by Texas Homesteader ~
Don’t resort to the powdered stuff sold in packets. Homemade hot cocoa is delicious & only uses cocoa, sugar & milk – flavored with vanilla & a few miniature marshmallows floating on top. So easy! (and there’s a secret flavoring ingredient that intensifies the chocolate taste. shhhhh….)
Grandma Knows How To Make EVERYTHING!
Recently our grandbabies came to stay with us for a couple of days. It was cold and dreary outside, so there was no playing outside for them.
They already think I ROCK because I treated them to tortilla pizzas for lunch. But they were absolutely amazed when I pulled out some tortilla-sized tomato leather for the pizzas.
Heck, now they think there’s nothing I can’t do! LOL!
So I can’t risk pulling out a packet of the powdered instant cocoa mix & losing my “Grandma knows how to make ANYTHING” badge, oh no! Luckily, homemade cocoa is quick & easy.
Homemade Cocoa Has Simple Ingredients
Homemade cocoa is delicious & only requires only 4 ingredients:
Cocoa powder
Sugar
Milk
Vanilla extract
Optional: a handful of miniature marshmallows floating on top.
Believe me when I say it was a huge HIT with the grandkids!
Secret Chocolate-Intensifying Ingredient
I’ve enjoyed this recipe for a long time now, I originally found it on the Hershey‘s website. But I’ve tweaked it a bit to make it even richer.
You see, when I’m making something chocolate I always substitute cold coffee for at least some of the water in the recipe. It always seems to intensify the chocolate flavor to me.
In this case the amount of water is so small that I just substituted coffee for all the water.
If you don’t have cold coffee, you can just use water if you like. The result will still be delicious! Here’s how I made it:
Homemade Hot Cocoa: Make Concentrated Syrup
First I made a concentrated chocolate syrup in a saucepan:
Mix sugar
Powdered cocoa
Cold coffee
This step will blend the cocoa & dissolve the sugar.
At first it seems like there’s no way there’s enough liquid to dissolve the sugar & cocoa, but stay with it. I promise it is!
I simply mixed it all in the pan, stirred it until it came to a boil. Then I simmered it while stirring for about 2 short minutes.
Homemade Hot Cocoa – Pour In Milk
After my syrup was made I poured in the milk, stirring with my whisk until it was hot.
You don’t want the milk to boil, just get it as hot as you’d like to drink it.
When the cocoa was as hot as I wanted, I removed it from the heat and stirred in a bit of vanilla extract.
Then I just ladled it into our mugs. Of course we added a hefty handful of miniature marshmallows too!
There ya go, rich, decadent hot cocoa – homemade in a flash! My grandchildren are still amazed that (in their eyes at least) grandma can make ANYTHING.
Superpower Status: Preserved!
Other Hot Drinks To Enjoy
While the grandchildren are sipping their homemade cocoa, you can enjoy cocoa with them or enjoy your own hot drink such as:
Hot Chai Tea
Homemade Herbal Tea (Mint)
Here’s the homemade cocoa recipe as I make it:
Did you make this Hot Cocoa? Please rate the recipe in your comment below!
Hot Cocoa Recipe
This homemade rich, creamy hot chocolate recipe comes together quickly and is absolutely delicious. #TexasHomesteader
Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- dash salt
- 1/3 cup cold coffee can substitute hot water if desired
- 4 cups milk Whole milk is creamier
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Directions:
-
Stir together cocoa, sugar & salt in medium saucepan; stir in cold coffee (or water) & cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture comes to a boil. Simmer while stirring constantly for 2 minutes to fully dissolve the sugar.
-
Add milk, still stirring constantly. Heat cocoa to serving temperature - NOTE: Do not boil the milk!
-
When the cocoa is as hot as you want, remove it from heat. Stir in vanilla and ladle cocoa into mugs. Serve with miniature marshmallows if desired.
~TxH~
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It was cold in the Texas panhandle this last week and was perfect weather for hot cocoa! Thanks for sharing at Over the Moon.
Us too Shelley. Even though our winters are relatively mild we get our share of chilly weather. Hot cocoa sure fits the bill then! ~TxH~
We love homemade hot cocoa. This looks like a great recipe. It’s icy enough this week for us to want some of this. Thanks for sharing.
It’s supposed to get cold for sure Jennifer. I’ve taken leftover coffee & froze it in a silicone muffin pan 1/3 cup quantities so it will be available for cocoa when that cold wind blows. ~TxH~
Cold Coffee?? I’m intrigued! Pinning right now!
Once this cold / artic front moved in I mixed up a large batch of the Hot Cocoa mixture. Always handy when the kids come over; just mix with hot water or milk and good to go.
Extra special; drop in plain chocolate kiss or a few chocolate chips into your hot cup of cocoa. A cup of Hot cocoa sure does taste yummy when it’s so cold outside.