A Pretty Delicious Hot Cocoa Bar

Happy National Cocoa Day!

First, I want to say THANK YOU for all your sweet messages and comments from my post yesterday!!! It means so much to have such a wonderful, supportive community through this blog.

We are celebrating national cocoa day with hot chocolate (of course), cookie decorating with friends, and maybe even some s’mores by the fire later. Since I can’t indulge in glögg or any other holiday cocktails this winter, hot cocoa has been my go-to.

A few of my favorite ingredients may surprise you!

HOT COCOA BAR details…….

If you’re hosting at all this winter, your guests will love a hot cocoa bar. You can even add some peppermint schnapps or bourbon for the adults!

Here’s a quick list of some fun ingredients to make the most delicious (and pretty) hot chocolate:

Cool whip
Sea salt (trust me on this one!!)
Sprinkles
Marshmallows – we used 3 different kinds: pastel, small ones and large ones
Candy canes
Pastel Nonpareil Mint Chocolate Chips
Or just normal chocolate chips work too!
Reeses!
Chocolate spoons (see below)
Wafers for the side (we love these!)

Homemade chocolate sprinkle spoons: A little Magic Shell, sprinkles, a quick freeze and voila!

A little Reese peanut butter cup….. such a treat!

I like using cool whip instead of whipped cream because it doesn’t seem to melt as fast. It also works great for a hot cocoa bar served in a bowl.

Add a little sea salt! If you’ve ever had a cookie or chocolate bar with sea salt, you’ll understand how delicious this combo is. We rarely use salt in cooking so I don’t mind indulging a bit here with a couple sprinkles. We like the pink himalayan sea salt.