When Cortez and his army arrived in the land of the Aztecs, they were unimpressed by the little dark brown beans many of the Aztecs were carrying, until they learned they were used like money!
These beans were cacao beans, a popular trade item before getting ground, roasted, and made into hot chocolate (without milk-- no cows!) As popular as it was for the Aztecs, chocolate, or xocatl, was originally developed as a food by the Maya.
Sometimes it was made without honey, as a bitter drink, and occasionally even contained chiles, to make it spicy. The Aztecs, Maya, and others also added a cinnamon-flavored bark (canela) native to Mexico and Mesoamerica, but this is not readily available, so the cinnamon in this recipe is the oriental variety available in modern supermarkets.
2 ounces (squares) bitter, unsweetened bakers' chocolate
1 cup hot water
3 tablespoons honey
dash salt
3 cups hot water
4 sticks cinnamon bark
Chop the chocolate and heat it in 1 cup of water until melted. Add honey and salt. Beat the hot chocolate with a balloon wire whip as you add 3 cups of hot water. Serve the foamy hot chocolate with cinnamon-bark stick stirrers.
Want to give some ancient cooking a try ? Check the Forums at archeology.org for advice on ancient cuisine
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment