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Atole

This recipe makes quite a bit and you’re welcome to cut the recipe in half. The chefs told me that sometimes people use rice or oat flour in place of the corn starch. To get the seeds out of a vanilla pod, split the bean lengthwise and use the blade of the knife to carefully scrape out the seeds. The pod should be reserved for another use, such as infusing poaching liquid or tucked in a bin of sugar to perfume it. They don’t use much sugar in their atole but you might want to increase the amount to taste. If you can get Mexican piloncillo sugar, this is a good place to use it.
Servings 6 (1.5L)
  • 1/3 cup (40g) corn starch
  • 6 cups (1.5L) whole milk
  • 1/3 cup (65g) sugar
  • the seeds of 1 vanilla bean, preferably Mexican
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the corn starch with about 1 cup (250ml) of the milk until the corn starch is dissolved and there are no lumps.
  • Pour the rest of the milk, the sugar, and the vanilla seeds into a large pot, then gradually whisk in the corn starch mixture.
  • Cook the mixture at a boil over medium-high heat, whisking constantly and vigorously, until the atole is thickened to the consistency of runny pudding. It will take about two or three minutes.
  • Remove from heat and strain the atole through a mesh sieve before serving it.

Notes

Serving: Atole is served warm. If made in advance and you wish to reheat it, it will likely thicken quite a bit. If so, add some additional milk to thin it out.