Cocoa Lanka

July 24, 2009 at 12:01 am (Comfort food, Fruits, Vegetables, Plants, Milk and milk products) (Ceylon cinnamon, fresh cream, fresh stevia, hemp seed, raw almonds, Raw cacao beans, raw milk, star anise, vanilla bean)

Raw milk, cacao beans, star anise, Ceylon cinnamon, raw almonds, hemp seed and vanilla bean. Hot cocoa for grownups..

click to enlarge

Simmer raw milk, split vanilla bean and fresh stevia leaves over medium-low heat. Do not allow to boil.

Meanwhile, toast raw cacao beans, anise, cinnamon, almonds and shelled hemp seed in a dry skillet over medium-low heat until fragrant, about 5-10 minutes.

Crush toasted spices in a mortar, add to the milk and simmer another 15 minutes.

Strain into a coffee mug, swirl in a little fresh cream and garnish with cinnamon and stevia leaves.

Sleep tight, friends..

Lanka is the name given in Hindu mythology to the island fortress capital of the king Ravana in the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata, and is the ancient name for present day Sri Lanka. The fortress itself was situated on a plateau between three mountain peaks known as the Trikuta Mountains Trincomalee.

Rama preparing for war against Ravana

This post is part of Food Renegade’s Fight Back Fridays

7 Comments

Dink said,

July 24, 2009 at 5:25 am

What a great treat for a winter Sunday afternoon..along with a good book

Reply
Dink said,

July 24, 2009 at 7:50 am

Do you grow your own stevia? It seems it can be grown in a container. If not, where do you find the leaves?

Reply
- Ren said,
  
  July 24, 2009 at 7:54 am
  
  I grow it in a container on the patio. In 3 months, it has grown to be 4ft tall, even after being cut back once.
  
  Reply
FoodRenegade said,

July 24, 2009 at 11:57 am

This looks delightful, Ren! I can’t wait to try it.

And I don’t know why I NEVER thought to grow my own stevia! What a great idea.

Cheers, and thanks for sharing this in today’s Fight Back Fridays carnival.

~KristenM
(AKA FoodRenegade)

Reply
- Ren said,
  
  July 24, 2009 at 9:25 pm
  
  I found a little 6-inch stevia plant in a pot at the nursery when I was selecting plants at the beginning of the season and thought I’d give it a try.
  
  Thanks, Kristen!
  
  Reply
Meredith said,

July 24, 2009 at 9:04 pm

Oh yum, Ren. That cocoa sounds incredible. What I need now is a good cold front.

Reply
- Ren said,
  
  July 24, 2009 at 9:42 pm
  
  Here it is at almost 10:00 at night (after a cloudy day with drizzle), and its already down to 92 degrees. I’m cautiously optimistic that we’ll have a cold front sometime in the next 5 or 6 months.
  
  Thanks, Meredith!
  
  Reply