Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix

HotChocolate_Social

Originally published 12/8/15.

Around most of the country, it’s already pretty cold. And even here in Florida, we’ve had a few cooler days, plus some rather odd rain (seriously, it’s raining like August here recently, and it’s weird). I don’t know about the rest of you, but when the weather’s too icky to go out, I like to curl up in front of Netflix with a cup of hot chocolate. And homemade hot chocolate mix is a great gift idea for friends and family during the holiday season.

I have a few different hot chocolate mix recipes that I’m going to share today. All are based on the same base recipe, and then additional flavors can be added for a fancy blend. I recommend alkalized cocoa powder because it is water soluble, and will actually mix with the liquids in your hot chocolate, and you’ll have less cocoa sediment at the bottom of your mug.

Classic hot chocolate:
1 c. granulated sugar
¼ tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
½ c. cocoa powder (alkalized recommended)

Mexican hot chocolate:
1 c. granulated sugar
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. chipotle chile powder
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. vanilla extract
½ c. cocoa powder (alkalized recommended)

Orange spice hot chocolate:
1 c. granulated sugar
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground cloves
¼ tsp. ground ginger
1 tbsp. orange extract
½ c. cocoa powder (alkalized recommended)

Instructions:

In a pint-sized Mason or Ball jar, combine sugar, salt, spices, and extract. Shake jar to thoroughly combine ingredients (spoon-stirring may be required to separate any wet clumps).
Add cocoa powder and shake again. Allow cocoa powder to fully settle before opening jar.
Label jar and store in dark, cool, dry cabinet, or gift to friends and family.

So now you’ve made your mix, but how do you make the hot chocolate from the mix? And what if you want to make more than a single mug of hot chocolate?

Single-serve instructions:

Spoon 3 tbsp. of mix into a mug and cover with 2 tbsp. of water. Microwave 20-30 seconds. Stir mix and water into a watery paste.
Fill mug the rest of the way with milk or non-dairy milk beverage. Microwave another minute and a half or until hot. Stir to dissolve any leftover paste into hot liquid.
Enjoy as-is, topped with whipped cream, or with mini marshmallows.

Stovetop instructions (4-6 servings, depending on mug size):

In medium-sized pot over medium heat, combine ¾ c. of mix and ¼ c. water, stirring with whisk to break up any lumps.
When mixture forms warm paste, add 6 c. milk or non-dairy milk beverage. Continue stirring to dissolve paste into warm liquid.
Serve when hot and enjoy as-is, topped with whipped cream, or with mini-marshmallows.

Oh, what’s this? Printable labels? That’s right, if you’re gifting jars of hot chocolate mix, you should probably make them look cute. Each label is somewhat adjustable with a blank expansion area at the end. Applying the labels is easy: apply adhesive to the back at the end that says “start.” Attach the starting edge to the jar, then wrap the label around the jar, and let the expansion extend about half an inch over the starting seam. Trim the expansion and apply adhesive to the half inch of overlap, then tamp down over starting edge. Boom, you now have a labeled jar of hot chocolate mix. Want to make it extra cute? Layer some wide ribbon or a strip of burlap under the label to make your jar all Pinterest-y.

So that’s it! I hope you guys enjoy mixing up your own hot chocolate blends, and getting to gift them to your friends and family this winter. Please leave your thoughts in a comment below, or get in touch with me directly by filling out the form on the contact page.

Jamie

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