This Colombian-Style Hot Chocolate is popular in the Cundinamarca region of the country as it's known as Chocolate Santafereño. This drink can be served for breakfast or snack with your favorite Colombian cheese bread.
What is Chocolate Santafereño?
It's a popular warm drink in Colombia, especially in Bogotá, the countries capital. Hot chocolate is a staple in almost every Colombian home. In my family, as good “paisas”, we drink this hot chocolate at breakfast with arepa and cheese and sometimes as a “merienda”, an evening snack with Colombian pastries or bread and cheese.
In Colombia we like to add chunks of cheese into our hot chocolate. It's a traditional way to have this drink and it's absolutely delicious.You should try it!
What you Need to Make Colombian Hot Chocolate?
If you would like to make Chocolate Santafereño as we do in Colombia, you'll need two old-fashioned Colombian kitchen gadgets. A “chocolatera” and a “bolinillo” (or molinillo).You can buy them at local Latin stores or online.
The printable recipe card with exact ingredients amounts and cooking directions is below.
Milk: I recommend using whole milk to make this recipe, because it gives the hot chocolate a creamy texture. To make it dairy-free you can replace the milk with almond milk, oat milk, or coconut milk. They will change the flavor and texture of the traditional drink.
Cinnamon: Ground cinnamon adds a wonderful aroma and flavor to this drink.
Chocolate: I like using a Colombian chocolate brand "Luker"to make my hot chocolate. I usually find it in my local Latin market or online on Amazon. If you don't find this brand, just use your favorite and good quality bittersweet chocolate bar to make this recipe.
Sugar: Add to your taste.
Some of my favorite breads to serve with this Colombian hot chocolate are pandebono, almojábana, buñuelos and pan blandito.
More Comforting Drinks
Aromáticas de Frutas (Fruit Tea)
Colombian-Style Hot Chocolate Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 ½ cups whole milk
- 2 ½ tablespoons sugar or to your taste
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 5 ounces bittersweet chocolate chopped
Instructions
- Heat the milk in a saucepan on medium heat to just below the simmering point, add the chocolate. When the chocolate is melted, add the sugar and cinnamon.
- Whisk vigorously or transfer to a blender. Reheat gently and serve immediately.
Anonymous
Thank you for helping me keep our culture alive in my home.
Marta Charria
Either to use chocolate from Colombia Corona or from Mexico La Abuelita are fine. Also they are plenty, plenty sweet. No extra sugar is need it.