Simply Sissom

Real Food for Real Life

  • Blog
  • Home
  • About
    • Contact
    • The Newsletter
    • Privacy Policy
  • Recipes
    • Meal Plans
  • FREE RESOURCES FOR SUBSCRIBERS
  • Real Food For Real Life
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipes
    • Subscribe
    • Contact
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×

    Home » Dessert

    The Ultimate Hot Chocolate

    December 19, 2016 by Bailey Sissom Leave a Comment

    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

    The Ultimate Hot Chocolate is  luscious, creamy and made with whole milk, cocoa powder, cane sugar, and vanilla. Serve warm with whipped cream and homemade marshmallows.

    Pin Ultimate Hot Chocolate for later!

    A luscious, creamy hot chocolate made with whole milk, cocoa powder, coconut sugar, vanilla. salt and spices. Serve warm with whipped cream and homemade marshmallows.

    Couple things that I just want to get right out into the open before I get going on this post.

    1. Ultimate Hot Chocolate is made from real food ingredients. The homemade marshmallows, candy canes and whipped cream, weeeeelllllll... did I mention that the hot chocolate only requires 4 ingredients?
    2. You control your own destiny.. I'm not trying to be your Mom. Don't want to top your hot chocolate with "all the things." Don't. If it feels festive and fun, go for it! It's Christmas.

    I'm a real sucker when it comes to holiday traditions. In fact, if someone told me that it was customary to make chicken liver and cabbage soup on February 7th, whelp.. chicken liver and cabbage soup it would be. Seriously. I don't joke around with holidays and food.

    With that said, I associate rich mugs of steaming hot chocolate filled to the brim with homemade whipped cream, fluffy marshmallows and peppermint trimmings with Christmas Eve. It's what I've always done, and quite honestly.. I want my kids to also!

    A luscious, creamy hot chocolate made with whole milk, cocoa powder, coconut sugar, vanilla. salt and spices. Serve warm with whipped cream and homemade marshmallows.

    As a general rule, when we splurge we try to do it on the things that aren't full of funky processed ingredients and dyes. Both the candy canes and the marshmallows pictured are colored with beet juice instead of traditional red coloring (but do contain sugar). Wait! Wait! Wait! Don't leave! Stick with me on this.

    Beets don't taste bad. You CANNOT tell the difference.

    I don't say this lightly. I put these candy canes and marshmallows through a stringent series of  tests.. I fed them to my kids kids.  Even Campbell. I think we can all agree that toddlers have a unique ability to discern even the smallest switch in their food. You guys, he loved them.

    Yes I was shocked, but honestly I'm not sure why... it's marshmallows and peppermint!

    A luscious, creamy hot chocolate made with whole milk, cocoa powder, coconut sugar, vanilla. salt and spices. Serve warm with whipped cream and homemade marshmallows.

    This hot chocolate is my ABSOLUTE favorite for a couple of reasons. 

    A) It's such a simple recipe, it's almost not even a recipe.

    B) It has WAAAAY less junky ingredients than this hot chocolate packets that you can buy at the store. I'm not exaggerating.. check this out.

    The following is the list of ingredients in a 1 oz, individual package of Swiss Miss Milk Chocolate Flavor Hot Cocoa Mix :

    sugar, modified whey, cocoa (processed with alkali), hydrogenated coconut oil, nonfat milk, calcium carbonate, less than 2% of: salt, dipotassium phosphate, mono- and diglyderides, artificial flavor, carrageenan. 

    Let's Break that down a bit...

    Cocoa - Ok, fine.

    Nonfat Milk - I'd prefer whole milk, since it's less processed, but ok.

    Calcium Carbonate - AKA.. ground up shells (nuff said).

    Dipotassium Phosphate - Seriously, my spell check doesn't even recognize that one.

    Mono and Diglydereides - emulsifiers that hold hydrogented fat together

    Artificial Flavor - Nobody really knows what this means nor seems interested in holding "big food" accountable for filling us in.

    Carrageenan - It's a thickener aannnnnd, a known carcinogen.

    All that to say.. a little sugar in your cocoa or some whipped cream topping, well... not sounding like such a big deal at this point.

    Bottom line, if you're going to make hot chocolate, it's one of those things that's really worth doing from scratch. Especially because it really is SUPER simple.

