# How Do You Make Your Hot Chocolate?



## PA Baker

It's SO cold and blustery here today and all I can think of to warm up a bit is a good cup of hot chocolate.  It got me to thinking of all of the different ways to make basic hot cocoa and all of the great things you can do to add variations.

So....how do you like your hot chocolate?

At home, usually since time's of essence, I like to heat some milk (either stove or microwave) and add in some chocolate syrup or Ovaltine.  If I have time though, I love to slowly heat a few squares of chocolate into milk on the stove and add a good splash of vanilla and a pinch of cinnamon.


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## Alix

I do it the old fashioned way I guess. One heaping spoonful of cocoa and one of sugar in a big mug, add just enough milk to make it a paste. Then I heat the milk on the stove (or in the microwave in a measuring cup) and pour it into the cup. Stir, top with whipped cream if we have it and chug!


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## Marko

Melted bittersweet chocolate in a double boiler, milk, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla.  If in the mood...a splash of Grande Marnier.  But of course...I always share with my lovely lady!

Cheers!

Marko
Livingston Cooks


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## pdswife

LOL... I tear open a little packet and add some water and Pepperment schnapps.


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## ronjohn55

Hot water and/or milk
Some good cocoa mix (Not sure which we have right now, but it isn't Kroger brand  )
A healthy shot of one of the following:
Bushmills
Bourbon (Oh, and don't worry Uncle Bob, this is what the Jim Beam is for!)
Butterscoth schnapps
Peppermint schnapps
Kahlua
Bailey's
Van Gough Espresso Vodka 
Frangelico
Anything else that sounds interesting at the time



John


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## buckytom

another one who adds hot milk to the powder from a packet.

with 3 marshmallows, no more, no less.  

(anyone watch "oswald"?)


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## middie

I make mine just like Alix. And at times like Bucky.


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## bethzaring

I make it the old fashioned way too, make a paste of cocoa, sugar, a bit of milk, then add the rest of the milk. I use the recipe on a geriatric can of hersey's cocoa, but I use the good stuff from Penzey's.  I use the recipe to make one quart, but I add 5 to 6 cups of milk instead of 4 cups.

ouuuu I like the grand marnier, etc, ideas

yep, hot cocoa weather here today too.  I presently am sending anti birthing vibrations to a goat who is due to kid today.  So far, so good.  If she will just wait until tomorrow, it will be so much warmer.  And then in a week, I can make some really good hot chocolate


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## *amy*

Back in the old days - when I drank lots o' cawfee (bzzz bzzz), I would add half a cup of hot chocolate to half a cup of cawfee. Now it's hot choc with mini marshmallows floating on top - or whipped cream sprinkled with cocoa powder or nutmeg. Go easy on the vanilla. If you really want a treat, try making a Hot Chocolate Souffle - or on the cooler side - Serendipity's Frrrrozen Hot Chocolate.


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## Uncle Bob

ronjohn55 said:
			
		

> Bourbon (Oh, and don't worry Uncle Bob, this is what the Jim Beam is for!)


 
Now I know what to do with the stuff!!

Oh...More Ovaltine Please!


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## miniman

We have a hot chocolate mix. Put cold milk in mug and top with choco powder and whiz in microwave - stirs it as well.


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## virgo152

I love mini marshmellow or whipped cream on top with chocolate chips.


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## kadesma

buckytom said:


> another one who adds hot milk to the powder from a packet.
> 
> with 3 marshmallows, no more, no less.
> 
> (anyone watch "oswald"?)


But of course, 3 marshmallows, no more no less We love Oswald! Oh to keep on track here..I love it like Alix makes it, but, I can't handle the milk so I use the packets and water and pretend it's the real thing
kades


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## licia

Sometimes I use the packs, but I add milk. Most of the time I use milk and chocolate syrup - whipped cream to dgs - nothing in mine. He uses his own special cup and saucer - a demitasse set and has been doing that since he was 2.


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## Katie H

I'm in the Alix camp, with added yummies.  Bourbon, etc.

This thread reminded me of a funny  experience  I had while traveling  in Europe a long  time ago.

Many of the places in which I stayed offered a free breakfast.  All I had  to do was to check the boxes (on the menu)  of the items I desired and hang the menu on my door before  I went to  bed.

At  the inn in Andorra, in the "other"  beverage section, I checked "hot chocolate" on my breakfast menu.  Simple enough, right.

Guess so.  What  I got was...just that.  A cup of hot, melted chocolate.   Hey, it was GOOD.  What a tasty misunderstanding!!!!!


