Healthy, homemade hot cocoa is a delicious, and easy alternative to the store-bought stuff. It uses only 4 simple ingredients and takes less than five minutes to make. This healthy, homemade hot cocoa recipe is the perfect remedy for any cold and blustery winter day.
It is a cold and snowy day at the house. I don’t know about you, but on days like this, all I want to do is snuggle up by the fire with a steaming cup of homemade hot cocoa and a good book. Fortunately, I have a simple, yummy go to homemade hot cocoa recipe that I make on occasions like these. The recipe is so simple, it only takes about five minutes to make, and uses four simple ingredients.
- Cocoa powder
- Milk
- Maple syrup
- Vanilla
- ** bonus ingredient: Cinnamon**
Why you should make your own homemade Hot Cocoa
I have been making homemade hot cocoa for years. As a general rule of thumb, if I can make it from scratch, I do. This recipe is no exception. There are a couple of reasons that I prefer to make hot cocoa from scratch.
- Taste! Hands down if you do a blind taste test with a cup of homemade hot cocoa and a cup of powdered store-bought, your taster will choose the homemade version. Hands down, every time, guaranteed!
- Health benefits. Did you know the store-bought powder mixes contain all kinds of ingredients that we don’t need in our bodies? They usually contain hydrogenated oils, preservatives, and corn syrup solids. Those ingredients do not add to the flavor and are not good for us, so that reason alone is enough to stick with the homemade hot cocoa.
- Customization options. Hot cocoa can be customized in so many ways, perfected to delight your taste buds.
Ways to customize your homemade Hot Cocoa
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- If you don’t drink dairy milk, substitute in either almond milk, or coconut milk.
- Do you like dark chocolate? Add extra cocoa and a little bit less sweetener.
- You can add a little bit of heat to your recipe to make it a Mexican hot cocoa by adding a dash of cinnamon, nutmeg and paprika to the pot.
- A peppermint stick can be added to make an extra special holiday homemade hot cocoa treat.
As you can see, with homemade hot cocoa, the possibilities are endless.
Healthy, Homemade Hot Cocoa Recipe
Recipe
Serving Size: 4
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup Cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup Maple syrup
- 4 cups Milk
- 1 tsp. Vanilla extract
- * Bonus Ingredient* A dash of Cinnamon
Directions:
- Add cocoa powder and maple syrup and cinnamon to a pot.
- Turn the burner on medium heat and whisk in the milk.
- Continue to whisk the hot cocoa mixture until the ingredients have combined and it is hot.
- Remove from heat, and add the vanilla. Top with a dollop of fresh, homemade whipped cream to make it extra decadent and enjoy!
As mentioned above, healthy, homemade hot cocoa recipes is a delicious, and easy alternative to the store-bought stuff. Feel free to customize this recipe to use ingredients you have on hand. Good non-dairy milk alternatives include; almond milk, or coconut milk. You can change the sweeteners, substitute in honey, coconut sugar, raw sugar, or add a few semi-sweet chocolate chip morsels to sweeten up your hot cocoa.
In my opinion, it truly is the most perfect remedy for any cold and blustery winter day. Enjoy!
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