Let’s take a look at the Chocolate Set. I covered the rise of chocolate in my post on the chocolate spoon, but I want to say a few more words here. If you want to know more about hot chocolate, my post on Chocolate Spoons gives a little more back story. This will just cover the chocolate set sold for home use.
Before ladies got together for tea, they were meeting to take chocolate. In France this was a common practice in the late 18th century, despite Catholic restrictions on the consumption of chocolate, which was thought of as an aphrodisiac. The Sevres porcelain factory made its name by the production of porcelain chocolate sets. Women would gather at a home and often the lady of the house would prepare the chocolate in front of them. Chocolate was shaved from a bar and placed in a pot that had a lid with a hole in the top, (cocoa powder had not yet been invented). Hot milk was poured in and then a muddling stick was placed through the hole and spun between the fingers to blend the chocolate shavings with the hot milk. The resultant drink was dense, delicious and smooth.
Now, does the sound of women gathering and the lady of the house preparing an expensive concoction in front of her guests sound familiar? This is one of the reasons the “eureka” moment surrounding afternoon tea a half century later, sounds so specious to me. There is even the layer of secrecy because of religious strictures.
As chocolate and sugar became less expensive and cheaper alternatives such as dutch press cocoa appeared, hot chocolate became widely popular. The chocolate pot with the hole was replace in most places with a tall thin pot with a solid lid and muddler spoons were introduced for the stirring of the chocolate in the pot.
Chocolate pots can be recognized by the long thin shape with either a hole in the top for a wooden muddler or a flat top that is removed for stirring. Partly, the shape is practical, the long conical shape allows for stirring the chocolate in the pot with more efficiency and less splashing.
Chocolate sets can be found today, finding a set with matching cups can be expensive. Finding a set with more than 4 cups and saucers can be extremely expensive. Chocolate sets were a luxury. Many middle class women would use their coffee pot or a pot used for breakfast tea or coffee rather than purchase a pot for such a specific use.
European chocolate pots are much more common as the Austrian, Prussian and French love for cocoa was greater than in Britain, (having entered their markets earlier). Many of these are absolutely gorgeous and can be woefully undervalued, especially the art nouveau styles.
So what should you put in your pot? Well here’s my base cocoa recipe. You make it and store it in the refrigerator for when you want a cup. My husband likes a thick cocoa so when I’m making everyday cocoa I’ll add a finely chopped square of good semi-sweet chocolate to the mix as well.
Hot chocolate Syrup
1 cup superfine sugar
½ cup good quality unsweetened cocoa (I like Valrhona and Callebaut)
¼ cup water
pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cardamom or cinnamon if you like a little spice in your cocoa
Place ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil stirring constantly. Remove and place over a double boiler. Cook on low heat until mixture becomes a thick syrup. Add salt, vanilla and spice of your choosing, (or no spice if you prefer).
Let cool and refrigerate until ready to use.
When ready to make cocoa, add 3 teaspoons to every ¾ cup of very hot milk. Add an ounce of finely chopped chocolate to each cup for a French style cocoa.
This is to taste, so add a little more syrup if you prefer.
If you want to make it really decadent, add 4 tablespoons of syrup to 2 cups of milk, place in a saucepan and add 4 ounces of high quality dark chocolate, chopped fine. Stir until chocolate is fully melted and the mixture is hot. Add 1 cup of 1/2 and 1/2 and blend. Pour into demitasse cups and top with a dollop of whipped cream. You can also serve this with churros for dipping. Serve with spoons as this is a thick. My hubby even likes this the next day, cold from the fridge when it achieves a pudding like consistency.
Well, I hope this serves you well on a nippy night. Sending you much love, Cheri
