Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

How to Make Perfect Hot Chocolate

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Want to learn how to make Perfect Hot Chocolate? You’ll want to learn these “tricks” so you can enjoy a mug of this during holiday break with your family!

I am so thrilled to have a huge houseful right now! We’ve got five littles, four bigs, plus two amazing girlfriends. Our holiday time food shared together has been simple but fun. And since I’ve got more big people around to help with all the littles, I find my hands are a little freer to make special treats.

That’s where the Perfect Hot Chocolate comes in. Sure, Christmas is over. But the fun treats and the special drinks will keep on coming until school and work starts again!

Now, to make Perfect Hot Chocolate, I believe it takes three perfect recipes:

Not to worry, these are all easy and fast. (Do you even know me at all?)

  1. Hot Cocoa
  2. Whipped Cream
  3. Homemade Hot Fudge

The Hot Cocoa whisks together quickly on the stove. I whip cream in my Blendtec, which takes 25 beautiful seconds of effortless “work.” I often have Homemade Hot Fudge already in the fridge that we can warm up and drizzle into our hot cocoa. If not, I can make that quickly too.

The ingredients in all these recipes overlap with one another. Plus they are ingredients I always have on hand. Simple but special – that’s what I love about treating our family and guests to this Perfect Hot Chocolate!

Once you’ve got your three recipes made: 1) Fill a mug with hot cocoa. 2) Add a generous amount of whipped cream. 3) Drizzle hot fudge over the cream.

If it all oozes out over the sides of the mug, well, this can’t be helped and it is one of the best problems you’ll have because you’ll have to lick the sides of your mug to “clean it up.”

And there you have it! The Perfect Hot Chocolate. Let me know how you like it!

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Peanut Butter Cup Whipped Cream

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Peanut Butter Cup Whipped Cream? Please pass me a spoon. Maybe two spoons: one for each hand.

If you have a high power blender like a Blendtec, you can make this jewel of a treat in about 30 seconds. Otherwise, you can use a hand mixer to blend ingredients and whip the mixture in about 5 minutes. Either way, your life just got better in a very short amount of time!

The possibilities of ways to serve this Peanut Butter Cup Whipped Cream are practically endless. If all else fails, you must truly eat this all by itself, in a bowl, with a spoon. No need to defend this choice. You simply can’t help yourself.

Other more elaborate Peanut Butter Cup Whipped Cream options include serving it alongside or atop:

And truly, the list goes on and on. I’d love to hear your ideas too!

Peanut Butter Cup Whipped Cream

Peanut Butter Cup Whipped Cream
 
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Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • ½ cup natural creamy peanut butter
  • 3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 3 Tablespoons sugar or 20 drops liquid stevia
Instructions
  1. Blend all ingredients together in a high power blender until thick and smooth.
  2. Or blend ingredients together in a bowl with a hand mixer until thick and smooth.

 

I like making homemade peanut butter to use in recipes like this:

This Peanut Butter Cup Whipped Cream will make a lovely holiday dessert or add on to your table of treats. Or if you’re like me, you might find yourself making some and eating it in the middle of August or March because there is no reason to hold back. :)

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How to Make Whipped Cream

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Of all the food I make from scratch, whipped cream is the one that tends to really surprise people who are unfamiliar with the simplicity (and deliciousness) of real food cooking.

“You can make whipped cream!?!?” they ask, incredulously. That’s when I tell them that they, too, can make this treat. Then I hand them the beaters and watch as they follow my ever so simple instructions to make whipped cream. (Stand, hold beaters in bowl of cream, move beaters around a little bit, watch fun patterns forming, stop when it’s thick.) After they’ve whipped the cream, thus creating whipped cream, they can’t believe that this is all it takes. I explain that this is how whipped cream got its name. It’s all very fascinating.

strawberry_shortcake_2Cool Whip has us all a bit confused. I remember thinking that Cool Whip was whipped cream. As a matter of fact, Cool Whip used to be my favorite part of a holiday meal when I was a little girl. I did not even want the pie that went with it. Why would I want pie when there were tubs of Cool Whip in abundance? My cousin Rebecca and I would each get a bowl and fill it with Cool Whip. We’d sit back, giggling, licking spoonful after spoonful of Cool Whip. Our mothers and our aunts and our Nana would chuckle at us and we’d be like, “What?! This is the reason the pilgrims came over on the Mayflower.” We left the pie (and the coffee they drank with it) to the adults. Weirdos.

I’m all grown up now (she says, as she takes a sip of coffee). I’m over Cool Whip. I like the real stuff now. Real whipped cream is one of the easiest treats to make. Because it is real, it tastes absolutely amazing. Our bodies recognize it, so we don’t even have to be like “oh no, I’m eating so much fat, this is so bad for me.” On the contrary, our bodies don’t recognize and don’t know what to do with hydrogenated vegetable oil, high fructose corn syrup, sodium casienate, artificial flavor, xanthan and guar gums, polysorbate 60, sorbitan, monostearate, sodium polyphosphate.

Those are just some of the key ingredients in Cool Whip. Please don’t think it’s healthier. Or actual food. For the love of all things real, please whip cream.

