So what do you do with that leftover fancy cocoa powder you bought to make that delicious, Nutella-esque chocolate and peanut concoction? You make your own cocoa mix! And trust me, this is waaaaaaaay tastier than that stuff you buy at the grocery store.
Ingredients
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
1 tablespoon (8 grams) cornstarch
3 ounces (85 grams) bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped
1/2 cup (40 grams) Valrhona cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until thoroughly pulverized.
Before pulverization:
After pulverization:
To use (stovetop version): Heat one cup of milk in a saucepan over medium heat until it begins to steam. Add 3 tablespoons cocoa mix. Whisk over heat for another minute or two, until it begins to simmer and mix is completely dissolved. (Obviously you can make more than one cup at a time, depending on how many people you're serving.)
To use (microwave version): This mixes together better if you heat the cocoa mix with the milk rather than mixing it after the milk has been heated. Measure 3 tablespoons cocoa mix into one cup of milk but don't bother stirring it. Heat for 90 seconds and then stir vigorously. Then heat for 20 more seconds or until cocoa is at desired temperature. (Aside: my microwave is pretty wimpy, so you may want to reduce these times if you are using a more powerful model.)
Bonus tip--I store my cocoa mix in a container with the measurements noted on it to make life easy:
Recipe source: Smitten Kitchen
Mmmmhmm.
Why the need for the cornstarch?
Helps prevent clumping!
Not sure I trust a product whose first ingredient listed is sugar
What if that product is a bag of sugar?
then that bag of sugar weighs in at 100 grams
Solution: Add this to the top of the recipe:
Then put the two "To use" paragraphs here, deleting the "To use" and parentheses, correcting capitalization.
Then add:
Followed with the rest of the recipe.
Now the first ingredient is Milk.
I still don't see where the Bailey's is added, though :/
Peppermint schnapps is added to hot cocoa. It is known.
I just tried Amarula cream liquor a few weeks back and that will now be my go to for coffee or hot cocoa. Out of South Africa. It is so good!
I get the Bailey's knock-off from Costco. Big fan.
dude who invented Bailey's had an interesting life. Also, I had no idea that Malibu wasn't from the islands.
We also have Amarula here. Whip yourself up an Almond Joey sometime 😉
I’m a butterscotch schnapps in hot cocoa guy — it’s like drinking a Rolo or a Riesen.
Half the liquor in my house is used for flavoring hot drinks, but I've never tried butterscotch, that sounds good.