yet, a hot chocolate. And so I did.






I may still be trying to find a recipe for making these Miranda biscuits (and if anyone knows, please share) but I have already found the recipe for my ideal hot chocolate. Not cocoa, chocolate. That's the best.






There's something about pure, dark chocolate melting into hot, steaming milk that gets my taste buds all tingly and excited. When the smell penetrates my nostrils, I'm filled with anticipation for the hot, dark, liquid gold. There's just nothing like it.






Seventy percent chocolate, whole milk, and my secret ingredient, kaimaki (or kaymak). No need for heavy or whipped cream when there's something like kaimaki around, with its rich, creamy texture, to give the hot chocolate that extra-velvety consistency. One tablespoon is enough to make a difference.






Tackling the heavy Dutch winters is not an easy thing. A cup of this hot chocolate drink and a boxful of my favorite biscuits, is all I really need to make it just a little bit easier.






* The writing of this post was accompanied by the music of Air and especially by this song.






Hot Chocolate

I always use 70% chocolate for this drink and of course, the better the quality of the chocolate, the better the quality of the drink. As I always say where chocolate is concerned, make sure you use one whose taste you really like, otherwise you're not going to enjoy the flavor of the drink.

In case you can't find kaimaki where you live (try Middle Eastern stores), you can substitute with clotted cream, crème fraîche or even whipped cream (but it's not going to be the same).

And if you prefer hot cocoa rather than hot chocolate, check this out.






Yield: 2 large (or 4 small) cups

Ingredients
500 ml whole milk
100 g good quality chocolate, 70% (I use Lindt), plus some extra shavings for sprinkling on top
1 Tbsp sugar (or to taste, depending on how sweet you like your chocolate)
2 Tbsp fresh kaimaki


Preparation
Chop the chocolate into small pieces.


In a small saucepan, add the milk and heat over medium heat. When it starts to steam, add the chopped chocolate and stir with a whisk. When the chocolate has melted, add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Don't allow the milk to boil.
Turn the heat off and beat the hot chocolate well with the whisk, in order to create a light foam. Pour immediately into two large cups, add a tablespoon of kaimaki on each cup and sprinkle some chocolate shavings on top.

Enjoy with your favorite biscuits!