Mexican hot chocolate recipe

This Mexican hot chocolate is really special. Packed with warming Mexican spices, from nutmeg and cinnamon to cayenne pepper, it's a deliciously spicy-sweet drink for cool winter evenings.

Using real hot chocolate, plus of course lots of marshmallows for extra sweetness, it's packed full of the goodness of milk and the sweetness of cocoa and real chocolate. Go on, give your hot chocolate an extra kick with these delicious Mexican spices - for a winter treat. And the leftovers taste great chilled. You could even try making this hot chocolate in a slow cooker.

Ingredients

• 6 cups semi-skimmed milk, divided
• ¼ cup cocoa
• ½ cup chopped dark chocolate
• 6 tbsp brown sugar
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
• 2 cinnamon sticks, broken in half
• 1 vanilla bean, split length-wise
• 1 cup miniature marshmallows
• Cayenne pepper, to garnish (optional)
• Additional cinnamon sticks, to garnish (optional)

Method

1. Combine 1 cup milk and the cocoa in a small bowl. Stir well with a whisk.
2. Combine the remaining 5 cups milk, chocolate, sugar, nutmeg and 2 cinnamon sticks in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat.
3. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean, then add the seeds and bean to the milk mixture. Add the cocoa mixture to the pan. Cook for 25 minutes or until thoroughly heated and the chocolate is melted, stirring frequently.
4. Strain mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl and discard the solids. Serve with marshmallows. Garnish with cayenne pepper and cinnamon sticks, if desired.