Best Ever Hot Cocoa Mix


Oh my! This is THE BEST. I was laying awake last night trying to decide what else I can give to my in-laws for Christmas... I know... it's only 2 days away... and I really wanted to come up with something that is like something I would give and that they would use. I realized I could give hot cocoa mix together with some hard candy dipped spoons - they could use this together instead of stirring those into coffee or tea.


So, I opened up my Make a Mix cookbook this morning and saw the Hot Cocoa Mix recipe there. I was thinking, I've tried this before and it wasn't that good. So I got online and went to recipezaar.com. I looked through almost all of the mix recipes they have listed there when I came across two that used white chocolate chips - and specifically said to use the mix with hot milk - not water. I thought on it for a while and went with this recipe - even though there were only 3 reviews - they were all good reviews.


Then after I was finished making the mix - I tried it myself. Oh my - oh my - it's delicious. I didn't even use 1/3 cup of mix - I used just a bit less - about 1/4 cup mix with about 1 cup of hot milk. It's so yummy. It tastes just like the warme chocomel from the Hema (here in the Netherlands). So far I think the Hema has the best hot chocolate... but now I don't have to go there to have a really good cup of Hot Cocoa - I can make my own with this mix. Also, we have used the store bought Chocomel full fat brand milk and heated that on the stove... and I promise you that this mix is WAY BETTER!


It's kind of funny to be so excited about hot cocoa - but I am. I'm going to make a batch for myself and my family to enjoy this winter.


So, to complete the gift, I used another recipe from Recipezaar.com - Hard Candy - to dip my little spoons in. I like Recipezaar because you can change the serving amount. I only made about 10 servings with of the hardy candy. Then just after I took it off the heat, I dipped the spoons in there and let them harden on wax paper. The leftover syrupy stuff I poured onto the greased cookie sheet and followed the recipe till completely cool. I used a little bit of cherry & cinnamon extract. Such a nice combination.


Then I just put the dipped spoons in a little espresso cup and put that together with the Hot Cocoa Mix - in a nice tin.


Home made gifts - especially food gifts - are the nicest to give... and receive :)

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