‘Tis the season for the nostalgic aromas and tastes of the holidays. One thing I always remember from my years as a child are those special nights my mom allowed us to indulge in a steaming cup of hot chocolate after dinner. Although it tasted amazing, it was definitely just a package of Swiss Miss Hot Cocoa full of processed sugar and cocoa. Thankfully today I can still recreate this for our family on a special holiday night of celebration. Raw cacao is packed with essential minerals including magnesium, calcium, sulfur, zinc, iron, copper, potassium and manganese. It also contains vitamins like B1, B2, B3, B5, B9 and lots of antioxidants. Use this recipe with your favorite natural sweetener, whether it’s honey, maple syrup or simply stevia.

TIME: 10 MIN | YIELD: 6 CUPS

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 cups nut or seed milk (almond, coconut, hemp, etc.)

• 8 tablespoons raw cacao powder

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt

• 1 drop peppermint essential oil

• 6 tablespoons raw honey or maple syrup

• Dash of cinnamon, chili, or cayenne powder (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a saucepan combine sweetener, vanilla, cacao powder and 1 cup of the nut milk. 

2. Warm over low heat stirring until smooth. Increase the heat to medium-low and add the final 3 cups of milk, sea salt and drop of peppermint oil. 

3. Serve it warm in your favorite holiday mug topped with coconut whip cream and a dash of cacao powder. 

4. To spice it up a bit, get creative and make it a Mexican hot chocolate with a dash of cinnamon, chili or cayenne powder to your liking.

Get more healthy and delicious recipes like this one in our cookbook, Keeping the Holidays Healthy & Delicious!