Tasty Tuesday: Hot Chocolate Mix

I know it's not Tuesday, but I really wanted to get this recipe posted before winter is over.

Not that you can't drink hot chocolate in the summer - because my kids totally do - but because if I posted this in the middle of July when the temps are climbing into the 90s, people would think what is wrong with her???

Ok, so people might be thinking that anyway. But for completely different reasons.

And besides, we got one final dusting of snow today before spring joins us next week, so today was the perfect day to make some hot chocolate.

We've been making our own chai tea mix for several years now. Seven? Eight? It's been a while. The mix is a family favorite. We've given many batches away as Christmas gifts over the years. And we drink our own fair share, pulling out the jar and mixing up a cup of hot chai tea as soon as there is a crispness in the air.

I've made that mix many times.

But I had never made my own hot chocolate mix. 

Crazy, huh? Sometimes I bought a big ol' canister of Swiss Miss. Other times - if I got a really good deal - I bought the individual packets. Most times though, I'd make it from scratch. 

Here's the thing - making things from scratch takes time. (I know, I'm just full of surprising information today.) Every time my kids come in from playing when it's cold, they want hot chocolate. Every time. But not every time do I feel like pulling out all the ingredients and starting up the stove. 

It was time to make my own hot chocolate mix. Not only is it more convenient, it's cheaper and tastier too.

I started searching for a recipe and found one that boasted it was The Very Best Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix. Well, who would want to settle for less than the best, right? I found my recipe.

Sure, anyone can label anything "the very best" just because they want to. Just look through some of the recipes on allrecipes.com that claim that same thing yet have not-the-very-best reviews.

But this one???

Really is the very best! All 3 kids informed me, "This is the best hot chocolate ever!" And that was without knowing its true name. Ha.

It is rich and extremely creamy. It's honestly is better than any from-scratch hot chocolate I've ever made.

And to think, every time one of my little darlings peels off layer after layer of snow-covered clothing, dropping each piece randomly on the floor and asks for a warm, chocolatey drink, all I have to do is toss some mix in a mug, and press a button on the Keurig.

Simple. Fast. Yummy.

And the very best.

And as a bonus . . .

It makes the very best chocolate milk, too.

So I could have published this in July after all!

Hot Chocolate Mix

Ingredients:   

25 oz. powdered milk
32 oz. Nesquik chocolate milk powder
16 oz. powdered creamer
1 lb. powdered sugar

Directions:
Mix all the ingredients together in a very large mixing bowl. (I used the one in this post. Anything smaller won't do.)

To prepare: Stir together half a cup mix and one cup of boiling water. Garnish and enjoy!
Recipe adapted from somethingswanky.

Tasty Tuesday: Mock Shamrock & Mint Oreo Shakes

March is a wonderful month. The weather warms up. The ground starts to thaw. The birds return and chirp. The flowers begin to grow.  Green shows all around. My little girl celebrates her birthday.

Yes, all those things are wonderful. But the best part though? Shamrock shakes. It's true. I love them. The creaminess, the mintiness, the yumminess. Mmmm. What I don't love is that McDonald's never seems to have them. Oh, sure, they have the picture on the menu, but every time we go, they're out. Do you know how frustrating that is?!? We don't even eat at McDonald's but a couple times a year!  We've made special trips in the month of March though for the beloved Shamrock Shake. Do I want to substitute it for a strawberry shake? Nooo. How about a vanilla? Nope. Not even a chocolate shake can compete with my Shamrock. Sigh, we don't even bother anymore. 

What's a girl to do???

Why, make her own, of course! Why didn't I think of that sooner? We make our own shakes all the time. It's one of the kids' favorite treats on Sunday nights after church. We buy a big tub of cheap ice cream from the store for practically the same price as a single shake from a restaurant. Each one gets to choose which flavor he'd like. Some nights, I make 4 different flavors. It's quick, cheap, and makes everyone happy. Oh, yeah, they're delicious, too.   

So, the moment you've all been waiting for . . . the homemade Shamrock Shake ~ always in stock, always worth the price.

1. Dump all ingredients into a blender.
2. Place lid on blender (unless you'd like a show with your shake.) 
3. Blend.

Following me so far?

Pour into a glass, garnish, and enjoy!

Oh. My. Goodness. Soooo yummy! No longer do I have to wait for March. No more do I needlessly venture into McDonald's. Never again do I have to be disappointed at the lack of minty shakes! I now have my own mock shamrock. (Or maybe I should call it a sham shamrock? Or just a sham-sham shake. Say that 10 times fast!)

