Cocktail: Haute hot chocolate
Mixologist: Junior Merino, Rayuela

This adult take on the kid-fave beverage “will warm you up and make you feel cozy in seconds,” says Rayuela’s master mixologist, Junior Merino, who counts chocolate as a prized ingredient. The secret, he says, is using high-quality chocolate bars, not powder, and letting your inventiveness run wild. While this recipe calls for vodka, it’s equally delectable when prepared with aged tequila. “The tequila is so warming on its own,” Merino says, “and since chocolate is native to Mexico, it goes well with the liquor.”

Ingredients

100 grams of 72 percent chocolate
3½ ounces evaporated milk
1 ounce simple syrup
4 ounces Sobieski vodka (or, for the daring, aged tequila)
1½ ounces Voyant Chai Liqueur

In a small saucepan, combine chocolate, milk and simple syrup and simmer over low heat until chocolate melts to a heavy cream consistency, stirring constantly. Add vodka and liqueur, stirring until the liquor and the chocolate integrate to a smooth consistency.




************

Cheese and charcuterie
Stinky Bklyn

Appetizer: Chestnut soup with candied chestnuts and morcilla
Chef: Alex Ureña (Pamplona)

Entrée: Lasagne verdi
Chef: Marco Canora (Insieme)

Dessert: Sweet potato custard with Grand Marnier meringue
Chef: Jerome Chang (Dessert Truck)