Makes 24 Churros
Churros
1 cup water
4 Tbsp salted butter
2 Tbsp + 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup flour
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
vegetable oil for frying
Mayan Hot Chocolate
1 vanilla bean
3 cups Homo (whole) milk
200 g good quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper
In a medium saucepan, combine the water, butter and 2 Tbsp of the sugar. Bring to a boil then remove from heat. Add the flour all at once, stirring vigorously. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until fully incorporated; stir in the vanilla extract. Scrape the dough into a piping bag fitted with a 3/8" pastry star tip. Mix together the remaining sugar and the cinnamon in a wide shallow bowl and set aside.
Fill a large pot with vegetable oil, about 4" deep, and heat the oil to 375F.
Meanwhile, make the hot chocolate. Halve the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape out the seeds with the back of a paring knife. Place the seeds and the pod in a small saucepan. Add the milk, chocolate and cayenne pepper. Bring the mixture to a simmer over med-high heat, stirring occasionally until the chocolate has been thoroughly incorporated and the mixture has thickened. Discard the vanilla bean pod and keep the mixture warm until ready to serve.
Hold the piping bag vertically above the hot oil. Pipe a 6" length of dough, then quickly cut the dough from the tip of the bag with an oiled paring knife, letting it slide away from you into the oil. Repeat, frying up to 5 churros at a time, turning once and cooking until golden brown. Transfer to a paper towel-lined baking sheet, and while still hot roll each churro in the cinnamon sugar mix. Serve with the Mayan hot chocolate for dipping.
