Spicing Up Holiday Hot Chocolate

Dec. 13, 2005 — -- New York City's leading chefs have shared a few of their best hot chocolate recipes with "Good Morning America," using every ingredient from chili peppers to banana peels.

"The Elvis" Hot Chocolate from Olives Restaurant

"The Elvis" is a peanut butter and banana hot chocolate with grape marshmallows.

Ingredients:

2 cups milk

6 tablespoons creamy peanut butter

2 ripe bananas chopped fine

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate

Directions:

Place the chocolate, bananas and peanut butter in a heat-proof container.

Bring your milk to a boil and pour over your ingredients. Let sit a few seconds, then using a hand-held immersion blender, blend ingredients until smooth; serve immediately. To take it to the next level, finish with grape-flavored marshmallows.

Grape Marshmallows

Ingredients:

1/3 Cup, plus 1 tablespoon Concord grape juice

4 teaspoons unflavored gelatin powder

1 cup confectioners sugar

1 cup cornstarch

1/3 cup water

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

1 each large egg white

Directions:

Combine juice and gelatin in a bowl and let bloom. Mix confectioners sugar and starch and set aside.

Combine water, sugar and corn syrup in a sauce pot, and cook until 121 degrees C on a candy thermometer. Meanwhile, use the whisk attachment on a mixer at a medium setting to beat egg white until frothy.

When the sugar reaches the right temperature, slowly add it to the egg white, and then add gelatin mixture. Beat on high for 15 minutes until thick and coat a cake pan with the starch mixture.

Pour the finished marshmallow in the pan top with the rest of the starch and let set up in the refrigerator.

Banana Peel or Chili Pepper Hot Chocolate from City Bakery

City Bakery's hot chocolate recipe is top secret, but here's how the hot chocolate is flavored. For Banana Peel Hot Chocolate, cut up just the banana peel and stew it in the hot chocolate so it becomes infused with the flavor of the banana peel.

For Chili Pepper Hot Chocolate, do the same but with jalapenos and Anaheim peppers. City Bakery also makes its own marshmallows.

"The Angry Claus" Hot Chocolate from davidburke&donatella

Ingredients:

5 ounces hot chocolate

½ ounce cognac

1 ounce crème de cacao

½ ounce amaretto

Whipped cream, for garnish

Pepper-crusted marshmallows, for garnish

Directions:

In a large container, combine all ingredients, except the whipped cream and marshmallows. Pour into a Pilsner glass. Garnish with whipped cream and pepper-crusted marshmallows.

The marshmallows are rolled in the ground black pepper. Use regular marshmallows that you buy at the grocery store.