There’s a local coffee shop near here called Forbidden Flavours. The owners are good friends of my brother and sister-in-law, so we went to check it out.
We’re now regulars, known by name. We have “the usual” (2 large decaf melanges) waiting for us when we get to the counter. It’s wonderful to have a place like that in this day and age. Personalized service, where the owner knows our kids and we hear all about hers. The baristas all ask about how school is going. That in itself is enough to keep us going back.
Unfortunately, the “Forbidden Flavours” line item on the budget is quickly climbing. $7 for 2 large drinks adds up pretty quickly. So, we figured out how to make our own version of “the usual”. We still go to the shop often, just not quite as often as we used to.
A Melange is a drink made with real chocolate milk (not white milk with syrup added), steamed and frothed, with a shot of espresso. No whipped cream or any other garnish, so it’s not very sweet, just flavourful. One of the reasons I love them so much is that they aren’t sweet; it’s not like hot chocolate, more like a cocoa latte.
Warning: This drink is the crack of the coffee world. Everyone we’ve taken to Forbidden Flavours for a melange has fallen in love. Our home version is close, but you have to try the real thing. Trust me.
Recipe for Home-Made Melange
makes 2 Melanges
1 1/2 cups milk (we use skim)
2 heaping teaspoons – 2 tablespoons cocoa (adjust for taste)
2 teaspoons sugar
2 cups very strong hot coffee (I use 1 and a half or even 2 times as much grounds as usual)
Heat the milk to near boiling. We do this in a pyrex measuring cup in the microwave, but a pot on the stove would work.
Transfer the milk to a tall narrow container. We find that a large pickle jar works perfectly. Add the cocoa and sugar. Use a hand blender to blend the cocoa and sugar and milk together. When they are mixed, slowly lift the blender while it’s still spinning, so the milk gets whipped into a froth on top. This is the part that needs the tall container. If you use a normal bowl or pyrex cup you’ll get milk all over the walls. I speak from experience.
[edit: Thanks to Ash's comments below we tried using our French press to foam the milk and it was wonderful! We just poured the heated chocolate milk mixture into the French press and pumped until the foam was twice the volume of the milk. We will use this method now instead of the hand blender. (As a bonus, it's more environmentally friendly!)]
Pour the milk into 2 coffee mugs, just over half full. Add coffee to fill the mugs. Enjoy.
If this recipe has any appeal at all, and there’s a Forbidden Flavours near you, I strongly urge you to check them out.
