This rich, decadent hot chocolate will keep you warm
It’s cold outside. There’s no way to escape winter.
Your only option is to stay inside and binge watch Netflix this weekend.
Might as well treat yourself and make this vegan Mexican hot chocolate.
It’s a little spicy, it’s a lot rich and it will absolutely keep you warm.
Related: We made this in collaboration with Vitamix along with a fab gingerbread cookies recipe and cranberry dip recipe.
Winter warm-up
Most of my favorite childhood experiences included freezing nearly to death and then warming up with a mug of hot chocolate.
Ice skating, sledding, shoveling… all followed by hot chocolate.
It was like winter’s medicine. After a sip you’d suddenly feel warm and toasty.
But now I’m an adult (an adult that sticks to a mostly vegan diet at home). And it just doesn’t feel right to dump a packet of hot chocolate mix into some milk and microwave.
We’ve got this fabulous Vitamix living on our counter. So I decided to put it to work.
Adult hot chocolate here we come!
Spice it up!
Basic hot chocolate is delicious and I am still very much a fan.
But upgrading sounded more fun.
I’ve tried Mexican hot chocolate in various Chicago restaurant establishments, and it’s the perfect combo of spicy and sweet. Plus, it’s thicker than the traditional recipe and very very rich.
Now I just had to figure out how to make it vegan 🙂
After messing around in our kitchen, I think we’ve come up with a great recipe.
It’s creamy (without cream) and chocolatey.
Make some tonight, it’s the perfect thing to keep you warm.
Recipe
Spicy Hot Chocolate
Decadent, rich, spicy, hot chocolate.
Ingredients:
- vanilla almond milk (unsweetened) - 1.5 cups (350 mL)
- coconut milk (full fat) - 1/4 cup (60 mL)
- cashews - 1/4 cup (30 g)
- chili powder - 1/4 tsp. (.65 g)
- cinnamon - 1/2 tsp. (1.3 g)
- maple syrup (pure) - 1 Tbsp. (25 g)
- chocolate chips (semi sweet) - 1/2 cup (88 g)
- salt - pinch
Instructions:
BLEND
- Add all ingredients into Vitamix container
- Use preprogrammed soup setting or blend on high for 5-6 minutes
- Pour into mugs
- Snap a pic and tag #lifeisNOYOKE
- Stay warm!
Useful tips for Spicy Hot Chocolate
If you’re feeling sassy, make some vegan whipped cream (featured in our recipe for pumpkin parfaits) to top it off.
Mary Beth -
Yum! Just made the Spicy Hot Chocolate. Very good it is a keeper recipe. I was scared to add the chili powder so I only added half but next time I will add the full 1/4 tsp. I had no chocolate chips so I just used half a bar of dark chocolate. Can the recipe be doubled or is it best to just do the regular recipe and make it twice?
Lucy -
Just wanted to say that I make this hot chocolate all the time in the winter, and it is honestly the best hot chocolate I’ve ever made, vegan or not. I make it with homemade almond milk and it is just perfect.
Shalva Gale -
Thanks so much for taking the time to vouch for this one. It’s one of our faves too!
You know the classic story of how Corn Flakes were created? They were an accidental porridge spill that dried overnight and became flakes. Well, something similar just happened with this recipe. We made too much (it’s REALLY rich), so we put it in the fridge overnight. When we checked on it in the morning, it had turned into the most perfect and decadent PUDDING! Coconut milk is a great natural thickener. We loved the hot chocolate but the pudding (which we ate immediately with a spoon) was out-of-this-world!