    Time Saving Tips and Tricks:

    Prep: There really isn't any reason to prep this hot chocolate. There are SO few ingredients. I do like to give some thought to "toppings." Homemade marshmallows are a favorite around here (so much fluffier) along with mini candy canes and whipped cream if I'm feeling extra festive!

    Make Ahead: Hot chocolate is just better, well... hot. You can make it ahead, but since it comes together so quickly (and re-heating it takes the same amount of time as the actual recipe), I generally just make it fresh.

    Freezer: Nope, not this time. Unfortunately hot chocolate just doesn't belong in the freezer!

    lllll-5-copy

    Print
    clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon

    The Ultimate Hot Chocolate

    • Author: Bailey Sissom
    • Prep Time: 5 mins
    • Cook Time: 5 mins
    • Total Time: 10 minutes
    • Yield: 1 cup hot cocoa 1x
    Print Recipe
    Pin Recipe

    Description

    The Ultimate Hot Chocolate is  luscious, creamy and made with whole milk, cocoa powder, cane sugar, and vanilla. Serve warm with whipped cream and homemade marshmallows.


    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 1 cup whole milk
    • 1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 2 tsp raw cane sugar
    • ⅛th teaspoon pure vanilla
    • Optional: Whipped cream, marshmallows and candy canes

    Instructions

    1. Add milk to a small pot and heat until really hot (do not boil).
    2. While milk is warming, add cocoa powder and sugar to your mug of choice.
    3. Pour warm milk into mug, stir to combine.
    4. Lastly, add in your vanilla and top with whatever makes you heart feel happy.

    Did you make this recipe?

    Tag @simplysissom on Instagram and hashtag it #simplysissom

    Helpful Hints:

    • I made the marshmallows using THIS recipe. I used peppermint extract and added beet juice as "food coloring."
    • I used Lake Champlain Organic Unsweetened Cocoa Powder. I found mine at Whole Food's but it can be ordered online as well. Whatever cocoa you use, just make sure to check the ingredients. You should be able to recognize All. Of. Them.

    Let's Connect:

    • Looking for more healthy whole-food recipes? Check out Simply Sissom on Pinterest. If you like it, follow! New pins are added daily from my favorite bloggers from around the web!
    • You can also find Simply Sissom on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Check it out and if you like what you see.. follow!

    Posts Like Ultimate Hot Chocolate:

    Iced Gingerbread Bars:

    Thick, soft and chewy iced gingerbread bars are studded with dark chocolate chunks and topped off with a simple glaze and hint of lemon. Perfect for the holidays!

    Honey Roasted Almonds:

    Easy, whole food honey roasted almonds made from scratch with toasted almonds, coconut sugar, honey and coconut oil. Refined sugar free, vegan and gluten-free.

    How to Make Whole Food Christmas Cookies:

    Avoid all the toxic and unnecessary junk found in traditional food dyes by using natural homemade food coloring that is really simple to make at home!

    A luscious, creamy hot chocolate made with whole milk, cocoa powder, coconut sugar, vanilla. salt and spices. Serve warm with whipped cream and homemade marshmallows.

    Dye Naturally: Free Downlaod

    How to Make Natural Food Coloring for Christmas Baking + Whole Food Christmas Cookie Recipe.

    Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

    There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

    Powered by ConvertKit
    « Iced Gingerbread Bars
    Reader's Top 10 Recipes of 2016 »

    About Bailey Sissom

    Bailey Sissom is a 3rd grade teacher turned stay-at-home mom and the creator of Simply Sissom, a blog for busy moms who value feeding their kids healthy meals and snacks, but struggle with finding the time to make it happen. On Simply Sissom, Bailey shares practical recipes, tips and tricks to help make preparing whole food meals happen consistently.

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Hi, I'm Bailey! Boy Mom x3 and former teacher turned food blogger. On Simply Sissom you will find simple, tasty, fuss-free recipes that are perfect for busy families.

    More about me →

    Popular Recipes:

    • How To Build A Simple Trader Joe's Charcuterie Board
    • 4 Ingredient Pesto Chicken Bake
    • Make Ahead Fruit and Yogurt Parfaits (Video)
    • Simple Cauliflower Pizza Crust

    Seasonal Recipes

    • Crunchy Pumpkin Pie Energy Balls
    • Chunky Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins
    • Ultimate Pumpkin Pizza
    • Thick and Chunky Vegetable Soup

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2022 Simply Serving

    Copyright © 2023 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress