#01 • Rose Gold Cacao

— Cacao Recipes

The Queen of Flowers meets the Queen of Spices.

I love to play with cacao’s aromas and assemble flavors, it gives me this alchemist-like feeling to experiment with different ingredients and stumble on a delicious recipe.

Sometimes I’m looking for a complex flavor — full of fine and subtle aromas — yet I want the execution to be simple! Not because I resent complicated stuff but because I’m craving for the moment I actually get the cup in my hands, ready to be savored 🙂

Here’s a recipe that fits the description, one of our all-time favorites : the Rose Gold Cacao, based on the synergy between rose, the Queen of Flowers, and cardamom, the Queen of Spices.

Only 4 ingredients to add to your regular cacao drink, and it results in a delicious treat!

Combining rose and cardamom is a staple in Middle-Eastern cuisine as their two fragances match so well. But wait till you add cacao in the mix!

I came up with two variations for this recipe, including one that takes a little more time and effort (not much, don’t worry) when I’m in for a finer taste.

I’ll start with that one and let you know how I make the quicker version afterwards.

Ingredients for 1 cup of Rose Gold Cacao

–15-20g of your favorite cacao,

– 250ml of water and/or oat milk,

– 1 tsp of coconut oil,

– 3 rosebuds,

– 2 dashes of powdered cardamom,

– ½ tsp of honey.

Preparation

Fill up your favorite cup and pour it in a pan — I usually go ¾ water & ¼ oat milk.
Drop 3 rosebuds in the liquid and slowly heat it up, stop before boiling point.
Cover your pan and let the rosebuds infuse for 10-15min.
Remove the rosebuds and re-heat your liquid if necessary.
Add the coconut oil, cardamom, honey and cacao.
Whip/Froth your drink and you’re good to go !

For this recipe, I particularly like using Pure Kakaw’s Matagalpa. I think its woody/chocolatey notes are a perfect match with floral aromas in general.

If you’d like to try their cacao, don’t forget to use our code CACAOINSIGHTS at checkout and get 10% off your first order 🙂

Tip: After a few tries, you might want to add a tiny pinch of salt and see how certain notes get unveiled!

Quicker version

Infusing rosebuds takes a little time to prepare, but your effort is rewarded with their full vegetal/floral aromas that will cover your palate with each sip.

However, we have your fix if, like me, you like to get straight to the point sometimes 😉

Rose syrup!

Simply remove the steps 2 to 4 in the preparation above and replace honey with a teaspoon of rose syrup. It can’t get easier than that 🙂

I enjoy both versions as I find the rosebuds have a long-lasting floral aroma while the syrup gives more of a fragrant kick, probably because of the sugar. But all-in-all, a delicious combination that I find myself enjoying at least once a week!

I hope you’ll enjoy it too, let me know in the comments if you like it and feel free to share your own twists on this recipe with me 🙂

06/03/2024

Written by Mathieu