Last night we hosted our annual Jingle Mingle holiday party. Of all the parties I have the privilege of hosting every year, the one we host at Christmas is my favorite. This year I kept things simple by setting up a hot chocolate bar {with all the fixin’s} and of course cookies and treats.
Here are my tips for a stellar hot cocoa bar.
1. Set out a canister of hot chocolate instead of packets. {So guests can make it as strong as they like.} A recipe for my mix is below.
2. Offer a variety of stir ins. Crushed peppermint, whipped cream, marshmallows, cream, and Kalua are all good options!
3. Keep the milk hot. Don’t send guests running to the microwave. Keep the moo juice warm in a crock pot.
In addition to cocoa powder I also made those cute hot-chocolate-on-a-stick’s that have been cropping up all over the Internet. Now, don’t be intimidated. They really were not as hard as you’d think. I followed this recipe for the chocolate blocks…and used this Alton Brown recipe for the marshmallows.
Word to the wise…Homemade marshmallows are the bomb. So good! And don’t freak out if you don’t have a fancy Kitchen Aid mixer. I used a little hand mixer and it worked just fine.
When I poured the fudge blocks into my pan I sprinkled crushed candy canes on top to make a rich peppermint hot chocolate block.
When just stir into a cup of hot milk. Very tasty!
To make your own hot cocoa mix follow this recipe:
Mix all these ingredients together…
1 Cup unsweetened cocoa powder | 1 Cup powdered sugar | 1 tsp cinnamon
To make flavored hot cocoa mix these ingredients together…
3/4 Cup unsweetened cocoa powder | 3/4 cup powdered sugar | 2/3 Cup of your favorite flavor dry coffee creamer {like CoffeeMate}
Stir 3 spoonfuls into a mug of hot milk. Yummm!
If nothing else…make the marshmallows. Thank you to Make & Takes for the awesome idea that has swept Pinterest this holiday season. You rock!
See you tomorrow!
Amy
