Indulgent hot chocolate recipe

The trees are up, the cable cars are decorated, and all those adorable kittens are back in the windows at Macy’s. You know what that means? It’s hot chocolate season. 

It might not get too cold in San Francisco over winter, but these past few weeks of rain have brought me right back to the feeling of home. We have a lot of wet weather in Ireland, but you know what we also have? Some of the highest quality ingredients for hot chocolate.

Irish dairy farms are amongst the best in the world, leading to rich heavy creams, creamy milks and delicious chocolate. Ó Conaill Chocolate, which is made in my hometown in Cork, is still my favorite to use when making hot chocolate. It might be hard to get your hands on it, but if you can find any European chocolate I promise you’ll taste the difference. Valrhona, made in France, is available in droplets in many American supermarkets. 

Anything made by a chocolatier will change your mug game. That extra care in production really shines when melted into a creamy drink. Here’s how I make my favorite hot chocolate.

Ingredients:

• 35g good quality milk chocolate

• 1/2 teaspoon sugar 

• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 1/2 cups whole milk

• Freshly whipped cream, for topping

Method:

1. Slowly warm the milk in a small pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally. 

2. Chop your milk chocolate into small pieces or grate and add to the milk once it’s warm. Whisk in as it melts making sure it blends smoothly.

3. Stir in the sugar and vanilla.

4. Pour your hot chocolate into a warm mug and top generously with freshly whipped cream and marshmallows.