All you need to know to make the perfect hot chocolate this Cocoa Day
CHECK out these reviews and recipe recommendations for the perfect hot chocolate this winter.
Every year, National Cocoa Day is marked in the US on 13th December.
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With the cold weather and dark evenings firmly set in, nothings beats warming up with a nice hot drink!
It’s even been proven that a hot chocolate drink with dark chocolate genuinely has a warming effect on the body.
With hot chocolate a popular options for many, Sun Bingo has put together this round up of articles that contain all the information you need to make yourself the best hot chocolate of the season.
Prefer to buy your hot drinks? There’s also a review of the best high street hot chocolates as well.
Hot chocolate powder reviews
To get things going, you’ll need to have a hot chocolate powder… but which to pick?
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See here for a review of 10 supermarket powders. The reviews include a score out of 10 and the price, calories and sugar per cup.
The powders under the microscope are:
- M&S Fairtrade Drinking Chocolate
- Clipper Seriously Velvety Instant Hot Chocolate
- Drinking Chocolate by Sainsbury’s
- Aldi Choceur Instant Hot Chocolate
- Galaxy Drinking Chocolate
- Starbucks Signature 42% Cocoa Hot Chocolate
- Cadbury Oreo Instant Hot Chocolate
- Options Belgian Chocolate Drink
- Tesco Drinking Chocolate
- Cadbury Original Hot Chocolate
While the above review contains some name-brand options, let’s not forgot the sometimes unsung heroes that are the own-brand copies.
Check out a review of supermarket hot chocolate powders here. The review considers cost per 100g, cocoa content and milk chocolate content.
The own-brand names battling it out for the crown of best hot chocolate include:
- Asda Instant Hot Chocolate
- Morrisons Instant Hot Chocolate
- Lidl Bellarom Instant Hot Chocolate
Hot chocolate maker reviews
You’ve selected your hot chocolate powder, now it’s time to start making your delicious drink.
There’s been a rise in the popularity of hot chocolate makers in recent years.
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With a number of options now on the market, it’s a good idea to see how they compare with one another.
Lynsey Hope tested five hot chocolate makers on the market, considering chocolate quality, value and an overall score out of 10.
The surprising outcome was that one bargain product come out better than a posh brand, despite being 70% cheaper.
The makers that were considered are:
- Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser
- Automatic Milk Frother and Hot Chocolate Maker
- Lakeland Milk Frother and Hot Chocolate Maker
- Smeg Milk Frother
- Dualit Milk Frother and Hot Chocolate Maker
Hot chocolate recipes
With your basic hot chocolate made, how are you sprucing it up?
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Fans of the Cadbury’s Wispa Hot Chocolate were disappointed to find out that it has been discontinued.
However, there are some exciting different options on the market.
For instance, those that like a little coco in their cocoa might want to try the Bounty Coconut Hot Chocolate powder at B&M.
Although pumpkin spice is known as the taste of autumn, there’s no reason you can’t spice up your winter warmer as well!
This article also suggests that we’ve all been making hot chocolate wrong…
Meanwhile, this recipe is so confident, it calls itself the “Ultimate Hot Chocolate”.
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It takes 2 minutes to prepare and 5 minutes to cook. With a recipe that includes pinches of salt and cinnamon, you might just feel like you’re in the middle of a Hallmark Christmas movie when drinking this hot chocolate.
High street hot chocolate reviews
Making your own hot chocolate can be great. However, when it comes to convenience, you can’t beat quickly picking up a high street hot drink.
One hot chocolate super-fan has volunteered as tribute to taste test six different chains’ takes on the classic winter drink.
Her review takes a look at hot chocolates from:
- Caffe Nero
- Costa
- Starbucks
- McDonald’s
- Pret
- Greggs
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About the author
Katrina Vasey - Bingo Editor, The Sun
After graduating from Southampton University with a degree in English Literature, Katrina Vasey worked as a Content Editor for Law Business Research's publication the International Law Office. Katrina joined The Sun in 2022 as the Bingo Editor, covering the four gaming platforms: Sun Bingo, Fabulous Bingo, Sun Vegas and Fabulous Vegas.