I wasn't sure if Jake would like it. He's not too keen on minty things. Let me tell you, he loved it! He has told me multiple times how yummy it was and asked when I can make it again. The other 2 kids gobbled it up as well. Their daddy, on the other hand . . . he liked the initial flavor, but not the aftertaste. Don't worry, I'm not offended. He's also not a big fan of mint. He'd rather use vanilla or orange toothpaste. Now, that's weird. And lest you think I deprived him of a shake just because he's weird and doesn't like mint, I'll tell you that I made him a fresh strawberry shake instead. 

Anyway, the only thing that could make this mock shake better is to turn it into my all-time favorite shake/ice cream -- mint Oreo. (Now do you see why I don't let my kids eat the mint Oreo cookies when I buy them???)  Another place we go maybe twice a year is Dairy Queen. (Are you starting to get the picture that we don't go out much? 'Cause we don't.) I don't know why I bother to look at the menu. Maybe to see if something else catches my attention. Maybe to make the employees feel good about the yummy pictures behind them. Maybe because it's what I'm supposed to do. It doesn't matter. I always get the same thing - mint Oreo blizzard. Such a risk-taker I am.

To make your own, back up to step 1 in the Shamrock directions and add crushed Oreos (even better if you use homemade ones.) Proceed as directed, lid on and all. Then, after you pour it into the glass, place it in the freezer for 30 minutes to soften the cookie pieces.

Perfection. 

You know what makes this shake better than one you can buy? No, it's not the convenience. No, it's not the price. No, it's not even that you know what ingredients are in there. It's because you can add as many cookies to the mix as you want. And nothing is better than that.

* I do not use measurements when I make shakes. I just pour, plop, blend, taste, adjust, blend, taste . . . Below are the amounts I used to make these shakes. Our ice cream was pretty soft, so I didn't need much milk. Adjust the amounts according to your personal consistency preference.

Mock Shamrock Shake

Ingredients: 

4 scoops vanilla ice cream                                        

1/2 c milk

1/4 tsp mint extract

8-10 drops green food coloring

Directions:

1. Blend ingredients until smooth. Adjust ingredients, as desired.

2. Pour into 2 glasses. 

3. Garnish.

Mint Oreo Shake

Ingredients: 

4 scoops vanilla ice cream                                        

1/2 c milk

5 crushed Oreo cookies

1/4 tsp mint extract

8-10 drops green food coloring

Directions:

1. Blend ingredients until smooth. Adjust ingredients, as desired.

2. Pour into 2 glasses. 

3. Freeze for 30 minutes.

4. Garnish.

Tasty Tuesday: Nutella Hot Chocolate

I had you at Nutella, didn't I? 

Yeah, I'm pretty sure you could add Nutella to just about anything and it would be better.

Well, maybe not spaghetti. Although, ever since watching Elf for the first time a couple years ago, Jake insists on eating syrup on his spaghetti. And the one time that he tried it (since he was sitting with my dad while we were all at a restaurant), he actually liked it. In fact, I'm not surprised that my dad let him. Not only does he let the grandkids do all sorts of crazy things, he's the one who will take a swig out of the pure maple syrup jug at the house.

But I digress . . . on to the drink!

 Four ingredients. That's all it takes to make one delicious cup o' chocolate.

 Dump it all in the pan - proper proportions, of course.

 Whisk it up.

Once it's hot, pour it in a mug, top it with whipped cream, and enjoy!

This is so super simple to make. And tastes amazing! Come on, a chocolate and Nutella drink??? You have to try it!

Yeah . . . it's that good.

Nutella Hot Chocolate  (adapted)

Ingredients:

2 cups milk

1/3 cup Nutella

2 tablespoons cocoa 

1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions:

In a small sauce pan over medium heat, whisk all ingredients together until well blended and hot.
Pour in a cup and top with whipped cream.

Whipped Cream
Ingredients:
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoons sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Place a medium bowl and your beaters from your electric mixer in the freezer for 10 minutes (this helps the whipped cream stiffen faster.)
2. Pour all ingredients into the chilled bowl and start to beat. Start off on low and gradually work your way up to high until it is the consistency of whipped cream. (Don’t over-beat, or you'll have a repeat of THIS.)

Tasty Tuesday: Lemonade

I. love. lemons. I drink lemon water all the time. I love anything lemon flavored. I will sometimes eat a plain lemon. (Odd, huh?) If you recall, I'm not the only one with this passion though. 

Still, Zac and I are not the only two who love the tartness of the citrus fruit. Alyssa drinks lemon water quite often as well. Her absolute favorite drink though? Lemonade.

 Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups white sugar

1 cup water

1 1/2 cups lemon juice

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan, combine sugar and 1 cup water. Bring to boil and stir to dissolve sugar. Allow to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until chilled.