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## corazon

I suppose we make it a few different ways here-
for the kids morning hot chocolate, we squeeze some hershey's special dark syrup into some milk and warm it up in the microwave.
for camping, we use what we call "camping hot chocolate" - the powder and add water.  We have it ever morning and evening when we are camping.
I grew up on Ibarra or Abuelita's mexican hot chocolate.  Grate it and cook it on the stove with milk.  I still love it!
I love hot chocolate made from melted chocolate but have not perfected it.  There is a place here that make the best hc.  We only go there for the hc because the food is nothing spectacular.

Yum, now I want some.

p.s. (and off topic)-
Andora, Katie?  I've been there.  I loved that tiny country.  I only wish we had spent more time there.


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## *amy*

And... in a pinch, Swiss Miss. Yodel-aid-ee-hoo. lol

Noticed they have a new flavor - Caramel Cream

Swiss Miss Hot Cocoa Mix, Caramel Cream

I might have to "play" with that idea.


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## Barbara L

I just noticed this thread.  I prefer the old fashioned way, with real cocoa, sugar, milk--like Alix described, but usually have the packets around.  There is a brand of flavorings that is really popular around here, called Happy Home.  Some of their flavorings are really good in hot chocolate.  My favorites are black walnut, almond, and butter & nut.  I remember, years ago, stirring a big spoonful of strawberry preserves into my hot chocolate.

I like marshmallows in hot chocolate, but I LOVE whipped cream in it.  

Barbara


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## LadyCook61

I didn't know this thread was here, I had started one last night .  I'm in PA. too.  I like Ghiadelli Square cocoa powder, heat the milk , add sugar and vanilla syrup and cocoa.  I like vanilla syrup better than the extract.


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## Shaheen

I like mine with a dollop of nutella mix into it and topped with a generous amount of whipped cream, and sometimes with a caramel syrup. But mostly the first option


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## Barbara L

Shaheen said:


> I like mine with a dollop of nutella mix into it and topped with a generous amount of whipped cream, and sometimes with a caramel syrup. But mostly the first option


OH MY GOSH!!!!  I'll bet they serve this in Heaven!!!!  

Barbara


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## gawillow

Hershey's cocoa powder and sugar, add just enough hot milk to melt the chocolate, then add the remaining hot milk and stir. Top with real whipped cream.


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## Fisher's Mom

Barbara L said:


> I like marshmallows in hot chocolate, but I LOVE whipped cream in it.
> 
> Barbara


I'm with you Barbara. Everything is better with whipped cream!


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## MexicoKaren

Oh gosh, that nutella combo is brilliant...I'm going to try it soon. Since we moved south of the border, I use Abuelita (made by Nestle, but what isn't?). It is a round disc of sweetened chocolate that you break up and melt in milk. There is is special wooden kitchen tool called a mollilo that you are supposed to whisk it with, but I don't have one, so I just use a whisk. Very very good and rich. "Abuelita" means "little grandmother". I think it is sold pretty widely in the US - look in the Mexican food section at your grocery. Hexagonal box, yellow and red, with a happy little granny on it....


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## Fisher's Mom

MexicoKaren said:


> Oh gosh, that nutella combo is brilliant...I'm going to try it soon. Since we moved south of the border, I use Abuelita (made by Nestle, but what isn't?). It is a round disc of sweetened chocolate that you break up and melt in milk. There is is special wooden kitchen tool called a mollilo that you are supposed to whisk it with, but I don't have one, so I just use a whisk. Very very good and rich. "Abuelita" means "little grandmother". I think it is sold pretty widely in the US - look in the Mexican food section at your grocery. Hexagonal box, yellow and red, with a happy little granny on it....


Ooooh, Karen, I love Mexican Hot Chocolate. Abuelita is available at every store here and it's what I use for hot chocolate, too. So yummy. I think it has cinnamon in it.


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## PeterAtwood

I like a heaping teaspoonful of Dean's Beans organic fair trade cocoa and a pinch of sugar. Heat water and when it gets to stage where it's close to boiling I add a little to the cup and make a thick slurry to mix the cocoa in. Then top with water being sure to leave some room.  I then add a splash of half and half just as you would to coffee. Usually that is followed by a splash of Kaluha and crowned with a dollop of whipped cream. What a great treat and not full of artificial crap like the packets which I used to drink.

BTW, Dean is a real good guy and local roaster with excellent coffee and cocoa products. He is one of the founders of the Fair Trade movement. Can't say enough good about his stuff, some of the best coffee I've had.


