Entertaining During the Holidays
By Victoria German
Hot Chocolate Fun Facts & History
Three thousand years ago, the Olmecs, one of the earliest Mesoamerican peoples living in Veracruz, Mexico grew cacao, the tree that grows the beans that become chocolate; and gave it to the world. By the fourth century, the Maya were also growing cacao trees in the Yucatan. Cacao beans were so important they were used as money. The Aztecs and the Spanish also dearly loved cacao and valued its flavor and medicinal properties. The hot chocolate drink that the Maya and Aztecs kings enjoyed was more like what we know today as “Atole” or “Champurrado”: a chocolate maize (cornmeal) drink served hot. This is a very comforting and nutritious drink that many people still enjoy.
There is a legend that the nuns of Oaxaca, an Aztec town, developed a new recipe for the hot chocolate we know today in Mexico and South Texas. This new drink was sweeter than the original Aztec hot chocolate. The nuns added sugar and spices like cinnamon and anise seed to tackle the bitterness of the Aztec drink. In the days of the conquistadors, the Spanish pressed cacao, sugar, ground almonds, and cinnamon into cakes or tablets so they could enjoy hot chocolate as they traveled. Two brands of Mexican hot chocolate available today are Ibarra or Abuelita, which you can find at the local grocery store. The key to making Mexican chocolate on the stove is to whisk the chocolate into a froth with the hot milk. This hot chocolate is amazing served with churros and is a fun dessert to make together.
Did you know modern hot chocolate was a happy accident? Cocoa beans have a high fat content meaning they don’t combine well with liquids when cacao is ground into a powder. Ghirardelli Chocolate Company in San Francisco (by way of Lima, Peru) made a very important discovery by accident. In the 1860s, a worker left ground cacao beans hanging on a hook in a cloth bag before he went home for the night. When he came back, the cacao butter covered the floor because it had been dripping out of the bag all night (kind of like a coffee filter). What was left was almost fat free ground chocolate: it combined really well with liquids like milk or water. This allowed the company to make a shelf-stable fat free powder that could be shipped all over the world. This is the basis for modern hot chocolate we enjoy today. You can still buy Ghirardelli’s sweet ground chocolate and cocoa for drinking and baking. Yay us!
Hot Chocolate Bar/Stand/Tray: this is a fun family project and a favorite with all generations. Find a pretty tray or create a place on your counter so your family can make hot chocolate, hot cider, and hot tea in all its variations. Find some cute cups, mismatched holiday mugs or plates. Or take your everyday mugs and add a festive ribbon to the handle. Go forth and hot chocolate:
Hot Chocolate Mixes (a variety is nice – either in cans or in single serving pouches)
Marshmallows
Chocolate syrup
Candy Canes
Whipped Cream/Cold foam
Fresh Mint
Maraschino Cherries
Holiday Teas (a variety is nice or your favorite)
Apple Juice/Cider (fresh or instant)
Cinnamon Sticks
Slices of Orange and Lemon
Instant Espresso or Coffee
Cappuccino Mix or Flavored Coffees (freshly brewed or instant)
Sprinkles/cocoa powder/cinnamon powder
Snacks, cookies, gingerbread, Christmas cookies, donuts, little cakes, nuts, dried fruit, popcorn, or pretzels. Be creative use little bowls or a tray with lots of sections.
Mugs, little teaspoons, tiny plates, tiny napkins
It is also fun to have a few tiny sized bottles of liqueurs in reserve for special occasions…
The dreaded fruitcake or how to make a fruitcake edible…
Fruitcake dates back to ancient times. In the past, fruit could only be transported over trade routes dried. This was important because fresh fruit spoiled, but dried fruit could be preserved for long periods of time. Fruit was very expensive and rare. Candying, canning, or brandying fruit also preserved fruit into the winter seasons so it could be used in baking and confections. Fruit cake was a way to use a variety of fruits for a festive cake during the winter. Still, fruit cake is an acquired taste and many people do not appreciate its flavor, texture, or history.
My uncle couldn’t stand fruitcake. My aunt, his sister-in-law, was on a mission to make fruitcake for everyone in the family every year. Fruitcakes traveled around the earth in search of all of our relatives. In late November, a very, very heavy package would arrive in the mail at approximately the same time that geese were migrating. According to my uncle the two events were related. I was not sure. Nevertheless, it was clear by the heft of the exceedingly heavy box and the postman strain, that cheery package heralded fruitcake season. Each year my aunt would give my uncle his brick sized fruitcake. Each year my uncle would take my aunt’s fruited brick-cake as he called it and stacked it in the garage like a yardstick or firewood or some geological experiment. After he had stacked about 25 fruitcakes, she gave up and stopped giving him fruitcakes. The point of this cautionary tale is that you can actually make fruitcake more edible by following a British baking “hack.” Tell me more, you say…The English have a very ingenious way of making fruitcake edible. This recipe will also make you look like a British bake-off rock star. For this culinary hat trick, you will need:
1 fruited brick or fruit cake of any shape
1-2 package(s) of prepared marzipan (almond paste)
1 jar of apricot or raspberry jam/preserves (you decide how much you need as a filling)
1-2 can(s) of fluffy vanilla icing (any kind, choose one you love)
Multi-colored or chocolate sprinkles
A washable/waterproof Christmas/holiday ornament(s)
A lovely plate, platter, or holiday tray
A little “holiday cheer” if the fruitcake is particularly dry or actually mimics a brick and you need to soften it up so you don’t break a tooth or if you really like “cheer” (you can talk to Rolando at Don & Ben’s for the perfect cheer)
Put the fruitcake on a stunning serving plate. Remember this is more like construction than baking…soo all hands-on deck.
