Good morning Everyone!
How is your week going so far?
Today’s post is going to be relatively short compared to the last couple days, because I have less time, and because I want YOU to share what you use at home for drinks with your family!
For years and years, growing up, my mother made her homemade hot chocolate mix as soon as the cool fall weather started to hit. We anticipated that day with great delight, because not only was it fun to jump in and help, but the many cups of hot cocoa it would produce were one of our favorite things when combined with a homemade Chocolate Chip cookie.
I started doing this as well when my children became old enough to help, and it is still a favorite family past time. Breaking out the big silver bowl, setting the ingredients on the table, helping little (and sometimes big) hands stir it all up, and then that first cup of hot cocoa and a homemade cookie is something my kids look forward to every single year...and those are cherished moments for me.
We included this recipe in the Book, The Master Mix Way, as a tribute to Grams (my mother), and a way to share with everyone a treasured family recipe and tradition.
I have included it here at the bottom of the post for those of you who will use it, and replace those silly little Swiss Miss packets that cost you an arm and a leg and don’t do a good cup of hot chocolate justice! Last year we made two batches of this recipe and barely made it through the cold months thanks to all the extra friends stopping in and enjoying it right along with us!
And the second recipe that I am posting is my absolute favorite to make up each and every winter. While I am a coffee drinker who loves coffee (mainly because I have toddlers and have to keep up with them), there is no substitute for a good cup of Chai tea. I used to buy boxes and boxes of the liquid Oregon Chai tea until I finally figured out how to make my own.
A couple batches later, after having tweaked this and that, and I now have my own recipe that I keep high on a shelf to keep it out of the grubby hands of my oldest daughter, who has a passion for chai tea just like me. I think for Christmas I am giving her her own jar this time around. 🙂 Since she will be reading this later (its pretty humbling when one of your peeps is your own daughter, really!) I can already hear the squeal echoing across the dining room a couple hours from now.
And then, you can find the link for my homemade coffee creamers right here. I have shared quite a few of them over the last year, but there are still quite a few in the Master Mix Way E-book that have not hit the internet. Ones like Vanilla Orange Cappucino, and Coconut Dream Creamer….
I have also linked a couple of our favorites at the end of this post that are not my own recipes, but the ones created by bloggers I admire for doing the same thing. I would encourage you, if there is a drink recipe that you have that you would like to share, please post it in the comments! Many people will read this post looking for ideas, and it might be just what they are looking for!
Come back tomorrow for a lesson on how a single loaf of homemade bread dough can make at least 8 different meals.
 You wont believe it, but it is true!
Many Blessings to you and yours,
Heather
Heather’s Heavenly Chai Tea Mix
1 tsp maple flavoring
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups instant tea granules
1 Tbs ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground cardamom
Whisk all these together, and then run through a food processor or coffee blender to result in a very fine powder. Use 2 Tbs at a time with a standard mug of 8 oz of hot water. You can also run this through a blender with a cup of milk and water for a chilled chai latte. To make a spicier Chai, just double the cardamom, add 2 tsp of ground coriander, and 2 Tbs of cinnamon to the entire mix. 🙂
Grams’ Hot Cocoa Mix
one large container of Nestle Quick Cocoa Powder
2 cups Baking Cocoa Powder
Two 6 oz jars of powdered creamer
2 standard size bags of powdered sugar
1 large box of dry non-fat, instant milk powder
combine all these in a large bowl, whisking well. Store in two large containers (we use the ones we just took all the ingredients out of), and use 1-2 Tbs at a time for a standard 8 oz mug of hot water.
– See more at: http://homefront.prudentliving.com/the-home-acre-hop-30/#sthash.z2gKKcNO.dpuf
My mom always made homemade hot chocolate and it was THE BEST! Good recipes, thanks for sharing.
Thanks Stephanie! I tried for two winters to improve on Mom’s out of pure stubborness, and decided if I loved it, the kids loved it, etc, then some things just needed to stay the same. 🙂
Have a great day!
Blessings,
~Heather
Thanks for the links and for the recipe for Chai. My grandchildren like hot chocolate but granddad and I prefer chai. And these would be a nice gift. Your mason jars look nice enough to gift someone with. Thanks.
Thanks for stopping by, Gail! I often do give these recipes for gifts for family and friends at holidays and birthdays, and in my book I share a lot more ideas on how to rev them up to make them extra special! I am sure you and Grandad will like the chai mix….I always hold myself back until September to make it because it just goes hand in hand with fall weather…but it is so hard. 🙂
Have a wonderful day
Blessings to you,
~Heather
In your chai tea blend, could I substitute Splenda for half of the powdered sugar? I have a low sugar tolerance and that seems like a lot of sugar. Also, do you know how many servings that would be? Thanks for sharing. I am trying to convert to all homemade mixes but it is slow going.
you absolutely could, Margaret, but I am wondering, have you ever heard of Stevia extract? Splenda is so unhealthy for you and has begun to be linked to a lot of health conditions. My mother is diabetic, and she used to use quite a bit of it until we began to do research into it. She has since switched to a brand of Stevia that is healthy, and would most likely end up making this mix without the sugar, then adding stevia when she made it up. It would change the measurements to 1/2-1 Tbs per cup serving, without the sugar. The main concern I would have is that the sugar absorbs the extract into the powdered mix, so it does not run. As I have never tried it without the sugar, I can not tell you how the mix would react??? As to how many servings, I would at least 80 with the recipe as it is. 🙂
Hope that helps. If you adapt the recipe, please come back and share what you did, OK?
Thanks and blessings to you
~Heather
Thanks for sharing your recipes. We’re big hot chocolate lovers especially in the winter time and that recipe sounds delicious. 🙂
We always have hot apple cider and crumble-topped pumpkin pie after Trick-or-Treating on Halloween! 🙂
~Lorelai
Life With Lorelai
This sounds great. I love make ahead ideas. Thanks for sharing on the HomeAcre Hop. Please come back and see us this week: http://everythinghomewithcarol.com/the-self-sufficient-homemaker-hop-2/
I’ve chosen this post as my feature on the HomeAcre hop for this week. Make sure you come by tomorrow and grab your button. http://everythinghomewithcarol.com/the-self-sufficient-homemaker-hop-2/
I am just starting out with this sort of cooking, so I have a question on the powdered sugar for the hot chocolate mix. you say two standard bags. to me a standard size bag would be one pound. so this has two pounds of the sugar? I just want to add the correct amount and not under or over sweeten it. Thank you for your great ideas and help.
I make this as well with memories from growing up! But recently I have omitted the powdered creamer because of all the junk in it. I just put a little 1/2 & 1/2 in it after I mix up a cup and it helps to cool it a little as well. That way no chemicals and I can drink it even sooner!
How many ounces is in a large box of dry milk? Our store has several sizes including a gigantic 4 lb box.
The 4 lb box is what I am referring to. 🙂
Giant is almost always the most economical.
Blessings to you,
~Heather