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## Nat2007

Mine is very simple. I take good quaility chocolate, like Varlhona if you know the brand.

I put a pan on the fire with milk to warm up. I break the chocolate in pieces and add them to the milk, stirring all the time so it melts completely. I vary the amount of chocolate ...for example my husband likes it very very thick...I do not like it like that, so I make it thick and then add more milk for me.

Eventually a bit of brandy adds a nice flavour as well.

And whipped milk on top....


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## Jeff G.

Ghirardelli hot chocolate mix.  Make as instructed on the can.  
Add a dash of cinnamon and a dash of red pepper(if you want a little kick).


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## hainguyen

All this discussion makes me want hot chocolate now!  It was quite cool outside today so it feels right to have hot choco.  I just boil some water in a kettle and pour it in a cup with a store bought hot chocolate mix hehe!  I do have some cocoa powder stashed up though so I should try making it like Alix.


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## nicktrick

I fill my mug with milk. Pop it into the microwave. Take it out and add a couple teaspoons of cocoa powder and some stevia. Done! simple and delicious.


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## Claire

Husband has blood sugar issues, and hot chocolate isn't a favorite of mine.  So ... my recipe is to go to the store, and find the lowest carb count per cup.  Looks like brown water to me, but my husband can put a drop of rum in it and be happy.


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## PrincessFiona60

Claire said:


> Husband has blood sugar issues, and hot chocolate isn't a favorite of mine.  So ... my recipe is to go to the store, and find the lowest carb count per cup.  Looks like brown water to me, but my husband can put a drop of rum in it and be happy.



The Swiss Miss Dark Chocolate Sensation is not too bad, Claire.  24g carbs if made with water.  I use the hot chocolate as my before bed snack.


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## mmyap

I love it.  There are so many different path's to reach the glorious destination!  I'm totally down with the bourbon part.  And I've done Bailey's.  And Kahlua.  And even rum. Quit looking at me like that.


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## PrincessFiona60

mmyap said:


> I love it.  There are so many different path's to reach the glorious destination!  I'm totally down with the bourbon part.  And I've done Bailey's.  And Kahlua.  And even rum. Quit looking at me like that.



Must be why you walk sideways...


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## medtran49

Our adult daughter and I did the Italy tour bus thing for a week that included New Year's in 1998. We were in Florence one bitterly cold morning for us at least (from S. Florida) and everybody went into a little coffee shop to have something hot to drink while we were touring. DD absolutely hates coffee in any form so she decided to order the hot chocolate. It took FOREVER for them to make. Me and the other 3 we were with were all on our second cup of cappucino or espresso when it finally came. Oh my, it was like molten chocolate and she was in heaven. We all had to have a taste. It was worth every single minute it took to get it. We all wanted to take it away from her. This recipe from a chocolatier that was on Paula Deen's show is the closest I've been able to come to it. 

Vanilla Custard: 
2 tablespoons cornstarch 
2 1/2 cups milk, divided 
1/2 cup sugar 
2 large egg yolks 
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 

Hot Chocolate: 
7 ounces (2 chocolate bars) semisweet chocolate, chopped 
1 cup milk, boiled

Directions


Sprinkle the cornstarch over about 1/2 cup of the milk in a small bowl and whisk to dissolve. Add egg yolks and sugar and whisk well. 

Over low heat, in a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan, bring the remaining 2 cups of milk and the vanilla bean just to a simmer. Remove the bean, scraping the vanilla seeds into the milk, and discard the bean. Gradually whisk the egg yolk mixture into the milk. 

Cook until the sauce comes to a full boil, whisking often, about 3 minutes. If using vanilla extract, stir in now. Strain the mixture through a wire sieve into a bowl. 

Add the chopped chocolate chunks to the vanilla cream and a boiled cup of milk. Mix until smooth. Serve hot. 

The semi-sweet chocolate can be substituted with milk or white chocolate. 

Since it is so rich and there is only 2 of us now, I usually make the whole recipe, let what's left cool, refrigerate and reheat as needed over the next day or 2.  

Sometimes you also have to add more milk to thin it out as otherwise you have thin but very rich chocolate pudding, but it should be a very thick drink.


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## vitauta

did you know that those little pastel-colored marshmallows you get in lucky charms cereal can be bought all by themselves in a bag?  yess--dehydrated mini marshmallows!!  they are a super fun topping for a mug of hot chocolate, or coffee, if you like.  too bad, i had to go and find out that they also make super yummy snacks straight out of the bag....


