Hot Chocolate Recipe With Cocoa Powder

This hot chocolate is made with milk, cocoa powder, dark chocolate, vanilla extract, and sugar and topped with mini marshmallows! This drink comes together in a few minutes and can be doubled or tripled!

We have more delicious drink recipes that you should try like our sweet cream cold brew, french hot chocolate, mango pineapple smoothie, dragon fruit drink, etc.

Jump to:

• Why this recipe works
• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Expert tips
• Faq's
• Storing
• Freezing
• Substitutions
• Variations
• Serving tips
• Tools
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

Why this recipe works

• Is made with simple ingredients.
• Can be made dairy free.
• Make it in under 10 minutes from start to finish!
• Extremely easy to make.
• You will only need 5 ingredients to make this recipe!

Ingredients

Before you start to make this recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.

Full measurements are in the recipe card below.

Chocolate- use the best quality semisweet or dark chocolate bars for the best flavor. using the best quality dark chocolate is very important in this recipe. The chocolate is what gives this hot chocolate the flavor so it’s very important to use high-quality dark chocolate.

Milk- you can use your favorite type of milk. It can be whole milk, almond milk, soy milk, oat milk, cashew milk, and more!

Vanilla extract- vanilla extract adds extra flavor to this recipe, and it makes this recipe come together into the perfect hot chocolate.

Powder sugar- we used powder sugar for this recipe, but you can use caster sugar or granulated sugar instead. If you don’t like your hot cocoa extra sweet, simply skip the sugar.

Dutch cocoa powder– we like to use Dutch-process cocoa powder for our hot chocolate because we like the deep and rich chocolate taste, but the natural cocoa powder will work great as well!

Instructions

This recipe comes together fairly quickly, so have all your ingredients measured out and ready.

Place a medium-sized saucepan on the stovetop on medium heat and pour in the milk, vanilla extract, and sugar if desired.

Heat the mixture until it’s slightly bubbling and add the chocolate in. We cut our chocolate into cubes, but you can feel free to chop it as well.

Sift the cocoa powder so there won’t be any lumps in the drink.

Mix the mixture constantly with a whisk until it’s creamy and smooth.

Remove the saucepan from the stovetop and pour the mixture into 2 large glasses or 3 small ones. Top with whipped cream or marshmallows and sprinkle cocoa powder on top for the best experience!

Expert tips

• Use the best quality semisweet or dark chocolate bars for the best flavor. using the best quality dark chocolate is very important in this recipe. The chocolate is what gives this hot chocolate the flavor so it’s very important to use high-quality dark chocolate.
• Don’t replace the milk with water! or don’t use water in this recipe at all! Using water in hot chocolate can be okay when you make a hot chocolate mix packet.
• Feel free to adjust the sugar to your liking. Some like their hot cocoa sweeter and some less sweet. Adjust to your personal preference.

Faq's

Storing

If you have leftovers, transfer the drink to an airtight container and store it in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop.

Freezing

This recipe is great for freezing! If you have some leftovers and want to freeze them, transfer the remaining hot chocolate into a freezer-friendly airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months.

Substitutions

Dairy-free- you can easily make this recipe dairy-free, simply replace the heavy cream with plant-based heavy cream and use plant-based milk like almond milk, soy milk, or oat milk.

Variations

Chocolate- replace the dark chocolate with your favorite chocolate like milk chocolate, semisweet chocolate, white chocolate, etc.

Topping- top this drink with whipped cream instead of mini marshmallows.

Spread- add your favorite spread like peanut butter, Nutella, or biscoff butter to add a new flavor to this drink!

Spices- add your favorite spices to this drink. We love adding cinnamon and nutmeg!

Serving tips

We love serving this hot chocolate with a big addition of homemade whipped cream and a sprinkle of cocoa powder. Another way to serve this hot chocolate is with mini marshmallows or marshmallow fluff.

Tools

• Mixing bowl (set of 3)
• Whisk Set (pack of 3) to whisk the ingredients together
• Saucepan to brown the butter.

More holiday recipes:

Creme brulee- This creme brulee recipe is made with only 4 ingredients and it’s the best creme brulee that I’ve ever had! Creme brulee is a classic French dessert that is easier to make than it looks and tastes like an expensive dessert!

Nutella tart- This Nutella tart is incredible. Made with an easy hazelnut tart crust, filled with a decadent and creamy Nutella filling, and topped with chopped toasted hazelnuts.

White chocolate cranberry cookies- These white chocolate cranberry cookies are soft, chewy, have crispy edges, and are the perfect cookies for Christmas and the holiday season.

Oreo balls (oreo truffles)- These oreo balls are made with only 3 ingredients! These oreo balls are covered with chocolate and are perfect for Christmas or any other day!

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