Churros Con Chocolate

Once upon a time, Matt and I had the ultimate pleasure of spending our morning lounging in a cafe in Malaga, Spain, dunking the most delectable churros into the most delicious hot chocolate I've ever tasted... Spanish hot chocolate to be precise. 

You know the hot chocolate from the movie Chocolat that makes your taste buds come alive and starts you drooling the moment those ribbons of thick, chocolatey goodness pour into the saucers? You can practically smell it through the screen! Well, to my good fortune, that cup of hot chocolate in that fab Spanish cafe was the hot chocolate of my dreams realized. It was a rather transcendent moment in my love affair with food, particularly that of the sugary variety.

I've successfully spent the last 3 years dreaming of the day we get to indulge in that experience once again, but have found a pretty spectacular alternative to satiate my chocolate-loving desires in the meantime. It's the perfect comfort food for this fall and winter season upon as, and easily boasts the makings of becoming a holiday breakfast or dessert tradition. I give you my go-to recipe for the almost authentic churros con chocolate!

CHURROS CON CHOCOLATE

Ingredients:

Churros
1 cup water
1/2 cup butter
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup whole wheat flour (hey, I'm trying to make it a little healthier)
3 large eggs
vegetable oil, for frying
powdered sugar

Spanish Hot Chocolate
1 tbsp cornstarch
2 1/2 cups whole milk
3 oz (3 cubes) of unsweetened baking chocolate
1/2 cup sugar

Directions:

In a small saucepan, combine butter and water and bring to a boil. Once mixture is boiling, add in flour and stir with a spoon until the dough comes together. Continue to stir and cook the dough for about 1 minute. Allow dough to cool off to a lukewarm temperature.

Transfer dough to a medium mixing bowl. Beat in the eggs one at a time, either by hand or with a mixer. Make sure each egg is well mixed in before adding the next. The batter may look wet before it comes together, but keep mixing and a smooth dough will form.

Transfer dough to a pastry bag fitted with a medium or large star tip. Pour about 2-inches of oil into a deep saucepan. Heat the oil over medium-high on the stove. 

Meanwhile, prepare the Spanish hot chocolate. Whisk together the cornstarch and milk. Add the milk mixture, chocolate, and sugar to a small saucepan. Barely bring it to a boil so the chocolate melts but the milk doesn't burn, stirring often, and cook until sauce has thickened. Remove from heat.

Pipe 5 to 6-inch pieces of churro dough into the hot oil and cook until golden brown, then flip and cook until golden on the second side (about 5-6 minutes total). Remove from oil and set on some paper towels to drain, then sprinkle with powdered sugar.

This recipe makes about 6-8 servings of Spanish hot chocolate and 20-25 churros.

Pour that glorious hot chocolate into small bowls or saucers and serve with a few churros on the side to dip. Enjoy the the chocolate coma that ensues and then get to planning your trip to Spain (trust me, it's worth it)!

*Recipe adapted from the Basic Bites food blog