Hot chocolate. S. Hermann & F. Richter / Pixabay.com / 2017 / CC0 1.0
The 31st of January is Hot Chocolate Day.
In the northern hemisphere, this is the perfect time of the year for it.
Today you get to enjoy it all day long, from dawn to dusk.
If you don’t have a roaring fire to enjoy your hot chocolate in front of, you can play this video on your laptop.
What are your favourite hot chocolate toppings? Whipped cream? Marshmallows? Sprinkles? Or just plain?
Do you like yours made with water, or milk, or a mixture of both? Or maybe a non-dairy milk?
How to celebrate Hot Chocolate Day
Things you could do today to celebrate Hot Chocolate Day:
- rim your mug of hot chocolate with crumbled chocolate cookies;
- try garnishing your hot chocolate with marshmallows stuffed with chocolate, such as the Stuffed Puffs brand;
- drizzle some chocolate syrup on top the whipped cream / marshmallows;
- try the Mexican version with chili powder, brown sugar, and vanilla extract;
- add a teaspoon of peanut butter, or Irish Cream liqueur;
- stir in a dash of cardamom or cinnamon (use any spice lightly, because in hot chocolate too much spice can easily overpower the drink);
- use some hot chocolate (room temperature) as the liquid in a chocolate cake mix, to make it even more chocolatey;
- buy a hot chocolate sampler pack;
- if you work at a cafeteria or at a shelter that gives out food, make sure hot chocolate is on the menu today;
- make one of the DIY hot chocolate mixes below.
#HotChocolateDay #NationalHotChocolateDay
DIY Hot Chocolate Mixes
Note that you can swap a lower-calorie sweetener such as Splenda® in for the sugar in these mixes.
Mint hot chocolate: https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/food/recipes/mixes/mint-hot-cocoa-mix
Chocolate chunk hot chocolate: https://food.unl.edu/recipe/chocolate-chunk-cocoa-mix
University of Maine Extension Service mix: https://extension.umaine.edu/publications/4029e/recipes-5/
History
The earliest print reference that CooksInfo is aware of for a Hot Chocolate Day on the 31st of January dates to 2016 in Florida (sic):
“Sunday, January 31. Hot Chocolate Day. Have a warm cup of hot chocolate to celebrate our brief cold front.” — Miami, Florida: The Miami Herald. 24 January 2016. Page B2, col. 2.
Miami, Florida: The Miami Herald. 24 January 2016. Page B2, col. 2.
Sources
Cain, Brenda and Yadi Rodriguez. What’s the best hot cocoa mix? We ranked 61 packets for National Hot Chocolate Day. Cleveland, Ohio: The Plain Dealer. 31 January 2021. Accessed February 2021 at https://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2021/01/whats-the-best-hot-cocoa-mix-we-ranked-61-packets-for-national-hot-chocolate-day.html
Celebrate National Hot Chocolate Day with These Dunkin’ Recipes. Dunkin’ Donuts. 31 January 2021. Accessed February 2021 at https://news.dunkindonuts.com/blog/celebrating-national-hot-cocoa-day
Kiner, Deb. Stuffed Puffs has deals for National Hot Chocolate Day including freebies. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Patriot News. 29 January 2021. Accessed February 2021 at https://www.pennlive.com/food/2021/01/stuffed-puffs-has-deals-for-national-hot-chocolate-day-including-freebies.html