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## Mad Cook

PA Baker said:


> It's SO cold and blustery here today and all I can think of to warm up a bit is a good cup of hot chocolate. It got me to thinking of all of the different ways to make basic hot cocoa and all of the great things you can do to add variations.
> 
> So....how do you like your hot chocolate?
> 
> At home, usually since time's of essence, I like to heat some milk (either stove or microwave) and add in some chocolate syrup or Ovaltine. If I have time though, I love to slowly heat a few squares of chocolate into milk on the stove and add a good splash of vanilla and a pinch of cinnamon.


Green and Blacks hot chocolate powder (not straight cocoa) with hot milk and a substantial slug of Cointreau or other Orange liqueur. A friend likes it with Crème de Menthe


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## jabbur

I like it with Carnation Chocolate Malt stirred into regular milk and heated.  Don't normally put marshmallows on top but won't turn them down.  I just don't have them in the house on a regular basis.


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## Addie

Hershey's cocoa, canned milk, hot water, and a giant dollop of Marshmallow Fluff on top. At the end of the cup you have a chocolate, marshmallow mustache that you lick off. My mother made this for me every morning with two slices of toast for dunking.


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## Cooking Goddess

I usually add a few spoonsful of Nestle' Quik into a half-cup of milk, nuke until warm so I can mix the powder into the milk with a whisk, then nuke until hot.  I have one cupworth left of a bottle of "Silly Cow Farms" hot chocolate mix that I bought mostly for the cute little half-pint glass milk bottle with a cow on the front, but the mix is pretty darned good!  I was going to have a cup of hot chocolate with a glug of creme de cocoa in it but after the baseball game I'm listening to I could have a cup of creme de cocoa and skip the hot chocolate.


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## yummy_food

I add some cinammon and some whip cream and sometimes some pieces of chocolate chips cookies yum yum


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## Robyn Daniels

*Yummy Hot Chocolate*

I get a nice big mug and add 3 heaped spoons of coco powder.
1 teaspoon of sugar.
Heat my milk in the microwave then pour it into the mug whilst whisking.
Then i add 1 marshmallow and i grate 3 blocks of Cadbury milk chocolate on the top.
 lovely...


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## CarolPa

I don't drink hot chocolate very often because I just don't think of it.  After reading this thread, I had to have a cup.  LOL  Due to my diabetes I use Swiss Miss Diet.  4 gm carb, 2 gm sugar.  It's no where near the home made my mother used to make, but it satisfies my chocolate craving.


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## taxlady

CarolPa said:


> I don't drink hot chocolate very often because I just don't think of it.  After reading this thread, I had to have a cup.  LOL  Due to my diabetes I use Swiss Miss Diet.  4 gm carb, 2 gm sugar.  It's no where near the home made my mother used to make, but it satisfies my chocolate craving.


What is in that stuff? 1 cup of milk has ~12 grams of carbs and of sugar. 
Show Foods.


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## CarolPa

Here is a link to the nutritional information.  It does not show the actual ingredients.  From the side of the box it says it contains :  nonfat milk, cocoa, calcium carbonate, modified whey, salt, natural and artificial flavors, carrageenan, acesulfame potassium, sucralose, disodium phosphate.  I don't know how they came up with the carb and sugar count, but I would say it contains less than 1 cup of milk.  

Calories in Swiss Miss - Hot Chocolate Mix, Diet | Nutrition and Health Facts


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## taxlady

CarolPa said:


> Here is a link to the nutritional information.  It does not show the actual ingredients.  From the side of the box it says it contains :  nonfat milk, cocoa, calcium carbonate, modified whey, salt, natural and artificial flavors, carrageenan, acesulfame potassium, sucralose, disodium phosphate.  I don't know how they came up with the carb and sugar count, but I would say it contains less than 1 cup of milk.
> 
> Calories in Swiss Miss - Hot Chocolate Mix, Diet | Nutrition and Health Facts


I wouldn't drink that, but I am real nit picky about additives in my food. If I were diabetic, I would make cocoa the old fashioned way, but substitute one of the sugar alcohols for the sugar. I might even make the way I used to see it served in restos (substituting a sugar alcohol for the sugar). They made it with just water, cocoa, and sugar and served it with some 10% cream on the side.


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## Janet H

I also use cocoa powder and sugar to make a paste and then add milk.  BUT...

I add a pinch of salt, vanilla and once made usually add a little half and half or a small handful of butter mints - fabulous!


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