Hot Chocolate Run and Recipe

Hello, everyone!

As you regular readers know, we love sweets here at Party Patisserie. As far as we’re concerned, dessert is its own food group.

But the king of all the desserts, of course, is chocolate.

Chocolate cake, chocolate chip cookies, chocolate frosting on a spoon—we’ll eat it all!

The one downside of chocolate, though, is a pesky little thing called calories.

Unfortunately, chocolate has a lot of them. And since we can’t stop ourselves from eating cupcakes for breakfast or sneaking a bowl of ice cream before going to bed (come on, you do it, too!), we have to exercise.

I’m no runner, but a few years ago I heard about the Hot Chocolate Run, and I loved everything about it. You run a 5k (or 15k, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves), and at the end, you get a mug of hot chocolate and chocolate fondue!

So, this year, I recruited some family members and we ran the race together. It was a blast!

The music was pumping, the sun was shining, the Chicago skyline was sparkling and, of course, the company was fantastic. (This is a fun photo with my daughter, Kaitlin. Kristin photobombed us!)

The Hot Chocolate Run visits cities all over the country. Who else wants to run it next year?

But that’s enough about exercise. The weather is getting colder, the holidays are approaching and hot chocolate season is upon us. It would be downright irresponsible if we didn’t share a hot chocolate recipe with you!

This recipe is silky, rich and decadent. It’s the only thing you’ll want to sip in front of the fire this winter. (But you may want to jump on the treadmill after you have a few cups!)

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 cups milk
2 Tbsp. sugar
Pinch of salt
8 oz. dark chocolate, shaved (choose any chocolate you love)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
A handful of Wilton’s Salted Caramel Hot Cocoa candy melts
Marshmallows or whipped cream

DIRECTIONS:

In saucepan over medium-high heat, combine cream, milk, sugar and salt. Heat until it reaches 180 degrees or desired temperature.

Meanwhile, fill the pot that you are going to serve the chocolate in with very hot water, and let it stand for several minutes. (This is to warm the pot.)

After the pot is warm, discard the hot water and pour in the hot cream mixture. Add the chocolate, vanilla extract and candy melts. Beat the mixture until the chocolate melts and the mixture is smooth.

Pour the hot chocolate into warmed mugs, and serve immediately. Top with whipped cream and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar for extra warmth and yumminess! Serves 4.

The candy melts add a little seasonal flavor and extra creaminess. You’ll love it!