Saw the cake in half (east to west) (lay the top over and brush as much jam on the top of the bottom half of the cake as you’d like. Replace the top of the cake on the jammy bottom of the cake – this is like the filling in a normal cake. It adds a yummy jammy accent to the bricky texture.
Roll out the marzipan about ¼ or 1/8 inch thick and lay it on the top of the fruitcake. You can cover just the top of the cake or cover the entire cake – the more marzipan the better. Press the marzipan into the fruitcake so the cake and the marzipan are firmly bonded together – a bit like Tyvek wrap on a house. Let this dry for about 15 minutes. It is easier to ice if the marzipan is dry versus tacky or wet.
Ice the entire cake with an offset spatula or a butter knife. Be sure to create a fluffy effect: you are going for something that resembles textured spackle or stucco. The icing should make the cake look like a snowy hill. Let the cake dry after you ice it for at least 15 minutes: this ensures that the structure sets and doesn’t wobble when you cut it.
Carefully add the holiday decoration(s) or ornaments to the top of the cake and add some sprinkles. I like themes like angels, reindeer, or winter forest. The decorations make the cake look very professional (like Julia Child professional). Let the finished cake dry for about an hour. When you serve your newly transformed cake, use a sharp knife and cut straight down. Since it is super rich you will only need a tiny slice. It does look pretty amazing and even more remarkable: it tastes like Christmas, not a brick.
Now if you cannot stand fruitcake (maybe you suffer from a fruitcake phobia like my poor uncle), you can substitute any cake that you truly love: for example pound cake, chocolate cake, red velvet cake, gingerbread cake, or bundt cake. You will still look like a British bake-off rock star while avoiding the dreaded fruitcake all together. Your English friends will marvel at your talent. Be sure to serve this with a flawless cup of piping hot English tea.
The Vintage Holiday Soda Counter & The Old Olmos Pharmacy
Soda counters were a big part of the past. During the first half of the twentieth century, local pharmacies usually had a lunch and soda counter. Sodas didn’t come pre-made. Soda water was added to actual syrups to create soft drinks. Soda counters had all the specialized equipment to mix soda creations, ice creams, and banana splits. It was a magical time.
At the edge of Monte Vista as you cross Hildebrand and McCullough, was an epic soda counter back in the day. The Olmos Pharmacy was world famous for BLTs, ice cream treats, and chocolate cokes. Even though the old pharmacy is now a restaurant, you can still see the outside of the building as it originally looked with its original stucco, neon trim, a clock face, and big glass windows. You can imagine you are at the shiny chrome soda counter, enjoying a fabulous drink from the past.
What pray tell is a chocolate coke? If you would like to re-create the best chocolate coke you’ve ever had, try this recipe: squirt 3 tablespoons of chocolate syrup into a tall glass filled with crushed ice. Slowly add coke/pepsi to the glass. Why slowly you ask…soda and chocolate create a chain reaction, which often results in a large spill and a very happy dog lapping your soda bubbles all over the floor. Consider creating a vintage holiday soda counter during this winter.
The Vintage Holiday Soda Counter is a fun addition to your holiday celebration for kids or kids at heart. This concept is great for a party, a potluck or a small gathering. It can be featured as either a drink or dessert. Simple and relatively inexpensive to recreate, definitely try this as a family activity or project:
Put a selection of your favorite sodas and bubble water in an ice chest or ice bucket.
Have a separate bucket of clean ice to add to drinks and some fancy ice tongs.
This works best in fancy glassware, martini glasses, tall chilled glasses, or plastic tumblers. You can also use a bunch of unmatched glasses or mason jars. This is super flexible.
Pre-make swizzle sticks out of pretty stacked fruits: mandarin oranges, pineapple, strawberries, raspberries, cherries, grapes, watermelon, lemon/lime wedges, candy canes or mini paper umbrellas.
Make ice cubes with sprigs of mint, edible flowers, fruits – this looks amazing in tall glasses
Group glasses of water filled with fresh mint or thyme to self-serve.
Add bottles of syrup/flavor: a couple of teaspoons of syrup like lavender, grenadine, lime, raspberry, ginger, cassis, or almond can be added to plain or flavored bubble water. This is very Italian and you can regulate the amount of syrup to bubble water.
Add little scoops of ice cream or sherbet to root beer or cola.
If you like spice: consider candied ginger, chamoy, tajin, or chili powder