Homemade Hot Cocoa!

I love winter time! The weather is a bit cold but gives you a good excuse to stay inside and keep warm! Ok, so I know this is Florida, but it has been a little cold down here! Who doesn't love those chilly days where you can just curl up on the couch with a big blanket and sip hot cocoa? That warm, comfy feeling just puts a smile on my face.

As I am always the one to use the Swiss Miss hot cocoa packets, I decided I wanted to try to make this wonderful, comforting drink from scratch!

 

 

A perfect opportunity to make this was on the day of my cookie exchange: lots of cookies to sample, fresh fruit, coffee, tea and of course, HOT COCOA!

 

I found a great recipe from Diana's Desserts:

 

Ingredients

• ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ⅓ cup granulated sugar
• ⅓ cup hot water
• 3 cups milk
• 1 cup whipping cream, or 1 additional cup milk
• Pinch of salt
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• Miniature marshmallows (optional)
• Semisweet chocolate, grated (optional) 

Directions

1. In a heavy saucepan, stir together the cocoa powder and sugar. Gradually whisk in the hot water. Stir in the milk, cream, and salt, and set the pan over medium heat. Cook, stirring often, until just steaming (do not boil).
2. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. For a frothy beverage, beat the cocoa with a hand-held electric mixer for about 1 minute. Ladle the cocoa into mugs, top wih marshmallows and grated chocolate, if desired, and serve immediately.
3. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

This hot cocoa recipe was a hit at the party! I only made one batch, thinking not many people would want to drink it, but I was wrong! Everyone love it! And it was gone within the first half hour! I did not use cream in the hot cocoa I made, but instead I used 2 cups lowfat (1 %) milk and 2 cups nonfat milk. The hot cocoa still turned out great with a healthier option! 

Now there is always room to make modifications! Different flavors, healthier choices, different toppings... So a few days ago, I decided I wanted to make this recipe even healthier! I decided to substitute Equal sweetener (8-9 packets) for the ⅓ cup of sugar. And instead of vanilla, I used ¼ - ½ teaspoon peppermint extract. And yes, this is even better when topped with a generous amount of mini marshmallows! Delicious!