spiced chocolate ganache with coconut milk and rosewater
Many years ago, an article in Saveur magazine by Cuban food writer and restaurateur Maricel Presilla, author of The New Taste of Chocolate, detailed a spiced hot chocolate drink called agasajos, traditionally served in Spain at receptions during the seventeenth century. The intriguing blend of spices and chocolate is used here to produce a heavenly ganache unlike any you have ever tasted.
MAKES ABOUT 2 ½ CUPS
- 1 pound bittersweet chocolate
- ⅔ cup unsweetened coconut milk
- ⅔ cup heavy cream
- 3 cinnamon sticks, broken up
- 1 small dried hot red pepper
- 1 teaspoon loosely packed saffron threads
- ½ vanilla bean, split lengthwise
- 1 tablespoon rosewater
- With a large chef’s knife, coarsely chop the chocolate and place it in a heatproof bowl.
- In a medium nonreactive saucepan, combine the coconut milk, cream, cinnamon sticks, hot pepper, and saffron. With the tip of a small knife, scrape the tiny seeds from the vanilla bean into the cream; add the pod, too. Bring to a simmer and continue to cook over the lowest heat for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Discard the hot pepper at once. Allow the cream to infuse for 10 minutes longer. Strain the warm cream over the chopped chocolate and add the rosewater. Let stand for about 10 minutes, then whisk until smooth.