Easy Hot Chocolate Recipe made with a Chocolate Bar

This easy Hot Chocolate recipe is for chocolate lovers everywhere. This comforting drink is silky smooth, takes just 4 minutes to make and uses 3 easy-to-find ingredients. It is warming and delicious and really simple to make. What’s holding you back?

There’s little that can beat snuggling up with a delicious cup of homemade hot chocolate. Luxury. This version, however, is delicious. It’s far superior to hot chocolate made with cocoa powder, as it uses actual chocolate, chocolate from a chocolate bar. This is what makes this delicious hot chocolate drink so silky smooth and flavourful. Use your favourite chocolate bar, one that preferably has a minimum of 70% cocoa solids, for the best flavour. A bar with a minimum of 70% cocoa solids, dark chocolate, makes the drink smooth and deliciously intense.  However, if your thing is more milk chocolate, you can use that, but it won’t have the same delicious depth of flavour.

Ingredients

Create your warming hug-in-a-mug with these simple ingredients.

• Milk – use whole milk for a lovely depth of flavour but substitute semi-skimmed milk if you prefer. Oat milk has a nice creaminess to it and also works very well in this recipe as does almond milk.
• Chocolate 70% – this will melt into the milk, giving the whole drink a rich chocolate flavour. Substitute other types of chocolate if you prefer, but the best flavour will come from using a 70% chocolate bar.
• Sugar – a little sweetener to suit your personal tastes. I specify a teaspoon of sugar for each cup in the recipe, but feel free to adjust this if you wish.
  • Substitute a teaspoon of honey or maple syrup if you prefer.

Instructions for this easy Hot Chocolate recipe

This Hot Chocolate recipe involves just a few simple steps, and then you’ll have a delicious, warming, velvety smooth drink.

1. Warm the milk (you may use dairy or non-dairy versions), but be careful not to boil it. Milk proteins do not like being boiled, and the milk will take on a ‘grainy’ look if it is overheated. You can do this in a small saucepan or in the microwave. Heat it until it is just steaming.
2. In the meantime, chop the chocolate into small pieces. This makes it quicker and easier for it to melt into the milk.
3. Once the milk is at temperature, please turn off the heat (or take the mug out of the microwave) and add the chocolate. Whisk with a small hand whisk until it has all melted into the milk.
4. Taste briefly to see if you need to sweeten it. and add a teaspoon of sugar if you think it requires it.
5. Pour into a cup and add any other accompaniments such as marshmallows or whipped cream. Serve and enjoy!

Variations to the basic Hot Chocolate recipe

There are a few things you can do to this basic recipe to ring the changes.

• Add a few drops of orange extract for Chocolate Orange hot chocolate. 
• Add a few drops of peppermint extract for a wonderful Hot Mint Chocolate drink.
• How about a spiced cinnamon version? Simmer the milk (don’t boil it ), with a cinnamon stick to flavour the milk.
• Fancy a boozy version? If so, you could add a drop of your favourite liqueur, such as Amaretto with its distinctive almond flavour or a drop of brandy or rum.  Your choice.

Serving

This drink is a warm hug on a cold day, a special treat to make everything feel better, but how are you going to serve it?

It’s a delicious, intense, and indulgent drink just as it is, but what can you do to really dress it up a little? Well, there are a few flavour variations as detailed above, and you can also add a few other favourites.

• Tiny marshmallows, made especially for adding to the top of warm drinks such as coffee and hot chocolate. (vegan versions are available)
• Whipped cream adds a little gorgeousness, and it looks even prettier if you grate a little chocolate over the top.

Tips for Success

• Take a few minutes to read through the instructions. There isn’t much that can go wrong, but it’ll help you make a great hot chocolate.
• Do not use chocolate chips. This might seem like a great way to cut out a step (the chopping of the chocolate bar), but chocolate chips often contain stabilisers to help them stay whole in recipes, such as in Chocolate Chip cookies. This looks pretty in the cookies, but won’t melt easily to make a great cup of cocoa.
• Taste before adding any extra sweetness. If you’re like me and your favourite chocolate is bittersweet, then you may not need the sweetness.
• Try to avoid boiling the milk for the best, smooth, velvety hot chocolate drink.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and if you try it please let me know how it worked out for you.

If you liked this recipe, then maybe you’ll like these;

• Gingerbread Latte

Things to go with your Hot Chocolate…

• Soft, chewy Oat and raisin cookies
• Simple chocolate chip cookies
• Oat and coconut cookies
• Peanut Butter Cookies
• Peanut Butter Cookies and Chocolate Chips
• Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
• Shortbread Cookies
• Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Easy Ginger Cookies
• Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies
• Easy Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

Get in Touch … We’d love to meet you …

If you like what you’ve read here, why not follow us on on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or Instagram

Why not Pin this Easy Hot Chocolate Recipe for later?