Italian Hot Chocolate (Cioccolata Calda)

Italian hot chocolate (aka cioccolata calda) is pure heaven for chocoholics. This is a rich and thick hot chocolate, but it is still liquid enough to class as a drink not a dessert. And sweet joy, it takes just 10 minutes to make.

Try it with a slice of chocolate salami.

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I fell in love with thick Italian hot chocolate (cioccolata calda) in Florence many years ago. Truthfully, it was a bit warm to be drinking hot chocolate at the time. But it was my first time in Italy. I'd read a guide book. I'd done my research. I was definitely going for it.

Unsurprisingly, it did not disappoint. Italians seem to know a thing or two when it comes to hot chocolate.

The memory of this culinary holiday delight has stayed with me over the years. But it's only recently that I've realised how easy it is to make Italian style hot chocolate at home. I'm delighted to be sharing the recipe with you now though.

Have you seen my guide to making the best hot chocolate at home? It's bursting with recipe inspiration including delights such as this cioccolata calda, creamy white chocolate hot chocolate, rich & unique salted honey hot chocolate and a comforting cinnamon hot chocolate.

Why you'll love this thick hot chocolate

Thick Italian hot chocolate is liquid heaven for chocoholics. Here are a few reasons why it is worth making:

• It is lusciously thick and creamy but still fluid enough to class as a drink not a dessert.
• And it is intensely chocolate rich with just a hint of sweetness about it.
• Italian-style thick hot chocolate is also very quick and simple to make.
• The recipe can be adjusted easily to accommodate your personal taste preferences.
• It's easy to vary the flavour.

Seriously, what is not to love about this Italian chocolate drink?

Ingredients notes

Though my list of ingredients pictured above stands at 8, three of these are entirely optional. There are just 5 ingredients that are essential for Italian style hot chocolate: chocolate, cocoa powder, milk, cornflour and sugar.

Instant coffee, vanilla extra and salt are all optional, but highly recommended, to create a rich and full-flavoured cioccolata calda.

Milk: use whole milk (full-fat) for a decadent creamy taste. Semi-skimmed or skimmed milk will deliver a less luxurious drink.

Chocolate: this recipe has been devised using dark chocolate. Use anything from 65% cocoa solids upwards. Replacing dark chocolate with either milk or white chocolate will result in a significantly different drink that could end up being rather too sweet to entirely enjoy.

Cocoa powder: ensure it is pure cocoa powder rather than hot chocolate or drinking chocolate powder as the latter 2 will have sugar added in.

Cornflour/ cornstarch: this is the vital ingredient required to turn this Italian chocolate drink into the thick and decadent treat that it is. Please don't miss it out.

Step by step instructions

This thick hot chocolate is a particularly easy drink to make. Follow the 5 steps below and it will be ready in 10 minutes:

1. Begin by chopping the chocolate finely and measuring the cornflour, cocoa and sugar into a saucepan. Add the salt and coffee granules if using.
2. Add 3 tablespoons of the milk to the pan and whisk until smooth - a small handheld whisk is ideal for this task.
3. Pour in the rest of the milk and the vanilla extract (if using) and heat, stirring constantly until hot but not boiling.

Constant stirring is vital as the recipe includes cornflour which will turn lumpy if not kept continuously on the move whilst it is cooking.

4. Slide the chopped chocolate into the pan, return to a low-medium heat and keep on stirring until the chocolate has melted and the drink has thickened.
5. Take off the heat and give a really good stir. The thick hot chocolate is ready to pour into 2 small cups.

Expert tips

This indulgent thick Italian hot chocolate is incredibly easy to make. Follow the instructions and you can't go far wrong. But here are a few extra pointers to help you achieve your ideal thick hot chocolate drink:

• The precise taste of this drink is entirely dependent on your choice of chocolate. Go for quality, but do ensure that the level of cocoa solids present is one that you are happy with. The higher the percentage of cocoa solids, the darker, less sweet and more intense the cioccolata calda will be.
• Dark chocolate is the best option for this drink, but if you are set on using milk chocolate, you can omit the sugar - it really won't be necessary.
• This Italian drinking chocolate is an incredibly rich and luxurious drink designed to be served in small quantities, so pull out some suitably small yet elegant serving cups for this beautiful creation. Espresso cups are ideal.
• I urge you to try out the base recipe first and then try it with my optional extras - small quantities of salt, vanilla and coffee. These extras are by no means traditional but they do pull the flavours of this drink around in a rather lovely fashion.
• If you want to inject a little extra flavour into your thick Italian hot chocolate the most natural way to do this is by using flavoured chocolate. It's easy to pick up mint and orange variations of dark chocolate for instance (or you can take inspiration from my Chocolate Orange hot chocolate recipe and convert it into this Italian style hot chocolate).
• Remember that adding liquids (such as alcohol or syrups) will alter the thickness and sweetness of the final drink. If doing so, consider increasing the amount of cornflour slightly and reducing the amount of sugar added in.

More Italian recipes

Have you made this thick hot chocolate recipe? If you have please give it a rating or leave a comment - I love to hear how you get along with my creations.

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