Hot Chocolate on a Stick

Zodiac in Walberswick

Ok, before we get to the chocolate I want to make you aware of a great pub that can be found in a small village on the Suffolk coast just off the A12.

If you're looking to get away for a weekend, then may I suggest you pay a visit to the Anchor at Walberswick where you will be guaranteed a warm welcome and a good pint of locally brewed Adnams bitter.  If this doesn't float  your boat there are 40 bottled beers.  The Swan at Southwold whilst always very pleasant is perhaps just a tad too stuffy for anybody under the age of 80!  

The Anchor, is far more vibrant, homely and down to earth.  The pub has a very busy restaurant and from what I could understand is regularly fully booked at the weekend. Not only do they provide food and drink but also shelter in the form of six garden chalets just a few hundred yards from the broiling and crashing North Sea. There are also four additional rooms in the main building. Sophie and Mark Dorber have owned the lease to the Anchor since 2004 and in a relatively short period of time have developed quite a following.  

We didn't get to try the accommodation on this occasion but we did taste the food and it was really good. Smoked haddock and salmon fishcakes, creamy leeks with hand-cut chips went down a treat. Prices range from £5.75 for Fish Soup and Roast Cod for £15.75. Why not grab some of Sophie's dough on the way out!  Freshly made breads including ciabatta, rye and sourdough are just some of the tempting loaves on offer. Live music and special events such as Oyster Festivals and Curry Nights provide entertainment and variety.

Smoked haddock and salmon fishcakes

33g - 55% Cocoa

Choc-o-Lait  was created in early 2004 and is probably one of the simplest concepts I've seen involving chocolate.  Take a stick add a block of Belgian Callebaut chocolate to the end and then swirl in a cup of hot (80) milk for a minute and there you have it.  The perfect cup of hot chocolate! 

The creators of Choc-o-lait (Koen Vansynghel, Frank Decuyper & Gert Verhoestraete) came up with the idea because they wanted to go back to basics, to the essence of real chocolate milk.  There are several different flavours int their range including Cointreau, Coffee, Caramel, Cinnamon and Ginger.

Nearly there! Hazelnut Choc-O-Lait

Voila! The job is done!

To make my cup of hot chocolate I used 200ml of semi-skimmed milk as I like it fairly strong, heated to just 80 degrees C, as suggested. The result was a very tasty creamy, chocolate beverage with a hint of hazelnut in the background. Each chocolate stick will cost you £1.45. A brilliant idea and they seem to be selling them all over the world!