Blogmas #15 Slow Cooker Hot Chocolate Made From Scratch


The slow cooker has to be one of the best kitchen inventions, I use mine so much especially over the winter. There's nothing quite as satisfying as being able to chuck in a load of ingredients into the pot in the morning and by evening you're left with a fully cooked meal. There's no risk of burning anything, no fuss and no additional pots and pans to wash up- a huge win all round. But as much as I love the slow cooker up until this month I'd only ever cooked savoury 'main meals' in it, but after discovering a recipe for slow cooker hot chocolate I knew I'd been missing out. The next day I whipped this up and knew I'd never buy instant again, this is actually amazing! I don't drink hot chocolate very often so when I do I don't mind indulging in the good stuff, and trust me- this is the good stuff!

For The Hot Chocolate                                                    To Decorate (optional)
400ml milk                                                                         aerosol whipped cream
100ml double cream                                                           grated chocolate or cocoa powder
100g good quality chocolate                                              edible decorations (I used these)
sugar to taste                                            
2 shots of Baileys or brandy

Method
  1. add all of the hot chocolate ingredients (except for the alcohol) to your slow cooker
  2. cook on low for around hours, stirring occasionally to combine 
  3. once combined, turn the slow cooker up to high for 20 minutes to get the mixture nice and hot
  4. pour into mugs, add a shot of your chosen alcohol to each and stir
  5. spray whipped cream and decorate with your chosen decorations
This recipe makes two portions, so simply adjust the ingredients for as many mugs as you need. It's so much nicer than any instant hot chocolate you'll find in the shops- an indulgent treat thats perfect for around Christmas time! I found just a small amount of Baileys gave it a really nice kick, but you could of course customise it to whatever you like. I love the fact that there's no need to hang around at the hob stirring hot milk (and risk burning anything which is so easily done with both chocolate and milk), and instead you're free to get on with your evening leaving it to make itself. It takes around two hours to cook, so would be a really nice one to put on just as you get home. By the time you've had a bath, got your pyjamas on and are ready to relax it would be ready to drink!

Have you ever made hot chocolate from scratch?