A Trio Of Hot Drinks Part 1: Easy Dark Hot Chocolate
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I absolutely love hot drinks. There is something about a warm mug in your hand with a gentle spiral of steam swirling upwards that instantly makes me feel cozy, most particularly around the holidays. My love of hot drinks has been especially fitting for these past weeks of chilling rain, snowstorms and freezing temperatures as we settle into winter weather. While not normally as much a fan of hot drinks as I am, even Charlie has been converted recently due to the chilly weather and cold fingers which only a hot mug can fix. Thus, we have been consuming copious amounts of hot chocolate, holiday Kinderpunsch and coffee with a variety of recipes, mixes and twists, which gave me the idea to create our own versions! Over the next few weeks, a trio of hot drinks will be featured to enjoy this holiday / winter season, first beginning with a favorite: dark hot chocolate. Dark and creamy without being overly sweet, this super easy dark hot chocolate recipe is the perfect treat to enjoy with family, friends or bundled up watching a Christmas movie. With just 5 main ingredients, this recipe comes together in a matter of minutes, so if you are looking for a fun advent activity or easy holiday drink, this hot chocolate is for you!
Not Too Dark…
My love of hot chocolate has had quite a progression. At first, hot chocolate meant hot water heated in a microwave mixed with a Nestle pouch with marshmallows. Next, I moved to hot milk heated in a microwave blended with a dark chocolate Nestle pouch (still a favorite!). In recent years, I have begun trying a variety of homemade stove top hot chocolate recipes until now, where a stovetop recipe (or kettle) is required seeing as we don’t have a microwave at all. While each variation can be fun, delicious and fitting certain times, I have found that I prefer the homemade varieties best.
So then, which recipe to follow?
That is always the question. Some are too thin, some have too many ingredients, some end up WAY too dark. Don’t get me wrong, I love a dark, rich hot chocolate, but sometimes, particularly as the hot chocolate cools, it can become so dark it almost feels like drinking ganache. While this is wonderful for dessert, it can make it challenging to finish a cup. Seeing this, when creating this easy dark hot chocolate, I sought to give the deep, richness of dark chocolate without the heaviness normally associated. Within this recipe, the cocoa powder and 72-80% dark chocolate help to provide the darkness desired, however the lack of heavy cream (and too much sugar) prevents the hot chocolate from becoming overwhelming.
Not Too Sweet…
One thing I have loved about desserts and pastries over here in Germany is that they aren’t too sweet. I rarely bite into something and think “this could use about ½ the sugar”. With this in mind, I decided to let the sweetness be a subtle note in the background instead of the main player of this recipe. As you likely will notice, you won’t need any additional sugar outside of the sugar in the chocolate (which is more limited since it’s a 72-80% dark chocolate) and chocolate milk. Starting with a chocolate milk base helps to control the sugar content and keep the recipe super easy. Once paired with the vanilla extract and whipped cream on top, it will be the perfect amount of sweetness.
Recipe
Easy Dark Hot Chocolate
Ingredients
- 4.25 cups Chocolate milk
- 3 tbsp Cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp Vanilla extract
- 3.5 oz. (100 grams) Bar of 72 – 80% Dark chocolate
- Whipped cream
- Dash of cinnamon (optional)
- Croissants (optional)
Instructions
- Start the hot chocolate by adding the chocolate milk to a pot on the stove. Heat over medium to medium high heat.
- Once the milk has warmed and steam is rising, whisk in the coco powder and vanilla extract until fully incorporated with no clumps.
- Continue to heat the hot chocolate mixture while chopping the bar of dark chocolate into small pieces.
- Whisk in the chocolate pieces and continue until all the chocolate is fully melted into the milk. Heat for another 2 to 3 minutes whisking continuously.
- Pour the hot chocolate into mugs and served with a dollop of whipped cream, dash of cinnamon on top (if using) and a croissant for dipping (if using). Enjoy!
Final Thoughts
Decorate this little hot chocolate with whipped cream and a dash of cinnamon and you will have a delicious after dinner treat! I have absolutely loved enjoying this easy dark hot chocolate recipe this holiday season so far and hope that you might enjoy it as well! Pair a mug of this goodness with a Sweet and Salty Caramel Cluster, Toffee Pecan Cookie or even a Peppermint Oreo Truffle (for all the chocolate richness!) and you will be in for a world of holiday deliciousness. In light of our series on hot drinks though, I have to know, do you like hot drinks? If so, would hot chocolate make your list of favorites? Stay tuned for the next 2 parts of our hot drink series, but in the meantime be sure to save this recipe to try and send to someone you wish to make it with!
Happy sipping!
Chloe
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This is so funny! We have been having a serious debate at our house about what constitutes “real” hot chocolate. My south-side Chicago husband has persuaded our children that water and a packet are absolutely necessary, as are marshmallows. I much prefer a stove top version with hot milk, but I will agree that it tends to get really thick and weird for people with texture issues, nevermind lactose intolerance.
I will have to try your version with some lactose free milk. It is just what I am looking for!
I’ll bet you have access to some seriously good chocolate to work with. I will have to see what I can find here at Aldi and Trader Joe’s.
If you have some fun tea or spice shops, I recommend cardamom tea. You can drink it black or with cream, and it is lovely with a little honey. It tastes very exotic and rich. I usually like it better than chai, which can get too busy and has too much cinnamon. The Turkish restaurants where you live probably serve cardamom tea on the regular. Let me know if you get to try some and what you think!
Yes definitely try it! I think it could work well with lactose free chocolate milk for sure. Great to know about the cardamom tea; I will have to keep my eyes open for it. Thanks!