Mexican Chocolate Brownie Bites

Mexican hot chocolate is typically hot chocolate flavored with cinnamon. Sounds delicious, but why's it coined Mexican? This is because the origins of chocolate is rooted in the Mayan and Aztec cultures. The Aztecs created xocoatl which was a bitter chocolate drink, flavored with vanilla and spices. Now this could turn into a history lesson, but since I was never a good history student, I will instead point you to Wikipedia for the quick read. But for those of you truly fascinated with chocolate and needing to learn its entire history, I'll point you to The True History of Chocolate for a slightly longer read. So about the brownies. I went to a housewarming last weekend and when I was told there would be Cuban food, I ran through a list of ideas for a complimentary dessert and finally decided on these. I felt the cayenne/cinnamon flavor was just the right strength - enough to taste a different flavor, but not so much that it left a spicy taste in your mouth. Now, it's based on my go-to dark chocolate cake recipe, but they looked like the Hostess Brownie Bites, and I had to call them just that.

Mexican Chocolate Brownie Bites
based on a previous recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup butter
7oz dark chocolate (70% cocoa)
1 cups sugar
4 eggs
a rounded Tb of flour
3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400F. Grease and flour a mini muffin pan.
2. Melt together the butter with the chocolate. (If melting in the microwave, be sure to do it slowly, blending with a spoon between each pass.) Transfer into a medium mixing-bowl.
3. Add in the sugar, stir, and let cool a little.
4. Add in the eggs one by one, mixing well after each addition.
5. Add in the flour, pepper, and cinnamon. Mix well.
6. Pour batter into muffin pan and bake for 10-12 minutes.
7. Cool completely, store in a plastic container, refrigerate, and take it out about an hour before serving.