冬天是發胖的季節！Winter, time for putting on weight!

今年的冬天不但來得早，似乎也特別地冷，讓平常喜歡到處趴趴走的我少了不少遊興（當然工作忙也是個原因），沒事儘量待在家裡。除了把暖氣溫度調高以外，我也喜歡泡杯熱飲來暖暖身子。
It seems that winter has arrived earlier and colder. The cold weather makes me enjoy home-staying rather than going-out (of course I'm also busy for work), so I stay home most of the time. Apart from setting the temperature of the heater higher to keep myself warm, I also enjoy making hot drinks.

我愛喝茶，櫃子裡有不下二十種的中國茶、英國茶與花草茶，這也是我偏好冬天更甚於夏天的原因。不過除了茶以外，偶爾來杯熱巧克力，也是挺不錯的選擇。
I love tea. There're more than twenty kinds of Chinese tea, English tea and herbal tea in my shelve. Hot tea is mostly suitable for cold winter, and that's one of the reasons that I prefer winter to summer. Apart from tea drinking, I also enjoy making hot chocolate.

「在嘗了義大利的熱巧克力以後，其他地方的熱巧克力大概都會變成巧克力牛奶。」這是我對又香又濃的義式熱巧克力所下的註解。剛搬來的第一個冬天，每次出門總是要找間咖啡廳喝一杯熱巧克力，對於初到義大利又對寒冷天氣極度不適應的我，可說是一大慰藉。
"After tasting Italian hot chocolate, that of other places becomes chocolate milk." This is my comment about Italian hot chocolate. I still remember the first winter I spent in Italy. I always looked for hot chocolates in the bars when I went out. It was quite a comfort for someone that wasn't used to such cold weather.

「那麼愛喝，何不買回家自己煮呢？」就為了米奇這句話，我們特地到超市尋寶，也因此找到了我的‘冬日巧克力暖暖包’，順理成章地成為我渡冬的必備品。
"Since you like it so much, why don't you make it at home yourself?" Michele said. So we went to the supermarket to look for it, and found my "winter warm sack". It has become one of my must have in winter.

我試過的品牌不多，只有Ciobar和Carraro兩個品牌，主要是因為只有這兩家有出單包包裝的巧克力粉，讓我省去找罐子和發胖的問題。許多廠牌都有出熱巧克力，只要買回家加入牛奶，在火爐上煮至沸騰便可飲用，不過一包至少兩百公克裝，除了收藏麻煩以外，還會讓我一看到就想要煮，體重可不是直線上升就可以形容的！所以當我一看到這兩個廠牌的方便包，二話不說就被我放到籃子裡。
I didn't try too many brands, only Ciobar and Carraro, for the reason that only these two company carry single pack powder so that I can avoid the problem of conservation and getting fat. Many companies have ready-made hot chocolate to be prepared at home. You only have to add milk and bring it to boil. But most of them come in more than 200g package. There's not only the problem as to where to put it, but also makes me want to have it every time I see it. So when I saw these two single pack products, I put them into the basket immediately.

兩個品牌相比，Ciobar甜了一點，Carraro則因為標榜荷蘭口味，可可含量比較高。兩個牌子都很不錯，不過我個人偏好後者，米奇則把票投給前者，這也是為什麼家裡兩個品牌都有的關係。 Comparing these two brands, Ciobar is slight sweeter than Carraro. The latter is "Dutch flavour" and has higher concentration of cocoa powder. Both brands are nice but I prefer the latter. However Michele likes Ciobar better. So we keep both at home.

除了純的熱巧克力以外，也可以自己做一些變化。當然，這也是我在外頭店裡喝過以後，決定在家裡發揮實驗精神的結果。店裡賣的熱巧克力有很多口味，在試過以後，我和米奇都各有偏好：最受我青睞的有二，一是橘子口味，另一則是肉桂，米奇則偏好藍姆酒的香氛。在家裡煮的時候，只要加入適當的材料調味，如橘子皮、肉桂粉、或是在煮好以後倒入一點藍姆酒，自己也可以做出不同口味的變化喔！
Apart from pure hot chocolate, you can also add variation yourself. Of course, I will always look for the "recipe" outside and taste it before I experiment it at home. Lots of flavours can be found in the bar. After trying all of them, Michele and I both found our own favorite. I like orange and cinnamon flavor while Michele enjoys rum. When you prepare it at home, you can add orange peel, cinnamon powder while cooking, or pour in a bit rum after you finish preparing it.