Hot Cocoa Mix

We love Hot Cocoa and have tried many recipes!

My daughter Laura has been "tweaking" this recipe. It's our favorite homemade hot cocoa. It's very easy to make for yourself or to share as a gift in a jar for a friend. Check out the variation ideas at the bottom. We hope you enjoy it! I've included several other variations for you to try!

Laura's Hot Cocoa Mix

2 C nonfat dry milk
1 C sugar
1/2 C cocoa, unsweetened
1/2 C non-dairy creamer
1 dash of salt

• Miniature marshmallows or cream, optional
• Combine all ingredients and store in a in tightly sealed container.
• Makes about 4 cups of hot cocoa mix.

Directions

• Add 3 to 4 tablespoons of mix to a mug and fill with hot water.
• Stir to blend. Add some marshmallows or cream.

Gifts In A Jar

• Sometimes we like to add some miniature marshmallows to the mix and then fill a quart jar with the cocoa mix and miniature marshmallows combination.
• Attach the directions and decorate for gift-giving.
• Last year, we used some clean one-quart mayonnaise jars for the cocoa mix.
• My son used some red paper from the office supply.
• He wrote the directions using a black marker and added a cute little poem, cut it out with pinking shears and glued it onto the jar.
• I used regular canning lids and rings for the jars rather than the mayonnaise lids.
• Add a circle of holiday fabric which has been trimmed with pinking shears and tie with some raffia or ribbon.
• You can also attach a peppermint stick or candy cane to top of the jar with the raffia or ribbon.
• I have made this for gifts for several years and it's always been well received.
• Some of the people we gave this to used it as a decoration in the kitchen for a long time!

Flavored Cocoa Variations

• Use the flavored creamers such as Hazelnut, Irish Cream and French Vanilla and the others that are available.
•  Add one package of Raspberry or Cherry unsweetened dry beverage mix (like Kool-Aid) to the cocoa mix. You may want to add a bit more sugar when adding a package of drink mix.
• Add one teaspoon of cinnamon to the cocoa mix
• For Mocha, fill your mug with coffee instead of water

Hmmm...how about if I use French Vanilla Creamer and Raspberry drink mix...I think that would be good!

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Leslie Sausage lives with her husband in rural Texas. She is the mom of four grown children, a freelance writer, and has a degree in business administration. You are invited to visit her online for more creative, practical and fun ideas -- http://heart4home.net.