The weather in SC has been quite chilly the past few days, with no real warm up in sight. In fact, we have snowflakes in our forecast three times in the next ten days. As you know, we do not deal with the devil’s dandruff very well down here.
Forecast
Bodie came home from school thoroughly chilled the other day and requested hot chocolate…the real stuff. He did NOT want a mix nor did he want it topped with whipped cream from a can. Amazingly, I had everything necessary already in my pantry and fridge. The end results were fabulous and not at all difficult to achieve. That’s the good news. The bad news is that we will never be able to drink prepackaged hot chocolate ever again. Same for the whipped cream. I’ll share the recipes below.
The hot chocolate is from Gimme Some Oven. Ali’s recipes are all wonderful. Click here for the hot chocolate: https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/homemade-hot-chocolate-recipe/ The salt is what makes this extra special, in my opinion.
Gimme Some Oven Hot Chocolate
Ingredients
- 4 cups plain milk (dairy or plant-based)
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- optional toppings: whipped cream, marshmallows or chocolate shavings
Instructions
- Heat. Combine the milk, cocoa powder, sugar, vanilla and sea salt in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat, whisking occasionally, until the mixture almost reaches a simmer. (We want it to be steaming, but avoid coming to a boil.)
- Add the chocolate chips. Add in the chocolate chips and whisk until they are melted and evenly combined.
- Serve. Remove from heat. Serve warm, garnished with your favorite toppings, and enjoy!
Stove Top Hot Chocolate
Moving on to the whipped cream…watching the liquid in the mixer become fluffy whipped cream is extremely satisfying. Just three simple ingredients: heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract. The exact recipe I followed is here: https://joyfoodsunshine.com/homemade-whipped-cream/.
Whipped Cream
IngredientsÂ
- 1 pint heavy whipping cream (COLD) (2 cups)
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Put the bowl of a standing mixer or a large mixing bowl (glass or metal preferred) into the refrigerator to chill for at least 15-30 minutes (or longer).
- Add whipping cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract to the chilled bowl of a standing mixer (or chilled mixing bowl).
- Use the wire whisk attachment to a standing mixer, or a hand-held mixer, and beat the ingredients together, starting on low speed and increasing to high slowly as it begins to firm up.
- Beat for 60-90 seconds until stiff peaks form. Stopping once halfway through to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Transfer mixture to a piping bag to pipe onto your favorite dessert or into hot chocolate. Or put in a serving dish to serve.
Whipping
I made this two nights in a row…it’s that good! Such a decadent treat. South Carolinians, as you’re stocking up on your milk, bread and eggs at Publix this weekend, add the ingredients for homemade hot chocolate and whipped cream to your buggy. You won’t be sorry.
Final Product
Enjoy!
