This coconut milk hot chocolate is rich, decadent, and super chocolatey. It has a touch of cinnamon and only takes 10 minutes to make on the stovetop. Plus, there’s no refined sugar which is always a bonus!
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Coconut Milk Hot Chocolate
It’s winter which means time spent snuggling up on the couch with a warm and cozy drink! This coconut milk hot chocolate is just the thing you need for those extra chilly days. It’s rich, thick, and super chocolatey. Plus, there’s no refined sugar! We also had a few people say it tastes almost like brownie batter (yum!). It’s great with coconut whipped cream, marshmallows, and a sprinkle of chocolate curls. And since it’s so thick, we like to use it for dunking all sorts of goodies. If you’re making this close to Valentine’s Day, why not dunk a few strawberries in it? Or even a biscotti? Whatever it is, this hot chocolate is sure be a good dunking drink!
Ingredients
- Coconut Milk: If you’ve never used coconut milk in a drink before, it makes your drink super thick and creamy. And if you don’t like the taste of coconut, don’t worry. The chocolate is what really shines through in this recipe. The coconut milk is mostly for texture and those who want to try something dairy-free.
- Unsweetened Almond Milk: Without the almond milk, the hot chocolate would be just a tad too thick for what we’re going for. So ⅓ cup is just enough to thin it out slightly while still maintaining a thick and creamy texture. Just be sure to use plain, unsweetened almond milk.
- Cocoa Powder: This is where most of that chocolate flavor comes from. To avoid lumps in your hot chocolate, sift the cocoa powder before using it.
- Sweetener: For this recipe, we like to use more natural sweeteners like coconut sugar or maple syrup.
- Dark Chocolate: You can use either chopped dark chocolate or dark chocolate chips. We use dark chocolate chips since there’s no chopping involved! Also, depending on which brand of chocolate bar you use, it may leave an oily sheen on top of your drink.
- Cinnamon: Cinnamon and chocolate is always a tasty combination, so we like to put a little bit in our hot chocolate. It makes the drink just a bit more warming and of course, extra yummy!
- Vanilla Extract: Just a little bit is needed for a boost of extra flavor.
- Flaky Sea Salt: This brings out the sweetness as well as the other flavors in the hot chocolate.
FAQ
We wouldn’t recommend using honey to sweeten this drink as it may alter the taste too much. Honey has less of a neutral flavor when added to things so it may be too overpowering against the chocolate.
Yes, you can use water instead if you don’t have any almond milk on hand.
We use full fat coconut milk for this recipe. If you use lite coconut milk, you may end up with a thinner texture than ours. Also be sure to get the unsweetened kind.
Yes, you can try adding hazelnut syrup, caramel syrup, or even a splash of alcohol if that’s your thing. Just note that if you add a syrup, it won’t be refined sugar free (unless you get a specific kind) and you may need to lower the amount of sweetener.
Not quite, but if you want to make it completely vegan, be sure to get vegan chocolate chips.
How to Enjoy This Coconut Milk Hot Chocolate
- Top it with coconut cream and some chocolate shavings! You can even add marshmallows if you like.
- Try dipping some fruit it in like strawberries or oranges (or bananas!). Since the hot chocolate is nice and thick, it should stick to the fruit.
- Like a bit of crunch? Dip some biscuits (the British kind) or biscotti into your coconut hot chocolate.
More Cozy Drink Recipes You’ll Love
Looking for another wintery drink recipe? Try our cinnamon dolce latte with maple whipped cream!
A Few Tips
- Sift your cocoa powder if there are too many lumps. Even though we’re whisking the cocoa powder into hot coconut milk, there’s still a chance the lumps won’t dissolve. An easy fix for this is to give your cocoa powder a quick sift using a fine mesh sieve.
- For an even thicker hot chocolate, omit the almond milk.
- If you’re a big cinnamon lover, add a cinnamon stick to your drink and let it sit while you sip away. The longer it sits the more cinnamon-y the hot chocolate will get.
📖 Recipe
Coconut Milk Hot Chocolate
Ingredients
- 1 13.5-oz (400 ml) can full-fat coconut milk
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) plain unsweetened almond milk
- 4 tbsp coconut sugar or maple syrup*
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch flaky sea salt
- 2 tbsp cocoa powder
- ⅓ cup (60 g) dark chocolate chips
- ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Whisk the coconut milk, almond milk, coconut sugar or maple syrup*, ground cinnamon, and salt in a medium pot over medium heat. Bring to a simmer.
- Once simmering, whisk in cocoa powder and dark chocolate chips until melted and smooth.
- Turn off the heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
- Serve with coconut cream and chocolate shavings if desired.
Notes
- Coconut Sugar or Maple Syrup: If using maple syrup, stir it in at the end. If using coconut sugar, add it in the beginning so the granules have time to melt.
- We recommend using Guittard's dark chocolate chips made with coconut sugar for a completely refined sugar-free drink.
Angela says
Delicious and creamy coconut milk hot chocolate!!! I used 2 tbsp of Agave instead of maple syrup. Thank you for the amazing receipe!
fancifuleats says
Yay, thanks for trying the recipe! So happy you enjoyed it. Glad the agave worked for you! 😊
Xyz says
Chocolate chips have refined sugar, so I’m confused why you said this recipe has none…?
fancifuleats says
Hi, sorry if there’s confusion. There’s no extra refined sugar added to the drink, and you can find plenty of dark chocolate chips out there made with unrefined sugar and alternative sweeteners. If you’re looking for one to try, Guittard has one made with coconut sugar!
Leah says
Very creamy & rich! Hit the spot….even better with some whiskey in it!!!
fancifuleats says
Yay! Glad you liked it!
Katie says
This recipe is AMAZING!! I’ve never had such a thick, creamy, delicious hot chocolate in my entire life. I can’t go back to drinking hot chocolate from packets after drinking this!
Fanciful Eats says
Yay, so happy you liked the recipe Katie!