Gingerbread Hot Chocolate

Thick, indulgent gingerbread hot chocolate that tastes like all the best things about cozy days inside.  

You know we love nothing more than a mug of hot chocolate when the weather is cold. We like to make our own favorite flavors and sit down together to watch a movie or give the kids hot chocolate when the adults make their coffee. It's basically a staple in our house, so it's no surprise that I am back with another hot chocolate flavor to share with you.

This gingerbread hot chocolate is so much fun and a personal favorite.

To add more depth to the gingerbread hot chocolate, I added a bit of white chocolate in the form of Torani white chocolate sauce.

We've been fans of Torani sauces since the local frozen yogurt place opened up. They were our favorite sauces to top our treats. They had a variety of them so we could mix and match flavors depending on our mood. 

Since it's so easy to find at Walmart, you can pick up all their flavors to try out. I like to infuse the whipped cream with the white chocolate Torani to balance the rich flavors of the gingerbread hot chocolate, but you can also substitute using the dark chocolate (for chocolate lovers) or the caramel.

Toppings for Hot Chocolate

There is no limit to what you can top your hot chocolate with. The most popular topping is marshmallows and closely followed by whipped cream. I love the look of whipped cream, but I'll never turn down marshmallows either. 

You can also top your hot chocolate with spices. I will sometimes add a sprinkling of ground cinnamon or ginger. In this gingerbread hot chocolate, candied ginger pieces would be amazing to decorate with a bit of chocolate ganache. 

Tips for Perfect Hot Chocolate

Because we use fresh ginger in this gingerbread hot chocolate, the method for making the hot chocolate is a bit different compared to the other hot chocolate recipes on the website.

We want to infuse the milk with the ginger, but instead of heating the milk separately with the ginger while working on the rest of the recipe adds extra steps needlessly. Instead, we almost make a chocolate bechamel-ish base with the hot chocolate.

To your saucepan, you add the ginger, the cornstarch, and the cocoa powder. Then add a few tablespoons of the milk. Stir constantly until it forms a thick paste, slowly add a few more tablespoons of milk, then the remaining ingredients (minus the remaining milk that is, we will keep adding that slowly).

Once the chocolate melts, add the remaining milk slowly while stirring well. Allow the hot chocolate to boil for about a minute to help the ginger infuse more.

Once you infused the hot chocolate with the ginger, use a small fine-mesh strainer over your mug and pour the hot chocolate through it. There may be thicker parts of the hot chocolate that you need to push through the strainer. This is normal. Just push it through and stir it back in.

Want More Gingerbread?

I can't get enough either. My gingerbread cake is a favorite every year. You can't go wrong with my eggnog stuffed gingerbread cookies. The gingerbread bundt cake and gingerbread scones are perfectly paired with hot chocolate. 

Gingerbread Hot Chocolate

Yield: 2 mugs

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Thick, creamy gingerbread hot chocolate

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Ingredients

• 1 inch fresh ginger, finely diced
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 2 cups whole milk, divided
• 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 2 teaspoons molasses
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon pinch ground nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
• Torani white chocolate sauce

Instructions

1. Add the diced ginger, cornstarch, cocoa powder, and 2 - 3 tablespoons of milk to a small saucepan.
2. Heat on medium-low and whisk well as the mixture heats up. The milk will begin to thicken, and as it does, add the chocolate, molasses, cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar, and salt.
3. Stir in about a third of the milk slowly as the chocolate begins to melt. Once the chocolate is fully melted, add in the remaining milk and stir well.
4. Whisk vigorously for about a minute as the mixture comes to a boil. Turn off the heat.
5. Place a small fine-mesh strainer over your mug and pour the hot chocolate through the strainer. There may be thicker parts of the hot chocolate that you need to press through. This is normal. Just press it through and stir it back in.
6. Make the whipped cream by beating the heavy cream, powdered sugar, and a tablespoon of the Torani white chocolate sauce until it forms stiff peaks.
7. Spoon over your hot chocolate. Drizzle with more white chocolate sauce.
8. Serve immediately.

Notes

Best when paired with cookies!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 2 Serving Size: 1 mug
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 320Total Fat: 25gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 24mgSodium: 282mgCarbohydrates: 70gFiber: 5gSugar: 59gProtein: 11g

Did you make this recipe?

I'd love to see how it turned out! Tag me @acookienameddesire and use the hashtag #acookienameddesire Don't forget to purchase the Cozy Baking eBook!!