Today's post brings a very simple recipe, for the simple reason that in this case, simple worked best. (Enough simples in that sentence?) I initially made a carob and lucuma powder latte, but contrary to my expectations I didn't like it at all. I am not sure if carob and lucuma aren't the stellar combination I thought they would be, or if they just don't work in hot drink form. Regardless, for my second carob hot drink, I went back to basics and kept the flavours simple. Carob.
Now, I do know that many of you proclaim to dislike carob. I doubt this will be the post to convince you otherwise. Personally, I love it (love it), and was delighted to quench my carob desires when I visited London's largest Planet Organic store last month. I managed to buy carob powder, dairy and sugar free carob buttons, and two dairy free carob blocks. It was a happy day.
This hot carob drink - effectively a carob version of hot chocolate - is flavoured with carob powder and sweetened with a dash of maple syrup. Carob is naturally quite sweet, so I find it doesn't need a lot of additional sweetening. However, if you aren't as fond as carob as I am, or like sweeter hot drinks, you may want to use a little more syrup than I did. This would also be nice with a mix of carob and cocoa powder.
Carob latte
A hot chocolate alternative for one
Vegan
Author: Bite-Sized Thoughts
Ingredients
1 tbsp carob powder (mine was quite a generous tablespoon)
1 tsp maple syrup
3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/2 cup hot water
Method
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and heat over low-medium heat, stirring regularly, until just simmering. Ensure the mixture is smooth (carob powder can be a bit clumpy) and whisk if needed. Serve!
This post is part of my participation in the 2014 Vegan Month of Food. This week I am focusing on vegan snacks.
Previous 2014 Vegan MoFo posts:
Breakfasts-
Previous 2014 Vegan MoFo posts:
Breakfasts-
#1 - Vegan French toast
#2 - Apple and strawberry muesli
#3 - Mango coconut buckwheat breakfast pudding
#4 - Tips for a vegan breakfast on the go
#5 - Chickpea pancakes with spicy kale and mango
#2 - Apple and strawberry muesli
#3 - Mango coconut buckwheat breakfast pudding
#4 - Tips for a vegan breakfast on the go
#5 - Chickpea pancakes with spicy kale and mango
Snacks-
What is your favourite hot drink at the moment?
I am not a carob lover but I still think I would be excited to go to a cafe that offered this as an alternative to coffee
ReplyDeleteI don't think I could contain my excitement if I went to a cafe that served this :-)
DeleteSimplicity is always welcomed in my book ;). I'm not a huge fan of carob either, but with the sweetness from the maple syrup and the nuttiness from the almond milk, this drink sounds wonderful. I've been drinking cinnamon orange tea as of late ;). When I'm out, I usually order the chai tea latte with soy milk.
ReplyDeleteCinnamon orange tea sounds great - I haven't had that flavour for ages! I will have to look out for it again :-)
DeleteHere's a simple comment. When I was growing up my parents thought chocolate was of the devil. They would never have it in the house and never let us eat it. But we were church-goers and every year around came Easter. What to do about all those Easter eggs! Then health food stores started popping up all over the place and my mother was so pleased to be able to buy carob Easter eggs. As for me and my sisters, we were so disappointed. After having carob forced on me, I've never been able to enjoy it. I'll try to get over the emotional scars! xx
ReplyDeleteI laughed hard at this - our mothers must have been on the same wave length! She gave up at some point, but in those early years, I embraced carob as the best option available (chocolate being generally not), so have liked it as much as chocolate since :-)
DeleteI am open to carob but never seem to be able to find the pure powder, just products made from it but also containing milk solids. Will keep my eye out for it, would be interested in cooking with it!
ReplyDeleteIt is frustratingly hard to get hold of. I occasionally found it in the health food sections of Coles and Woolworths in Australia, but it was rare in mainstream stores. Health food stores probably have it though - I found it easier to find the powder than dairy free blocks / buttons.
DeleteI don't know many people that are a fan, but I LOVE carob, so I am happy to see this.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad to find another carob lover :) I absolutely adore it.
DeleteI LOVE carob but I still haven't managed to find any in the shops :/ I think I'll have to order some online.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to try your drink. It looks perfect for this season x
It is so tough to find! Ordering online sounds like a good option though - if the big London stores have it I'm sure you can get it that way :)
DeleteNever been a fan of carob - though I've never tried it in hot chocolate version - I could be tempted that's for sure! ;-)
ReplyDelete