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Information technology'southward the almost wonderful time of the year — Hot Chocolate flavour! Allow'southward talk about how to throw a hot chocolate bar party with everything that you lot need and a recipe for the most luxurious hot chocolate that requires you to simply toss everything into the slow cooker! Spread that vacation cheer!

toppings for a hot chocolate bar

[Insert happy dance]

Today, I'm as well showing you how to put together a hot chocolate bar party and sharing a recipe for the most luxurious hot chocolate recipe that you barely have to elevator a finger for! So really, it'due south like the best day always!

The best thing near a hot chocolate bar is, that y'all can customize your cocoa with treats, flavors, and sprinkles! So it's entirely up to you what you put in your hot chocolate. Persoanlly, I love melting a skillful ol' candy cane in mine. Sometimes, I'll even add together in a shot of espresso! Nothing beats a classic hot peppermint mocha.

hot chocolate bar arrangement

This coming yr, I wanted to start sharing some crafty sort of ideas with y'all guys and couldn't retrieve of a better way to offset than with a DIY hot chocolate bar. I'chiliad not saying this is condign a regular matter or annihilation but you lot know, one time in a while when inspiration strikes, why non? And hot chocolate bars are all the rage right now, you come across them at weddings, vacation parties, work parties, birthdays, cookie decorating parties, then on and so forth.

The idea of a hot chocolate bar:

The inspiration for a hot cocoa bar idea struck when I started helping ane of my dear friends program her son'south commencement altogether political party. I'm withal in shocked the little guy is almost to turn 1. The first day of this year is when we hosted her infant shower. Oh, how time flies! She's going with a Lumberjack-themed political party. How cute is that? And that's when it all started meeting.

I love the thought of wintertime parties with a theme, so today I'm sharing my rustic log motel themed hot chocolate bar. Permit's starting time with everything you lot need for the table and and then I'll share with you that heavenly hot chocolate recipe. It's fabricated with REAL melted chocolate and you just won't believe how easy it is!

paper cups, spoons, and coffee liners for hot chocolate

How to gear up upwardly a hot chocolate bar:

To kicking things off, allow's talk about newspaper appurtenances. These days you can buy adorable paper coffee cups like Starbucks correct on Amazon! They come complete with sleeves and lids. Of course, you tin too apply nice mugs if you're hosting a party for just a few people. Maybe even customize the mugs if you lot're fancy like that? That would make for a prissy Christmas present or if this is for a hymeneals, they could be wedding favors! You tin can besides buy customized paper java cups if you want a message on them. The interweb is such a wonderful place!

To stir the hot chocolate, I set out wood spoons. These ended upwardly being a little shorter than I anticipated but I doubt anyone would drink a 12-ounce cup total of hot chocolate and then I call back they'll be but fine! Some other great alternative would be these coffee stir sticks.

toffee bits in mason jar with label and wooden scoop

For the hot chocolate bar toppings, I used mason jars in unlike sizes. I like to apply a diversity of sizes to really add together some height and interest to the whole matter. Utilise a few alpine ones for jumbo marshmallows, a few short ones for toppings like toffee bits, and mini ones for coarse bounding main table salt. And how are your guests gonna get those toppings out? These scoops, so tiny, so flippin' cute! To make the jars look a piddling more festive yet withal be with that rustic theme, wrap carmine bakers twine around the jars a few times. The labels were a breeze, I printed them on cardstock correct on my home printer. I'll add together a link for these beneath with other printables for the hot chocolate bar.

What toppings to add to your customizable hot chocolate bar:

  • marshmallows or mini marshmallows!
  • toffee bits
  • coarse ocean salt
  • mini chocolate chips
  • crushed peppermints or processed canes or soft peppermint sticks
  • cinnamon sticks
  • whoppers
  • milk chocolate truffles
  • Pirouette cookies
  • White chocolate shavings
  • whipped cream
  • dark chocolate syrup
  • caramel sauce
hot chocolate bar sign

And every hot cocoa bar needs a good sign.

I bought this faux forest frame for $6 at Walmart and printed the sign at home. Hither's a link to this sign. You'll need to sign upward for their mailing list though. Once you lot do that, you'll get an electronic mail with a password to download the printable. But it is completely free. You can likewise make your ain sign on chalkboard paper that yous can print and here are directions on how to do that along with fonts that would look good. I used bare jar labels to make the signs for the toppings. Photoshop works great to type the names of your toppings. You can also impress blank labels and write the toppings in with a white pen or chalkboard marking. Too cute, impress labels with the names of your guests on in that location! Use that aforementioned baker'due south twine to necktie it around the sleeves of the paper cups!

As far as decorations, you can use just about anything yous similar!

Sticking with the rustic, log cabin theme, I used a large galvanized metal tray that I picked upwards from Hobby Vestibule during their fifty% off sale for $seven to identify all my hot chocolate bar toppings in. It's possibly one of the best props I've ever bought. The paper goods basket is likewise from there. A large purse of these winter-scented pinecones from Michaels, just scattered around. $2.50 for a huge purse is a steal! The dark-brown paper is a large scroll I picked up from Home Depot from the paint section, in the ballpark of $3.50. A string of white lights around faux evergreens adds a fiddling more than color and brings the outdoors in. The fake pine branches are from Hobby Foyer as well, they were 50% off and I paid nearly $2.l-4 per branch depending on the mode. Light a few pine-scented candles, put the fireplace on, and niggling holiday music. If it'southward snowing where you live, I'm totally jelly. Depict back the curtains and let that powdery goodness show through.

hot chocolate in slow cooker

How to brand hot chocolate – you don't demand a hot cocoa mix!

Yous already know I'm a YUGE fan of wearisome cooker recipes for hot chocolate. I shared a peppermint version and Mexican hot chocolate with you guys in the by. Today I wanted to bring yous the ultimate recipe for homemade hot chocolate in the slow cooker. Information technology's unproblematic, straightforward, and uses real chocolate.

We outset by whisking together a footling cocoa pulverisation and hot h2o in a bowl. When the cocoa mixes in, add it to a deadening cooker along with chopped chocolate, milk, heavy cream, a can of evaporated milk, saccharide, and a hint of salt. That's it! Let information technology go low and tiresome for half dozen hours or on the high setting for 4 hours. As always, you lot want to whisk the hot chocolate every at present and then to make sure the chocolate isn't stuck to the bottom.

You can also brand this on the stove if you don't have a slow cooker. Merely whisk the water and cocoa pulverization together over medium heat until it begins to simmer, add in the remaining ingredients, and whisk until the chocolate melts. Make sure the hot chocolate doesn't boil. You want information technology to only barely reach the simmer indicate. Information technology'll accept you in the ballpark of fifteen minutes altogether.

A couple of things I want to bring to your attention. Employ chopped chocolate and not chocolate fries. I've used chocolate chips in the past and it'south a hitting or a miss. Sometimes it melts, other times it's a hurting. For best results, I really advise chopping upward chocolate confined. The 2d important thing, don't skip the evaporated milk! I made this hot chocolate recipe for a few friends when I was still testing it and it got rave reviews! The evaporated milk is wonderful with the melted chocolate. Seriously, it'due south magic. Lastly, carbohydrate is optional. I actually wouldn't add together it in if you're serving it with a hot chocolate bar. The toppings are super sweet as information technology is so it really isn't necessary. If you're serving this without toppings you may want the sugar.

Hope me yous'll take more than hot chocolate bar parties this holiday flavor.

Pro tip : a loving cup of hot chocolate + ane single Lindt milk chocolate truffle. Stir until information technology melts. Thank me later!

toppings for hot chocolate bar in mason jars with wooden scoops

How to Host a Hot Chocolate Bar Party + The Most Luxurious Hot Chocolate

Ingredients

  • ¼ cup cocoa powder
  • ½ cup hot water
  • xx ounces chopped semi-sweet chocolate
  • 10 cups whole milk (or 2% - see notes)
  • 2 ½ cups heavy foam
  • 1 (12 ounces) can evaporated milk (not fat-free)
  • ½ loving cup sugar (optional)
  • ¼ teaspoon salt

toppings:

  • marshmallows, toffee bits, coarse sea table salt, mini chocolate chips, crushed peppermints, processed canes, soft peppermint sticks, whoppers, Lindt truffles, pirouette cookies, whipped cream, dark chocolate syrup, caramel sauce + any else you fancy

Instructions

  1. Start past adding the cocoa pulverisation to a basin, pour in the hot water, and whisk until mixed.
  2. Add together the cocoa mixture along with the chopped chocolate, milk, heavy cream, evaporated milk, and salt to a 6-quart slow cooker or larger. If yous're serving this with a hot chocolate bar and toppings, consider leaving out the sugar to avoid the hot chocolate being too sweet. If you're serving the hot chocolate solo, add in the sugar.
  3. Cook the hot chocolate on the high setting for iii-4 hours or on low for half-dozen hours. Low for six hours is what I adopt. Make certain to stir the hot chocolate every hour to keep the chocolate from settling to the bottom.
  4. Keep on the warm setting if you're serving information technology hot chocolate bar manner with toppings on the side. Leftover hot chocolate can be refrigerated for up to i week and warmed in the microwave earlier serving.

Notes

  • Once the hot chocolate cooks, you want to try and serve this within 1 hour. Afterward making it several more times, I find that If you let it sit for besides long, and your slow cooker runs hot, yous run the risk of it curdling the foam or the HC sticking to the lesser.
  • You can also brand this on the stove if y'all don't have a slow cooker. Just whisk the water and cocoa powder together over medium heat until it begins to simmer, add in the remaining ingredients, and whisk until the chocolate melts. Make sure the hot chocolate doesn't boil. You want it to but barely reach the simmer point. It'll take y'all in the ballpark of 15 minutes altogether. Then, you can pour information technology into a carafe. This one keeps drinks hot for 12 hours!
  • Oh please don't make hot chocolate with anything less than ii% milk, it just won't requite you that deliciousness. Likewise a no-no, fat-gratis evap milk.
  • You can halve this recipe to serve 7-10 guests.

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