A couple of days ago, I found happiness in a cup of hot chocolate. I hope you find it that easy, too 😁

In automatic mode, I dragged my feet to the kitchen and started making coffee in my old moka pot. I was thinking about the week ahead of me after I had spent recovering from a bad flu, basically eating, reading, watching TV, and sleeping. Now I had to catch up on my students' classes, start checking papers, and, oh, Goodness! I had to clean the house. This last part caused me some anxiety. The house is big and old, with large windows in a coastal city, where dust travels freely.

The moka pot makes a funny hissing sound as coffee begins to come out; at the same time, the strong aroma permeates the kitchen--and, I suspect, the neighbors' houses as well. It's a weird sound that puts me into a good mood; it's like, OK, these engines are starting already. With that energy radiating off me I felt the three-eyed stare of a coconut on the breakfast table and remembered that we no longer had coconut milk in the fridge. It was time to make coconut milk, and that's how it all started.

I remembered that I was craving cookies. I also remembered that I had seen a recipe for Cariaco corn atole that I had been wanting to try; I decided I would add some cocoa and see how it turned out. Best idea in a long time!

Cariaco corn is grown, roasted, and ground here in my region, eastern Venezuela. There are many typical drinks and snacks that are prepared with it. However, the trditions are sometimes sold at a premium and not for what they cost: I have not had the opportunity to cook anything with this corn until now.

I have a method, you know. It's one of those things: people see you and they wonder how you can go so smoothly and smiling through such a tedious task.

These are the ingredients I used to make 900 ml of coconut milk:

• 700 gr of coconut pulp (from three dry coconuts)
• 1 liter of warm to hot water
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

First of all, I take the water out of the coconuts. I let it drip into glasses, strain it, and freeze it. So I open a whole in the soft pore of each coconut.

...And let it drip.

These ones had plenty of water. I could use it to make the milk, but this would make it last less in the fridge: three days tops. I need it to last up to a week.

Then I put them directly on the stove for 10 minutes, or until they crack. This time is quite relative. You have to keep an eye on the coconut and turn it from time to time (or you could use your oven: bake at 350°F x 12 minutes or so). .

They turn a little black and make your house smell like BBQ. No problem; I love it.

After 15 minutes, when they have cooled, I put each coconut inside a kitchen towel and beat it against the floor to help it break completely.

Then I can remove the shell easily.

The endocarp is so delicious and high in antioxidants 😃

Peel the coconut, eat the endocarp like candy 😁 and cut the pulp into small pieces, so that your blender doesn't work too hard. Add warm to hot water and let the blender do its job.

The mixture will become somewhat creamy due to the hot water.

I regularly use my one an only draining bag, but sometimes I use an ordinary strainer if I'm feeling lazy.

The bag is better when the milk is so creamy.

Then it's time to squeeze!

This pot of milk is going back to on the stove.

I cook it for about 5-7 minutes over high heat without letting it boil. Then I let it cool completely and store it in the refrigerator. I think this is why it lasts a lot in our fridge.

Now that the milk for the chocolate was done, it was time to finish making the cookies.

Cookies.

These are the ingredients I used:

• 1/3 cane sugar
• 1 1/3 self-rising wheat flour
• 75 gr margarine (salted)
• 1 teaspoon ground cinamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

I powdered cane sugar in the blender.

Then mix it dry with the sifted flour.

Then added the margarine.

I kneaded the dough with my hands. It was soft and firm.

After 30 minutes, I added the ground cinnamon, vanilla essence, and lemon zest. And kneaded again.

I divided the cookie dough into 16 portions and put some pistachios inside each one.

Then I shaped the cookies and put them on a greased baking tray (with olive oil).

The first batch baked x 20 minutes at 300 °F, with heat up and down. I used my little electric oven.

They must be removed before they cool. I was able to put the second batch in the pan without having to grease it again.

The milk and the rest of the cookies almost done. Time for a little adventure: Make cariaco corn atole + cocoa.

I used:

• 1/3 cup of Cariaco corn flour
• 2 cups of water
• Pinch of salt
• 2 teaspoons of cocoa powdered (unsweetened)
• 1 tablespoon of cane sugar

I didn't want to add any spices because I wanted to try the true flavor o the corn... And I was so pleased.

I cooked the mixture over low heat, stirring constantly--or almost constantly--until the mixture was thick and smelled like cooked corn. This took about 25 minutes. As I was getting ready to go to work, I took my eyes off the mixture at times and it made some lumps; I didn't matter really, as I had planned to refine the mixture in the blender anyway.

...So I put the mixture, still hot, in the blender; added 100 ml of coconut milk, and 2 teaspoons of cocoa powder. I only add a little sugar because the cookies were sweet.

I served the Cariaco corn & coconut milk hot chocolate in a couple of big cups. Look at that. I'm telling you, this is perhaps the best "hot cocoa" I've ever had in my life 😁

I served the rest of our breakfast and had a little me time before going to work.

I spent a happy day. All's well that ends well, like the Bard said.

Thank you so much for your visit :)

All text and images are my own. I have taken the pictures with my Redmi 9T cell phone. And if any GIFs here, I've used GIPHY for all them.