For those who like Hot Chocolate

[Cheyanne]

Winter is coming (it is chilly here) and I like to have hot cocoa mix for the kids and add peppermint schnapps for Cobalt and I - yum.

The mix in the store is soooooooo expensive this year and Cobalt had mentioned that his mom used to make the mix at home when he was a kid. So an internet search found the very same recipe that she used to make..

Here it is for those who are interested.. :D

1 cup cocoa powder
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 cups non-dairy powdered coffee creamer
2 cups nonfat dry milk powder

(I used the store brand for this - saves $$$)

I used a Folgers coffee container (plastic) to store this in (it makes that much). I am sitting here having a cup of it and it is better than the store brand one!

I am thinking of trying the flavored coffee creamers in the next batch... Amerreto, Irish Cream or even Hazel Nut sounds pretty good!

[imaginewithme]

Yum...sounds good!

[maddy]

So how much do you use to make a cup of hot cocoa? ;)

[Cobalt]

almost 1/4 cup (3 heaping teaspoons full) for a large mug. More or less to taste.

[Cheyanne]

LOL.... a full shot of Peppermint Schnapps works well also Maddy.. :D

[Lilith]

Great recipe! Thanks!!!!

[Pita]

That's a great recipe and I wonder if you tried it with Splenda would it be a good sugar free one? I like the flavored creamer idea, like French vanilla.

[Cheyanne]

I don't know about the Splenda Tess. I do know that they have that special creamer for Diabetics and the fat free kind too... not sure how that would work. Does the Splenda package have a conversion for sugar or powdered sugar on the back for baking?

[Lilith]

sugar to Splenda is even steven as far as conversion...it would work

[sodaklostsoul]

Thanks Chey....I used to make up some but haven't for years.

[LixyChick]

Oh...that's really cool! TY Chey and Cobalt!

[dicksbro]

That does sound really good and it is getting to be cocoa and chili weather. :)

It's only 37 out now and the high today will only be in the upper 40s. I'm not ready for winter, so it's got to go back to the 60s and 70s after this cool stretch. :( I hope MN is listening. :)

[maddy]

I'm going to the grocery today and will be picking those things up... I've already gone through two boxes of Swiss Miss at the office. It's rumored to be a very cold winter this year.

[Cheyanne]

At Christmas time I make "cookie" tins or baskets filled with a variety of different cookies & fudge I make and give them to the adults. I am thinking of going to the Dollar General Store and picking up a couple of mugs ($1 each) and putting some of this in a pint canning jar with a nice cloth topper along with cookies for them. Something a little different.

[Lilith]

Cheyanne I have been searching EBAY for cool new mug sets to do the same. I really like the idea.

[maddy]

I happened to be watching qvc this morning - don't ask me why. And I noticed they had a recipe book set called "mug 'ems". I think it was four recipe books full of recipes for exactly this purpose, to put in a mug as a gift. Might want to hunt on ebay for those too.

[maddy]

Oh, and chey, you could get some of those cool holiday ziplock containers (not sure if they are out yet), might be cheaper than pint jars, unless you have an abundance of them around your house.

[Cheyanne]

Cool idea maddy! I was also thinking of making a trip to the liquor store and picking up those small 1 shot style bottles of peppermint schnapps to go into the basket for those adults who I know imbibe.. :D

[Lilith]

I told Mr. Lil wanted to get peppermint ones and butterscotch schnapps too.

[maddy]

darn if I didn't forget to take the list of ingredients with me to the grocery today!

[IAKaraokeGirl]

And here I was, thinking this was a thread about one-hit wonders. *sigh*

<---scampers off into the corner of Discoland, humming, "I believe in miracles...you sexy thing...la la la"


:D

[Lilith]

bump...I'm about to put some together...yum. My toes are chilly :p

[Cheyanne]

LOL.. ours is already 1/2 gone! The kids love it (so do I) and now I have an excuse to try the flavored creamers with it.. :D

[maddy]

Allegedly there are some health benefits too.... who knew!?!?

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/11/031106051159.htm

[scotzoidman]

sugar to Splenda is even steven as far as conversion...it would work
That works for the Splenda that comes in the bags or boxes, but the individual serving packets of Splenda are like sacharine or Equal, in that a little bit goes a long way...

btw, my wife has been making a variation of this mix for several years now, her recipe calls for Nesquik instead of cocoa powder, very rich & sweet, esp. when you toss a few mini-marshmallows in...we make up little bags & print out mixing instructions, put them in little tins, & give them out as quickie Xmas gifts for those folks we almost forgot to get something for...of course we make a big batch in a tupperware cake keeper, & have a little ourselves on those snowy winter days...

[Loulabelle]

Oh I soooo have to try this.

Fussy and I love Hot Chocolate, but Cocoa is that much richer and more chocolatey...plus I'm going to be making gifts for people this year, so I may have to use some of these ideas as inspiration.

I'm thinking you could add cinnamon etc to make a kind of Christmas blend, which would be rather nice....

[Lilith]

When I made mine I found it wasn't super chocolatey. I think things like the density of all the powdered things you are adding make a huge difference possibly. It was easy to solve by just adding more cocoa powder. I think you may have to play a bit to get it the way you prefer it. Also I think using 10x vs 3x powdered sugar may matter but I'm not sure.

[scotzoidman]

Oh, one other thing...for the coffee lovers, try a couple of scoops of the chocolate mix instead of creamer & sugar in your java...makes a mocha java that'll warm the cockles of your heart (whatever the hell that means)...

[Lilith]

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm warm cock