Colombian Hot Chocolate with Mozzarella

Yes, you read right, this is Colombian hot chocolate with mozzarella. No, these are not marshmellows, these are cheese cubes. I know that it does sound strange, but bear with me. Think of it like this, cheese, especially mild cheese such as mozzarella, is a dairy product, right? I would say it is similar to heavy cream. If you have no problem putting a bit of heavy cream on your hot chocolate, maybe you can give it a try with mozzarella cubes?

I have to admit, when I heard for the first time that Colombian hot chocolate is served with cheese, I was a bit hesitant. But I had sworn early on that I would try everything from Colombia at least once. Try once and then decide if you like it, but don’t refuse eating anything just because you have never tried it. So when my mother-in-law asked me whether I wanted my first Colombian chocolate with cheese, I agreed. I observed all family members, when do you eat the cheese? Most seemed to happily slurp the hot chocolate first and then spooned the melted cheese into their mouths. So I did that as well. And I was positively surprised, it was much better than I thought. Probably because cheese melts unlike cream, so you get an additional wow factor. This is my own interpretation, but maybe Colombian chocolate often is mixed with water because of the high content of fat in the cheese. It will end up creamier than if you only used milk or cream.

You see here the typical utensils used by Colombians, a pot and whisk will do as well

You can either pour the hot chocolate on top of the cheese cubes if placed on the bottom of the mug or serve them aside

Print Recipe

Colombian Hot Chocolate with Mozzarella

Prep Time: 5min – Cooking Time: 5min – Total Time: 10min

Colombian hot chocolate is usually served with a mild cheese such as mozzarella.

Ingredients

• Per Person:
• Half milk, half water (some prefer just milk or just water)
• 20 grams of good quality semi-sweet chocolate
• Optional: cinnamon stick
• 1 tablespoon of sugar or any other sweetener you like (increase/decrease amount to your preference)
• About six mozzarella cubes from one piece, e.g. this mozzarella

Instructions

1

Measure the milk/water with the mug(s) you are going to use and heat in a large pot together with cinnamon stick, if using. When it is almost boiling, reduce heat and add the sugar and chocolate. In Colombia you will use a "molinillo" (see picture), a wooden stick to stir, we will use a whisk instead. Whisk as much air as you can into the mix until frothy. Remove cinnamon stick and pour into mugs. You can either place the mozzarella cubes on the bottom of the mugs and pour the hot chocolate on top or serve them on the side. Most people first drink the hot chocolate and wait for the mozzarella to melt and eat it last. Hot chocolate is usually served for breakfast. For other Colombian breakfast recipes, check out this blog post.