Mexican Mocha

5 from 2 votes

Mexican mocha is a playful and warming take on a classic mocha drink. This Latin-inspired spicy mocha is an exciting combination of coffee, chocolate and spices creating a deeply comforting drink with a kick of chilli heat.

Cook Time5

Infusing time15

Total Time20

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: Worldwide

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings:

Calories: 215kcal

Author: Jane Coupland

Ingredients

150 ml Strong coffee freshly brewed using 18g ground coffee per 75ml
300 ml Milk full fat
30 g Dark chocolate with 70% cocoa solids
1 tablespoon Honey
½ teaspoon Ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon Ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon Ground allspice
¾ teaspoon Ancho chilli powder or other chilli powder of your choice
Pinch of salt

Optional Garnishes (any of the following)

Whipped cream
Grated chocolate
Ancho chilli powder
Ground cinnamon or a cinnamon stick

Instructions

Warm the milk (but don't let it boil). Take it off the heat and stir in the honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and the chilli powder. Leave it to infuse for 15 minutes.
Strain through a piece of muslin or a nutbag and return the infused milk to a clean pan.
Chop the chocolate and add it to the pan with a pinch of salt. Heat to melt the chocolate, stirring constantly. Take off the heat when the temperature reaches 70C/ 158F.
Brew the coffee and pour it into the pan. Stir.
Optional: froth the spicy mocha drink with the steam wand on your coffee machine, a dedicated milk foamer or a stick blender.
Pour it into warmed mugs or coffee glasses.
Top with cream (if desired) and garnishes then serve immediately.

Notes

Don’t allow the milk to boil. It will just make the drink too hot to enjoy and may turn the coffee bitter. Instead, aim to heat the milk to around 70C/ 158F.
Do warm your serving cup by filling it with freshly boiled water while the drink is prepared. Your mexican mocha will be a better temperature if you do.
Adjust the level of sweetener cautiously. The charm of this Mexican mocha recipe is the perfect balance of robust coffee and chocolate flavours, kicked up with enchanting spices and just a hint of sweetness. Less is more here.
Similarly, the spices should be adjusted thoughtfully. It’s fine to swap some out or increase or decrease them, but be mindful of overpowering the other flavours in your Mayan mocha if you do so.
If you leave out the chilli the result will be a sweetly spiced drink, still with the warming, cosy notes of the cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice but without the more spicy heat of the chilli.
Try different chilli powders such as chipotle, cayenne or supermarket standard mild chilli powder.
To make an iced Mexican mocha make the spiced chocolate milk using just half of the milk then strain away the spices and top up with the remainder of the milk to cool it down. Pour the coffee and the milk into a tumbler filled with ice.
To make a vegan spicy mocha use a vegan-friendly milk, vegan dark chocolate and replace the honey with maple syrup or demerara sugar.

Nutrition