Almond Milk Hot Chocolate

I made several dairy-free recipes this winter for reasons I’m positive don’t really matter to Spices and Spatulas readers (once again, I’m trying not to treat my blog like a diary and spare you all from #feelings). So I’ll just move on. Considering this, and that it’s freezing outside I decided this would be a good chance to explore some milk-free/vegan hot chocolate recipes. Lactose-free milk isn’t my favorite taste-wise, so I go back and forth between preferring vanilla almond milk and vanilla soy milk when selecting my dairy-free beverages. Feel free to use whichever you prefer (you can even go nuts and use real milk if that’s what makes you happy!) But honestly, for any naysayers: this came out so delicious I’ve started making it for myself every time I crave hot chocolate- it’s much lighter than your standard cocoa, so you can drink twice (or three+ times) as much and I think that’s great!

Hot Chocolate (serves 1)

– 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

– 4 oz. unsweetened chopped chocolate or 1 1/2 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

– 1 1/2 tbsp. granulated or raw sugar

– sprinkle of cinnamon (optional)

If using chopped chocolate: Melt chocolate with sugar in microwave or over a double boiler. Pour milk into a small saucepan and heat on medium low, whisking constantly. After about a minute, add the chocolate/sugar mixture. Whisk until combined and heated to your liking. Top with cinnamon if desired.

If using cocoa powder: Stir cocoa powder together with sugar. Add 2-3 tbsp. water into the mixture until a thin paste forms. Pour milk into a small saucepan and heat on medium low, whisking constantly. After about a minute, add the chocolate/sugar/water mixture. Whisk until combined and heated to your liking. Top with cinnamon if desired.