L'apres Ski Recipe on Food52 (2024)

Author Notes

I tend to stick to the basics with my drink choices - that is, water, coffee, wine, beer - and I very rarely have anything else. Except for hot chocolate. I truly love hot chocolate...if it's good. (Hot chocolate made with syrup is practically an abomination.) When I studied abroad in France, I made it a central component of my cultural education to have un chocolat at a different cafe every single afternoon (thank goodness my other activity was walking everywhere rather than taking the metro). Then I came back and lived for a year with my best friend who has a similar affliction. We drank hot chocolate very nearly every night. During that year we perfected a technique that we felt made the best hot chocolate, which includes both cocoa and chocolate, plus a tiny bit of salt and vanilla, which bring out the rich play of sweet and bitter that you get in dark chocolate. We both were - and still are now, years later - avid cross-country skiers, and quickly decided that a steaming cup of chocolate with a crowning cap of whipped cream is the perfect way to relax after being on the trails all day. And if you really want to unwind, lace it with a touch of cognac (for which I inherited an affection from my - slightly crazy - great aunt) both in the cocoa and the whipped cream (if you've never made cognac-whipped cream before, beware, you may never go back!), because hey, you don't have to get back onto the trails until tomorrow. - fiveandspice —fiveandspice

Test Kitchen Notes

One sip of L’Apres Ski and I was transported to a Chamonix ski lodge after a long day on the slopes—not that I’ve ever been, but this is the sort of hot chocolate I imagine is sipped fireside there. It’s deeply chocolatey, without the usual cloying sweetness, thanks to the addition of dark chocolate and minimal sugar. I made this without the cognac and whipped cream for an afternoon treat and later, fully loaded, which is more like dessert. Either way, it’s fantastic and will become a winter staple in my house. —Midge

What You'll Need

Ingredients

• Hot chocolate
• 1 ¹/₂ ouncescognac (or if you're into hazelnut flavor you can try frangelico, it makes sweeter and more desserty)
  
• 2 tablespoonsgood quality unsweetened cocoa powder
  
• 2 tablespoonssugar
  
• ¹/₂ teaspoonvanilla extract (or you can make vanilla sugar by keeping a vanilla bean in some sugar and then just use that instead and omit the extract)
  
• Pinch(a small one) salt (preferably fine sea salt as regular salt can have a slightly abrasive flavor)
  
• 2 tablespoonsfinely chopped good dark chocolate (65-70% cocoa solids, at least)
  
• 1 ¹/₂ cupswhole milk
  

• Cognac whipped cream
• ¹/₂ cupheavy whipping cream
  
• 1 tablespoonsugar
  
• 1 tablespooncognac