Classic Champurrado

My mom would make champurrado and atole for me and my siblings from a little packet labeled “Maizena.” The packet included cornstarch instead of masa harina, and it was a quick and easy solution for the thick and soul-warming beverage typically reserved for winter months. We’d sip it with morning pan dulce, get toasty wrapped in a blanket with a cup of it paired with buñuelos for a movie night, and have it always present for winter holidays. 

Champurrado is a variation of atole, which comes from the Nahuatl word, atolli, meaning ground maíz mixed with water. Atole can be white, just taking the color and flavor of white masa, or flavored with fruits like strawberry or blackberry or grains like toasted amaranth, or sweetened with cajeta, and other variations too. Though the preparation of champurrado may vary slightly depending on the region, it is an atole defined by chocolate. This simple, traditional recipe leans on four essential ingredients: masa harina, stone-ground chocolate, piloncillo, and cinnamon. Piloncillo is an unrefined or raw cane sugar with earthy rum and caramel flavors that is sold in solid cone shapes. You can break it up and weigh it in chunks, purchase it in smaller pieces, or look for brown pure cane sugar. 

This recipe calls for white masa harina, but I encourage you to use whichever color and flavor variety you may have on hand to taste the rainbow of maíz. This champurrado is an adaptation of Doña Ángela’s recipe from her YouTube channel, “De Mi Rancho a Tu Cocina,” though I nix her use of milk in favor of a recipe that is dairy-free, inching closer to a classic pre-Hispanic rendition, which makes masa its biggest star. Masa thickens the drink and adds density and creaminess while giving it a characteristic nutty corn flavor. 

The magic of this champurrado recipe is really in its simplicity, and it also easily adjusts to your liking; you can make it a bit thicker with the use of more masa harina, sweeter with more piloncillo, richer with more chocolate, and even substitute a cup of the water for a cup of your choice of milk. Enjoy with buñuelos, pan dulce, on its own, or even with a little coffee, and double up if you’re hosting the posada. 

Check out my other recipe for a black sesame spin on champurrado →