Go Mug Wild With These Creative Hot Chocolate Ideas

It's hot cocoa season! There's nothing like a warm, velvety drink to make all of your wintertime dreams come true. However, you may be looking for something that's a step up from ordinary hot chocolate. There's a world of hot chocolate that goes beyond just opening up a packet, pouring, and stirring. Get ready for a merry mug with these fun and creative ways to make hot chocolate.

Unicorn Hot Chocolate

You've probably seen the popular unicorn drink and Starbucks and other coffee shops that's basically a pink Frappuccino. You can put this same pink twist on your hot chocolate.

To make some pink magic happen, you actually have to start white hot chocolate as a base. You can either buy white hot chocolate powder from popular brands like Swiss Miss or Ghirardelli at your local grocery store or make hot chocolate from scratch by combining white chocolate chips, regular milk, half-and-half, milk, and some vanilla extract.

In fact, any favorite hot chocolate recipe with white chips subbed in will do! Once your white hot chocolate is ready, simply add pink food coloring to get that candy-coated, unicorn-inspired look. Unicorn hot chocolate can be topped with whipped cream, sprinkles, rainbow-colored marshmallows, little candy pieces, and more.

Hot Chocolate in a Crock Pot

This is a fun one if you're hosting friends or family for the holidays. Doing hot cocoa in the slow cooker gives you a chance to make a thicker, sweeter version that you can serve in a huge batch. It's so much better than boiling water every time someone wants a mug of hot chocolate. They can just dig in with the ladle instead to grab a steamy, sweet serving.

What gives crock pot hot chocolate its thickness over ordinary hot chocolate is that you're using milk, heavy whipping cream, and sweetened condensed milk. This version makes you realize just how watery regular hot chocolate can taste by comparison.

Making crock pot hot chocolate is actually so simple. You'll need about six cups of whole milk, 1.5 cups of heavy whipping cream, and a 14-ounce can of your favorite brand of sweetened condensed milk to make about eight servings.

You'll let all of the liquid ingredients heat up for about two hours before dumping in two cups of high-quality chocolate chips to let them melt. Make it extra special by setting up a little "toppings" bar next to your crock pot that features whipped cream, marshmallows, and other fun toppings.

Spiked Hot Chocolate

If you're hosting an adult wintertime gathering, consider putting a boozy splash in the hot chocolate. The big task here is picking a liquor option that pairs nicely with chocolatey notes. If you're not much of a bartender, the obvious choices are Baileys Irish Cream and Kahlua.

If you want to give your cocoa a little smooth and peppy peppermint twist for the holidays, creme de menthe or peppermint schnapps will have your guests feeling like they're walking on Candy Cane Lane. For something a little more nuanced, consider adding some moody wintertime vibes with some aged rum with subtle oak notes. Lastly, bourbon creates hearty, cozy, and mature flavor notes when paired with chocolate.

Making spiked hot chocolate is a breeze. Just make your favorite hot chocolate recipe on a pan on the stove. Once it's fully warmed and mixed, simply add in whatever alcohol you've selected. While it's up to you how strong you want to make your spiked cocoa, the sweet spot for making a tipsy drink is a single ounce of liquor per serving.

Always be sure to let your guests know that the hot chocolate has been spiked. It's also a good idea to consider making a nonalcoholic batch of hot chocolate that you can also offer guests.

Frozen Hot Chocolate

If you're looking for a cozy wintertime drink that won't make you sweat, frozen hot chocolate is perfect. This is a great pick whether you live in a warm climate or you're looking for the perfect drink for "hot tub" time at the ski rental this year. If you are planning to make this while you're enjoying a holiday weekend away, just be sure to pack a blender!

The great part about making frozen hot chocolate is that you can cheat with hot chocolate powder packets to avoid blending a bunch of ingredients or stirring a pot over a hot stove. Despite the name, you don't actually have to wait around for frozen hot chocolate to be ready. There's zero freezer time. It's ready in seconds!

If you need to make about four servings, add 1.5 cups of milk, a cup of your favorite brand of hot chocolate powder, and around four cups of ice cubes. If you want to go really chocolatey, pick up chocolate milk at the store for some chocolate drenching.

Mix up all three ingredients in your blender until everything turns thick and frothy. There should be no ice crystals left by the time you're done blending.

Finally, pour the frozen hot chocolate concoction into four clear glasses. Add some extra flair by topping each serving with whipped cream and some chocolate sprinkles or shavings. A maraschino cherry also looks really good on top of a frozen hot chocolate.

Hazelnut Hot Chocolate

If nothing short of the thickest, most flavorful hot chocolate will do, it's time to upgrade from ordinary cocoa to Nutella. The thick, gooey consistency of Nutella and other hazelnut spreads is perfect if you love ribbons of chocolate.

A simple hazelnut hot chocolate recipe consists of nothing more than heated milk, a heaping dollop of Nutella, and a little salt to really bring out the sweet notes in chocolate and hazelnut. When making a mug, a good ratio is 1/4 cup of Nutella for each cup of milk.

You'll also want to put just a pinch of salt into the mix. Be sure to stir thoroughly after you add the Nutella and salt into the pan of heated milk to ensure the Nutella totally envelopes the liquid to avoid "clumps."

Hot Chocolate Floats

This is where a hot cocoa station meets an ice cream parlor! The way a scoop of vanilla ice cream soaks up the thick sweetness of hot chocolate is what makes this drinkable dessert so incredible. It's all about timing with this treat. The base for a hot chocolate float is hot chocolate made using powder or your favorite recipe with melted chocolate morsels and milk.

When pouring the hot chocolate into a glass, make sure you stop below the halfway point. If you fill the glass to the top, things will get messy because there won't be a spot for the ice cream to sit. Additionally, the ice cream scoop will melt instantly.

The trick here is to create enough room in the glass for a huge scoop of ice cream to "nest" above the hot chocolate. This provides an opportunity to dig down with a spoon to enjoy ice cream as it slowly softens against the heat of gently steaming liquid.

Hot chocolate floats can be topped with sprinkles, marshmallows, whipped cream, nuts, gummy bears, and other classic sundae topping. Always serve a hot chocolate float with a straw and long spoon!

Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate

It has been said that the addition of chocolate to peanut butter is one of the best flavor combinations ever created by man.

If you can't get enough of the taste of chocolate and peanut butter together, you don't have to restrict your indulgence strictly to peanut-butter cups. The base for this peanuty concoction is just your favorite hot chocolate recipe or mix.

Once you have that all set, you'll add in some peanut butter with additional milk to create a smooth, rich peanut butter sauce that will slowly and gently fold into your hot chocolate. Keep stirring while the mixture steams until all you see are a few peanut butter streaks within the hot chocolate.

Use smooth peanut butter for the best results. A good ratio looks like 1/cup of milk with a generous tablespoon of peanut butter mixed into a 1/2 cup of hot chocolate made with either milk or water when making a personal 8-ounce mug.