Now I know what you are all thinking, homemade hot chocolate drinking powder in May? I know I know spring has sprung, the birds are frisky and the flowers are blooming. But I live in Scotland where there are still the occasional hailstorms, the temperature is still struggling to climb above 7 and the daffodils have only just opened. It’s still cold and nothing is better then a big hug in a mug from hot chocolate with or without all the trimmings.















But then again it doesn’t matter to me if its summer, autumn, winter or spring I love hot chocolate and this recipe would probably work cold for a more summery drink. But I am a bit of a traditionalist I like my chocolate drinks hot.















The thing about this hot chocolate is its so rich and creamy it really is good with out all the trimmings.















But then who can resist a hot chocolate with all the trimmings?















Marshmallows, topped with whipped cream and a chocolate drizzle and an extra side of marshmallows anyone?















This would work wonderfully with a variety of flavoured oils as well, a few drops of mint oil or orange oil or almond oil turns this hot chocolate into something that rivals any coffee shop chain creation at a fraction of the cost!















Most of the ingredients for this fabulous concoction can be found in the kitchen cupboard, there are a couple that are a little more unusual.

Like potato flour, which can be found in most health food shops and vanilla pods. Now I understand vanilla pods are expensive, I really like the addition in the recipe but you could replace them with ground instant coffee for a mocha flavour and it would make this a cheaper alternative.

If you are not a coffee fan try substituting the vanilla for ground cinnamon or ground ginger or just leave plain.















I used dark chocolate in my recipe but you could use milk chocolate if you prefer.















This also makes a wonderful foodie gift for a chocolate lover as well. This coming Christmas everyone is going to be getting this as a part of his or her Christmas present.















So even if the weather is now warm where you are, please give this one a try it is so yummy. Or bookmark it and return once the cold weather has visited you again.















It’s simple to whip up taking only 5 minutes and to make the actual drink its really easy. You can bring a cup of milk to the boil and depending on the size of your cup add 1 to 4 teaspoons of the chocolate powder and stir in. It can be made in a microwave just as easily. Mix the milk and chocolate in your mug and heat on medium power till it’s the heat you like, or mix the cold milk and powder in a saucepan and gently boil.















The longer you heat this mixture the more it thickens, thanks to the cornflour (corn starch), icing sugar and potato flour in the powder.



Recipe: