Hot cocoa is based on powdered cocoa, hot chocolate is based on shavings or morsels of chocolate. So I dubbed this cocoalate. This recipe is a compromise, with a delectable taste and a combination of pricey and cheap chocolates.
It all began when I got a sipping chocolate mix from the Christmas clearance aisle. Oooh man. This is a whole different creature from the junk mixes. It is rich and chocolatey. If you’ve made the cocoa from the side of the Hershey’s tub you know it is a much stronger beverage. The following hot cocoa recipe creates a decadent hot chocolate and is suitable for gift giving.
Per serving it costs more than the cheap mix from the store, but it produces a superior treat and is cheaper than the brand name mixes that are better quality.
I based this on the Country Living Hot Chocolate Mix recipe. I changed it a little bit, to suit my tastes.
Stick it in a mason jar, put some pretty paper on the lid, and attach some homemade mini marshmallows for a present any chocolate lover will adore. Or layer the mix, mini chocolate morsels, and mini marshmallows.
*Goes great with our Chocolate Mug Cake
Hot Cocoalate Mix Recipe
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
- 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate squares, chopped (the better the quality the better it will taste, but you can use generic for this)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoons cinnamon
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- pinch ground cloves
- pinch cayenne
Directions:
- Place all ingredients in a food processor and grind until powdery, about 30 seconds. If you process it too long it will get too warm and melt your chocolate. It is better to have little chunks of chocolate than to melt it. This is why you have to pre-chop your chocolate.
- Store in a mason jar or other air-tight container. For 6 months or so, which means you can make this gift way ahead.
- If you want to be fancy you can heat your milk on the stove, but if I’m just making a single serving I microwave in a mug for 2 minutes. Add 2 Tbl of mix to 1 c of milk and stir to combine. You can use water, but if you’re bothering to spend the money on chocolate squares for the ingredients why would you cheap out on the liquid?
Costs
Ingredient | Ing amt in oz | Ing $ per oz | Ing $ for recipe |
3/4 c unsweetened cocoa | 6 oz | 8 oz. $3.29 $0.41/oz |
$2.46 |
6 oz semisweet chocolate | 6 oz | 8 oz. $2.99 $0.37/oz |
$2.22 |
1/4 c sugar | 2 oz | 5 lb. $2.99 $0.04/oz |
$0.08 |
2 T brown sugar | 1 oz | 32 oz. $1.59 $0.05/oz |
$0.05 |
1 T cinnamon | 0.5 oz | 1.9 oz. $5.59 $2.94/oz |
$1.47 |
1 1/2 T pure vanilla extract | 0.75 oz | 2 fl. oz. $4.99 $2.50/oz |
$1.86 |
1/2 t ground nutmeg | 0.08 oz | 1.81 oz. $7.19 $3.97/oz |
$0.32 |
Pinch cloves | 0.01 oz | .9 oz. $8.29 $9.21/oz |
$0.09 |
Pinch cayenne | 0.01 oz | 1 oz. $4.29 $4.29/oz |
$0.04 |
Total $8.59 |
Sorry, I didn’t measure how much it made. A bunch?
Bought Ghirardelli mix: |
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16 oz | $6.95 | 3 T per serving | = 1.5 oz | $0.44/oz | $0.66 mix/ serving | |
My homemade cocoalate: |
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2.25 c | = 18 oz | $8.59 | 2 T per serving | = 1 oz | $0.48/oz | $0.48 mix/ serving |
Bought generic mix tub: |
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26 oz | $3.29 | 3 T per serving | = 1.5 oz | $0.13/oz | $0.20 mix/ serving |
Chocolate Pinterest Board
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* Also see our Just Add Water Chocolate Mug Cake Mix Recipe
We hope you enjoyed our Hot Cocoalate Mix Recipe post
Hot cocoa mug image from Razor on Flikr
Yum. Definitely going to make this one. Thanks.
You won’t regret it!