Peppermint Hot Cocoa Recipe

Real peppermint adds bright, fresh flavors to this rich peppermint hot cocoa!

Rich chocolate and bright peppermint are a match made in heaven. They just go together so well! The deep flavors of the chocolate come alive when paired with the fresh, bright peppermint flavors. We tried to capture that perfection in a mug with this peppermint hot chocolate recipe.

"Rich chocolate and bright peppermint"

Homemade Peppermint Hot Cocoa Ingredients

You don't need a lot of ingredients to make peppermint hot cocoa. In fact, you only need 6 ingredients to make delicious, fresh peppermint hot cocoa. Here is what you will need:

• Heavy cream
• Milk
• Peppermint leaves
• Sugar
• Salt
• Chocolate

Rather than use peppermint extract or mint oil to make our hot cocoa. We opted for real peppermint leaves. Fresh spearmint leaves will work as well or really any kind of mint you have on hand (have you ever tried chocolate mint?!). However, peppermint will give you that classic flavor you are looking for.

Choose organic mint so you make an organic peppermint hot chocolate. This is much fancier than Land o Lakes hot chocolate for sure!

We also choose to use real chocolate to make our peppermint hot cocoa recipe. Real chocolate has an unbeatable, rich taste. You can't get that kind of flavor with cocoa powder!

Choose a high quality dark chocolate to make a hot cocoa just like Starbucks peppermint hot cocoa. Milk chocolate will also work well and give you a lighter tasting cocoa.

How to Make Peppermint Hot Chocolate

Our recipe begins by steeping mint leaves into the milk, making a mint infused milk as the base of the recipe. The minty milk is then whisked into semi sweet chocolate to create a smooth, thick drink that you won’t be able to resist. It may just be the best hot chocolate you have ever had.

It also is not very hard to make homemade hot cocoa. You really just need to heat the mix and then whisk in the chocolate! Anyone should be able to boil and stir!

We do recommend letting the hot cocoa cool a little bit before drinking. It will be very hot coming straight out of the pot! It will take a lot of patience and restraint but we know you can do it.

Variations and Substitutions

There are a few ways you can tweak this tasty hot cocoa recipe to make it customized to suit your tastes. Here are a few ways we have altered the recipe in the past to make it really amazing:

• Use all milk instead of adding heavy cream for a lighter hot cocoa
• Try almond milk or coconut milk in place of whole milk for a vegetarian drink
• Stir some crushed candy canes into the milk as it heats. The candy canes will melt and add even more sweet minty flavor.
• Try using dark chocolate to make your drink even more decadent
• White chocolate will give a new twist on peppermint hot cocoa.

Let us know if you think of any great ways to tweak this hot cocoa recipe. We are always looking for new and exciting non alcoholic drink ideas.

Give this tasty peppermint hot cocoa recipe a try. You really can’t go wrong with this soul-warming, non alcoholic beverage! We know that it is going to be your go-to winter drink.

You Asked, We're Answering

We get a lot of questions about our drink recipes. We try to answer all of your questions here to help you make the best drinks possible. Take a look at these questions and answers and, if you are still wondering about something, let us know in the comments below!

What is the best hot cocoa recipe?

We think this peppermint hot cocoa recipe is one of the best we have ever tried! Always look for recipes that use real chocolate rather than just cocoa powder. Real chocolate will give your drink a true richness that you can't get with just cocoa powder.

How do you make hot cocoa with marshmallows?

Adding marshmallows to your homemade hot cocoa is a great idea. Once your hot cocoa is completely made and poured into mugs, toss in a few mini marshmallows. The marshmallows will float on top of the cocoa and slowly melt into the drink. They add a great sweetness to the drink and also look really pretty.

How do you make homemade hot cocoa mix?

Homemade hot cocoa mix can be a great gift to give at Christmas or just to have in your pantry. A simple hot cocoa mix can be made by whisking together 10 cups of powdered milk, 5 cups powdered sugar, 2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder and 2 cups powdered coffee creamer. Anytime you want hot cocoa, mix ¼ cup of this cocoa mix with boiling water.

How do you cook hot cocoa in a crockpot?

You can easily make this recipe in a crockpot. This is a fun and hands free way to make peppermint hot cocoa. Add all the ingredients except the chocolate to your slow cooker and set it to low. Cook the milk and mint mix for 2 hours. skim the mint leaves out of the warm milk and add the chocolate. Whisk gently and then cook for another 30 minutes. Whisk the hot cocoa in the slow cooker occasionally to really blend the chocolate into the mix. Use a ladle to scoop the cocoa into mugs and enjoy.