2. Remove seeds from lemon juice, but leave pulp. In pitcher, stir together chilled syrup, lemon juice and remaining 7 cups water.

If you're strapped for time (even though the stove method takes only 5 minutes), or if you don't want to dirty an extra dish, you can make the simple syrup in the microwave in just a minute or two.

   

I always make lemonade by hand-juicing the lemons. That produces plenty of pulp. Yum! But Jacob hates pulp. Despises pulp. He calls it hairs and spits the juice out, making a horrid face. This time, I decided to use the juicer that I stole borrowed from my parents. The kids had a blast juicing and Jacob got pure, hairless juice.

Warning - not everyone is as fanatical about straight lemon juice as I am!

This did not stop the two of them from passing the glass back and forth sipping the tart juice and making us all laugh at their silly faces.


It also ensured that I had to peel more lemons since we no longer had enough juice. In the end, I used nine lemons. 

Once you have your simple syrup and lemon juice ready, combine them with the remaining water and stir. Add some ice and you're all set to enjoy a refreshing drink!

Now all I need is a book and a hammock . . . 

Oh, and a babysitter. Anyone free to watch three adorable, obedient, mannerly, polite, well-behaved, calm, angelic, quiet . . . Oh, who am I kidding? Anyone want to watch some loud, crazy kids???

Tasty Tuesday: Chocolate Chai Bread

I am a big fan of quick breads: banana, pumpkin, zucchini, chocolate chip,  blueberry, lemon poppy seed . . . the list goes on. My absolute favorite is chai. I had never even heard of chai bread until a few years ago. After I had made the chai tea mix the first time, I came across a recipe for the bread. It's been my favorite ever since. One would think though, that since it's near and dear to my heart, I would keep track of the recipe. Unfortunately, that's not the case. I thought I had a copy of it in my recipe folder. Not there. Not a problem, I thought. I'll just get it from allrecipes.com, where I often find recipes, and where I originally got it. Hmm, not there anymore either. I searched all over the internet, but could not find my beloved recipe. I settled on the one below.

My Happy Helper

He sat like a little puppy, waiting for Alyssa to drop him chocolate chips.

 Ingredients:

2 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped             1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup water                                                         3 tablespoons chai tea mix

1/2 cup butter, softened                                         1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup packed brown sugar                                     1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs                                                                     1/2 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting:

1 cup confectioners' sugar                                     1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon butter, softened                                 4 to 5 teaspoons milk

1 tablespoon chai tea latte mix

Directions:

1. In a microwave, melt chocolate with the water; stir until smooth. Cool slightly. In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla, then chocolate mixture.

2. Combine the flour, latte mix, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with sour cream.

3. Transfer to three greased 5-3/4-in. x 3-in. x 2-in. loaf pans. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to a wire rack to cool completely.

4. For frosting, combine the confectioners' sugar, butter, latte mix, vanilla and enough milk to achieve desired consistency. Frost tops of loaves.

This was her first time mixing all by herself.

Taken before she spilled chai tea mix all over the counter.

Ready to alternate mixing.

Pro-Mixer

I called. He saw. He ran.

Ready for the oven.

Jake said, "Mmm, I could smell them while I was brushing my teeth!"

Psst . . you can see on the left where someone stole a piece before the picture was taken. I won't tell you who, but it starts with an M and ends with and E.

This recipe was a little different from the other one, (I don't think it had chocolate.) but it was delicious. Both loaves were gone within 2 days. The boys would have eaten it completely by themselves if I would have let them. Yeah, it's that good. Also, I learned a new trick this time. Make the baked goods at night so the kids are getting in bed when it's coming out of the oven. I actually got to lick the frosting beaters!

If you don't want to take the time to make the chai tea mix, (as we showed here) you can buy a latte mix at the grocery store. I recommend making the mix and definitely making this bread. You will not be disappointed!

Chai Tea Mix

We've been making this tea mix for many years now. It's great to drink on a cold winter's night or to give as a gift. The kids even like it since it's kinda like hot chocolate.

Ingredients:

1 cup nonfat dry milk powder                                                   

1 cup powdered non-dairy creamer                                          

1 cup French vanilla flavored powdered non-dairy creamer      
2 1/2 cups white sugar                                                           
1 1/2 cups unsweetened instant tea

2 teaspoons ground ginger

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, combine milk powder, non-dairy creamer, vanilla flavored creamer, sugar and instant tea. Stir in ginger, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. 

2. In a blender or food processor, blend 1 cup at a time, until mixture is the consistency of fine powder.

3. To serve: Stir 2 heaping tablespoons Chai tea mixture into a mug of hot water. 

* Note: Yields 3 mason jars.

Add a tag and some homemade biscotti, and you have a lovely gift!