Apparently our local weather missed the memo that it is almost spring because we are sporting a foot of snow and subzero temperatures right now. I’ve been subsisting on Turmeric Tea and bundling up with homemade heat packs to stay warm. When my children asked for hot chocolate the other day after coming in from many hours of igloo building and playing in the snow, I was happy to oblige.
Healthy Hot Chocolate
This healthy homemade hot chocolate combines natural ingredients like cocoa powder, turmeric, gelatin, coconut oil or butter and optional raw honey or maple syrup and cinnamon.
I whipped this up in the blender in under two minutes and it was easy to make by the glass or as a blender full. The recipe lists ingredients per cup, but you can easily double, triple or multiply the recipe as needed to make more than one serving.
I’ve also listed options for substitutions to make this completely dairy free or include dairy and to make it coconut free if desired.
TIP: I don’t recommend making this at night as the chocolate may keep kids (and adults) awake!
This can be easily customized to your preferences and I’d love to hear your variations in the comments. Some of my favorites are to add a dash of cayenne for a spicy version or a few frozen raspberries for a berry variation.
Healthy Hot Chocolate Recipe
Prep
Total
Yield 1 serving
This delicious real food hot chocolate recipe combines cocoa powder, coconut oil or butter, water or coconut milk, honey or maple syrup and turmeric for a satisfying and healthy drink.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces of hot (not boiling) water or coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder (I use this one)
- 1 tablespoon gelatin powder
- 1 teaspoon maca powder (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder (optional)
- 1 tablespoon of butter or coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon of maple syrup or honey (optional) OR stevia drops to taste (I like this one)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in blender and blend to combine.
- Serve warm and enjoy!
Notes
Recipe can be doubled or multiplied as needed.Adding more butter or coconut oil will make a thicker hot chocolate.This must be done in a blender, since with the added coconut oil or butter, just stirring will not make a smooth mixture.More sweetener can be added for a sweeter hot chocolate if desired.
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What is your favorite warm drink on snowy days?
You mentioned gelatin in the description but not in the ingredients list. How much would you add and would you use gelatin or collagen? Thanks!
1 tablespoon
In the recipe it says 1TBS of gelatine and has a link for the brand she uses.
Can you taste the tumeric? I mean, does it alter the flavor? And is the maca what might keep people awake? Looks inspiringly healthy!!! Can’t wait to try!!!
It looks delitiose. Can you take maca when you take thyroid meds like eltroxin?
Is there any reason why u recommended a different brand of maca now?
I have several brands and use them for different things. I take Mighty Maca as a greens powder, especially when I travel. I get capsules from the maca team, and use the powdered one for this since the green powder doesn’t taste as good in chocolate.
This is good to know – thanks for answering her question! Funny thing – I drink the Mighty Maca green drink (thanks to your recommendation in another post) – and I love it. A few days ago, I got to looking at the ingredients and I noticed “Natural Flavors” as one…I couldn’t remember if you are funny about natural flavors as an ingredient, but I actually JUST sat down and opened your website up to this page to ask. On this recipe, I saw you use a different maca and wondered if you had changed brands – glad I read the comments to find the answer to my question already there! 😉 I do wonder how you feel about “natural flavors,” if you get a sec to give me your thoughts. I’m not swayed too much one way or the other, but really respect your thoughts on just about everything! 🙂
Is Maca safe while nursing?
This does sound pretty tasty. I want to ask, though: I noticed above the recipe you mentioned gelatin as one of the natural ingredients, but not in the recipe itself. How much gelatin would you add (I haven’t played around with the gelatin much yet) and do you prefer it with or without? Thank ya!
I use 1 tablespoon of gelatin per serving, but I’d work up slowly if you aren’t used to it.
Do Amazon pay their taxes, or use tax avoidance?
Have you looked into this?
Thank you for this recipe! I’ve been wanting a healthier way to make hot chocolate.
My kids love it when I make them a healthy hot chocolate. We call it a ‘bulletproof hot choc’ and add raw cacao powder, hot water, coconut oil and butter, hydrolysate gelatine powder, a dash of maple syrup and sometimes I add a drop of grapefruit essential oil or mint to give it a special flavour. It’s perfect for warming them up and satisfying that ‘peckish’ feeling in between meals.
