This healthy homemade hot chocolate mix is so rich and creamy and only takes 5 minutes to stir together! Just add warm milk (or dairy free milk of choice). Great DIY holiday gift for teachers, neighbors, or friends!
Hands up if you want a mug of rich and creamy hot chocolate that’s super easy to make and is good for you too!
Healthy Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix
This delicious, dairy free hot cocoa mix only takes a few minutes to stir together and has just 5 simple ingredients. And two of them – cacao and gelatin – are superfoods, loaded with antioxidants and great for skin, bone, joint, and gut health!
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Raw cacao has become a staple in my pantry – I use it in everything from this decadent chocolate protein shake to my DIY body butter. I love that it’s unprocessed and never heated, keeping all it’s powerful antioxidants intact. It’s also a good source of fiber and magnesium, which most of us could use more of.
The other star of this healthy hot chocolate recipe is collagen hydroslysate, a cold-soluble form of gelatin made by Great Lakes Gelatin. If has similar benefits of gelatin, but stirs in smoothly and doesn’t form clumps or a gel. And it’s non-GMO and made from cows raised on pasture.
I stir it into coffee, yogurt, oatmeal, and even into our homemade elderberry syrup to help us fight off cold and flu! I love that we can finally get in a daily dose of gelatin for skin, bone, joint, and gut health with zero effort and without even noticing it’s there! It’s a thousand times easier than making bone broth and convincing the kids to drink it each day!
Just to reiterate – this cold-soluble gelatin (aka: collagen hydrolysate) will *not* gel. If you’re making homemade jello, the homemade marshmallows pictured, or something else that needs to gel, you’ll want to order the regular version of Great Lakes beef gelatin.
Tips for Making Healthy Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix
- For higher protein, lower sugar version, double the collagen + cut the sugar in half
- For dairy free, be sure to use almond, coconut, or other dairy free milk when you prepare it!
- To make multiple servings at once, I find it easiest to prepare it in either a large measuring cup (if heating in the microwave), or a medium saucepan (if heating on the stove), then pour it into mugs to serve.
- For an added immune boost, I whisk in 2 grams of colostrum powder just before serving!
- For extra prebiotics, stir in 1 Tbsp acacia powder (adds 6 grams soluble fiber)
- This mixture is a great for holiday gifting, especially if you add a few of those giant homemade marshmallows!
Hot Cocoa Mix – an easy, DIY Gift!
We’re passing little jars of this mix out as gifts to teachers, neighbors, and friends this year. With all the allergies out there, it’s nice to give a homemade gift that is free of dairy, gluten, egg, soy, and other major allergens so everyone can enjoy it!
But, beyond all the health talk, I also love that this recipe is crazy easy! No chopping, blending, or pre-heating. Just measure and stir the dry ingredients, and you’re ready to roll.
We whisk this hot chocolate mix into raw milk from our local dairy. But, it can easily be added to coconut milk, almond milk, or whatever other dairy free milk substitute you like.
The key to a perfectly smooth mug of hot chocolate is whisking, not just stirring, the mix. I usually heat my milk in a large measuring cup with a spout so I have plenty of room to whisk the mix without it sloshing over the sides. Once it’s all mixed, I pour it into the mugs to serve.
And I’ll tell you a little secret – it makes a fabulous chocolate milk if you refrigerate it! ๐
Healthy Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix (Dairy free)
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cacao powder
- 1 cup raw sugar or coconut sugar
- 1 cup hydrolyzed collagen peptides
- 1 Tbsp vanilla powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- Optional toppings: homemade marshmallows (whipped cream, shaved chocolate, or cacao nibs would also be great!)
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients and store.
- To prepare, add 2-3 Tbsp dry mix to 8 oz of milk of choice (use coconut or almond milk for dairy free), whisking vigorously (you'll still have some clumps on top). I like 3 Tbsp for a darker chocolate flavor, but you can also start with 2 and add more at the end to suit your taste.
- Heat mixture in the microwave or on the stovetop until steaming. Remove and whisk again until smooth.
- Add any desired toppings and serve!
- Makes approximately 3 cups of dry mix, enough for 16, 8-oz servings of hot chocolate.
Notes
- For higher protein, lower sugar version: double the collagen + cut the sugar in half
- For dairy free, be sure to use almond, coconut, or other dairy free milk when you prepare it!
- To make multiple servings at once, I find it easiest to prepare it in either a large measuring cup (if heating in the microwave), or a medium saucepan (if heating on the stove), then pour it into mugs to serve.
- For an added immune boost, I whisk in 2 grams of colostrum powder just before serving!
- For extra prebiotics, stir in 1 Tbsp acacia powder (adds 6 grams soluble fiber)
- This mixture is a great for holiday gifting, especially if you add a few of those giant homemade marshmallows!
- If you don't have vanilla powder, you can skip it or add a tiny splash of vanilla extract to each prepared mug of hot chocolate.
In the past, I’ve always made the hot chocolate mix recipe that uses powdered milk, powdered sugar, Nestle’s Quik, and powdered coffee creamer. As delicious as it is, I’ve been making healthier food choices so I’m excited to find this recipe and can’t wait to try it! I found other recipes but this one sounds the best. (When you’ve been cooking for so long, you get to the point that you can just read a recipe and know exactly how it’s going to taste!) I already have natural Monkfruit Sweetener (which I haven’t tried yet) so I’ll likely use that.… Read more ยป
Great to hear you like it, and thank you for sharing Jack!
Good blog you’ve got here.. It’s hard to find high-quality writing like yours these days.
I really appreciate individuals like you! Take care!!
Thanks for dropping in, Hatena.
What a fun DIY Christmas gift! I love setting up a hot cocoa spread too when we have company! It’s easy and delicious ๐
I love that idea! ๐
wow what a great idea and more cost efficient than buying it in the store – Good quality hot chocolate mix isn’t exactly budget friendly!
Those homemade marshmallows are beautiful! How stunning! Love your blog. How great for me to have discovered it. And I am from Jamaica, home of some of the best cocoa plants so I know good chocolate. I love it absolutely raw from the pod as well. This recipe is so creamy and dreamy. I make hot chocolate all the time with my little bubs and I will deferently reference this recipe to jazz things up a bit!
Sounds like you really know your chocolate, Kari! I hope you love this recipe!
I absolutely loooove this idea! Iยกll definitely prepare some for myself and I’m so relieved that some of the Christmas gifts will be easily taken care of! Thank you so much!
You’re welcome!
A wonderful recipe, better than buying ready made cocoa powder. Adding collagen or gelatin makes it so healthy.
Wish I hadn’t had that packaged hot chocolate last night when I could have made this homemade! Definitely need to try this recipe. Love the marshmallows too!
There’s still time to make it Lesli – it’s so easy and you’ll love the taste!
I love everything about this, especially that it’s Paleo-friendly! This is an adorable gift idea! I’m really looking forward to sharing this with my family this holiday season!
So glad you liked it, Krista – happy holidays!
I would be so happy if someone gave me this as a present! I love hot chocolate in winter, not all the time but on really cold days I do love to snuggle up on the sofa with one while watching tv!
Who doesn’t?? ๐