I’ll definitely be trying your ‘extras’ Katie! Thanks for the great blog.
Mine is similar to yours in that I use raw cacao powder (to me tastes better than cocoa) and I put in a little bit of orange oil (tastes like a chocolate orange) but you gave me the idea to use mint as my favorite hot chocolate used to be the William Sonoma pepperment hot chocolate. I’ve never used coconut oil in my hot drinks, I think I’m going to try that today. Thanks
OMG! This looks soo good! I’m about to try it right now. Thank for sharing.
Looks divine! How much gelatin should we add in? It wasn’t listed, but stated in the intro. Thank you for the recipes; keep them coming! 🙂
I used to make hot chocolate using my mother’s recipe. Since going sugar-free now I make my hot chocolate with stevia. It’s 1-tsp of stevia for a half cup of cocoa powder. Use a flat teaspoon of this in a mug & add hot water. I have weaned myself off adding milk now. It’s certainly not as super foody as yours but healthier than a sugar version. Can add a drop of essence or cinnamon to vary flavour.
I made this recipe with raw cows milk and added some black pepper… it was freaking delicious!
Is it ok to drink this if you have an auto-immune disease like Hashimoto’s?
If you substitute organic cacao powder, and add the optional spices, it’s good for your thyroid and hashis
I just made this, using water as a base. I added a teaspoon of agave nectar and 12 drops of vanilla stevia. Finally-a hot chocolate for which I don’t feel guilty drinking!
Just whipped up a big batch of this to enjoy over and over again!
I will add that incorporating real cacao into anything + the maca is bound to give you a decent jolt of energy, so be warned—I wouldn’t recommend consuming in the evening (unless you’re planning to have a late night on the town)! Tripled the recipe and used about 10 liquid vanilla stevia drops + real vanilla bean and a couple pinches of Celtic salt for an extra boost of magnesium and umami! SO SO YUM! Next time, I plan to add some fresh ginger and honey (instead of stevia). Talk about superfood beverage!
I used what I have on hand (dark & regular cocoa powder, coconut oil, vanilla), skipped the spices… Added a pinch of salt & doubled the maple syrup (bigger mug, sweeter palate), and topped it off with a little cream. Wanted some whipped cream, too, but I wasn’t feeling that patient. It was delicious, way better for me than typical hot chocolate, and a great way to celebrate National Hot Cocoa Day! Thanks for the recipe, Katie!
What is the reason for the gelatin? Can you make it without?
You can omit it. It just adds protein.
When I was reading about maca it says it’s good for fertility! So you use it in anything else to help boost that?
Hi wondering which kind of maca you use? I see there are different kinds
If you want to keep it healthy, use an almond or cashew milk for protein and skip the gelatin which is comprised of the skin, cartilage, and bones from animals. It’s made primarily from the stuff meat industries have left over — pork skins, horns, and cattle bones.
Is Maca safe for children? I use it in my shakes all the time but always leave it out of my little guys drink because I know it can affect hormones. Wasnt sure how it would effect him?
I just made this with glucomannan powder, instead of maca and gelatin, and added a crack of black pepper, and a table spoon of butter with a table spoon of coconut oil, finished off with a shot of espresso. So, I’m getting my golden paste and bullet coffee in for the day too 🙂 I reduced hot water to around half a cup, and it’s thick and velvety 🙂 Love the texture, just like real hot chocolate! I added erythritol, with a tiny bit of honey, and it’s actually very nice 🙂 Very filling though due to the glucomannan.
Thank you for this recipe – it’s wonderful !! I just spent an hour shoveling snow , and came inside craving something warm and comforting. This did the trick, and it’s perfect for someone (me) who is trying to avoid anything that spikes blood sugar.
Thank You for this delicious recipe. I also added 7 cups strong brewed coffee along withMarshmallow crème , for serving to it and it was a lip smacking one.
I have tried your Healthy Onion Rings Recipe and it was too good that my kid Lin ask me to make it often.