How to Make Whipped Cream

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How to Make Whipped Cream
 
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Ingredients
  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • 2 Tablespoons sugar or 10 drops liquid stevia
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
Instructions
  1. Place ingredients in a high power blender. Whip on high speed for about 30 seconds or until cream has thickened. OR
  2. Put all ingredients into a large bowl. Whip with a hand mixer on high speed for 3-4 minutes or until cream thickens and forms stiff peaks.

Make it Ahead

I recommend making Whipped Cream one day in advance or the morning of a big holiday meal. Prepare as directed, cover, and place in a bowl with a lid in the refrigerator until serving time. DO NOT STIR this after it has been whipped or it may deflate and become liquidy.

Easy Blender Whipped Cream

My new favorite way to make whipped cream is to pour cream, stevia, and vanilla into my Blendtec. I turn it on and have whipped cream 15-30 seconds later. It is so easy. The Blendtec is amazing in many ways (because hello, whipped cream in seconds). But beware: leaving the cream to whip much longer will produce butter. This is not a problem (because hello, butter in minutes) unless you wanted whipped cream for your pie. Butter is not the same.

How do you make Whipped Cream?

Here are the quick links to all the recipes we covered in this series:

Getting Ahead for the Holidays

Have you been a Cool Whip lover like I was in the past? Funny how now I can’t even stomach thinking about it. Now that I know the real deal is so easy and delicious, I don’t even see a comparison. Mmmm, real food how I love you.

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Simple Meals is here! It’s saving my brain (and many of yours too!). If you haven’t joined yet, now’s the time. Get all the details here!

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Chocolate Whipped Cream on Strawberries

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My life has not been the same since I discovered this Chocolate Whipped Cream.

Chocolate Whipped Cream on Strawberries 2

My men ban me from doing any work on Mother’s Day. They take over the kitchen, putting together all the meals in a way that is both hilarious and beautiful to me. Sometimes, I shout instructions from the living room. Other times I offer some quiet advice to help avoid culinary disaster. But they always do a nice job working together, and I’ve found it’s best if I simply walk away and let them do things their way.

Therefore, I needed a Mother’s Day dessert that was easy to make. I needed a Mother’s Day dessert that could be made ahead of time. I needed a Mother’s Day dessert that was low in sugar. And I needed chocolate. Obviously.

There’s nothing like inventing a recipe in my head, then writing it down and handing it to my boys to experiment with. Why give them a tried and true recipe when something else sounds better…inside my head. Right? Bless my boys. They are so used to how I roll in the kitchen, they didn’t even blink when I said, “For dessert, we’re going to try something new.” I’m sure they expected nothing less.

Chocolate Whipped Cream on StrawberriesYum

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Chocolate Whipped Cream on Strawberries
 
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Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 rounded Tablespoon cocoa powder
  • Liquid stevia to taste (we used about 10 drops)
  • Sliced strawberries
Instructions
  1. In a bowl, whip the cream until soft peaks form.
  2. Add cocoa and stevia, and whip again for a few seconds until ingredients are mixed well.
  3. Serve on top of sliced strawberries.

Chocolate Whipped Cream On Strawberries

Everyone loved this dessert! The boys especially loved that I said, “Have as much as you want.” When do I ever say that about dessert? Never.  But with this, since it is sweetened with stevia, I felt no need to limit how much they ate. This will be a great breakfast, snack, or dessert that we’ll surely be making over and over.

Now it’s your turn. Make this Chocolate Whipped Cream and sit back and enjoy it guilt free. Oh sweet happiness in a bowl.

What dessert did you request for Mother’s Day?

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My Favorite Chocolate Recipe

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Today I’m sharing my favorite chocolate recipe with you. It is SO GOOD. 

I guess that’s why it’s called Death By Chocolate. What a name. I didn’t name it. I’d have named it something like A Little Piece of Chocolate Heaven. Or Just When You Think It Can’t Get any Chocolatier. Or Chocolate Covered Chocolatey Chocolate. 

Well…anyway. Death By Chocolate is a recipe my mom found somewhere when I was a teenager. I remember her serving it when she wanted to make something special for company. She always put walnuts in hers…and I always picked ’em out. :)  I’m not a fan of nuts in my food. But you can put walnuts in yours if you want to. I’ll just pick ’em out if I come over and share it with you. (Which I’d love to do…come over and share it with you.)

As I remember also…the original recipe called for a box of brownie mix…a box of chocolate pudding…and a container of cool whip. The way I make it now…it is all made from scratch. And Oh. My. Goodness. Do try it. You won’t be sorry.

Death By ChocolateYum

Recipe for Creamy Chocolate Pudding
plus
Recipe for Fudge Brownies (with or without the chocolate chips)
¾ cup heavy whipping cream
½ t. vanilla
1 t. sugar or a few drops of stevia
1 cup pecans or walnuts, optional

Bake Brownies according to recipe. Allow to cool. Make Chocolate Pudding according to recipe. Allow to cool.

In a large glass serving bowl, begin to layer your Death by Chocolate. 

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Cut or crumble brownies into small crumbs or pieces. 
I usually cut mine into one inch squares. 
Place one third of them into serving bowl.

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Pour one third of your pudding over the brownie pieces.
Continue this brownie – pudding layering twice more.

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Choose the cutest person you can find to whip your cream. 
With beaters, whip cream until soft peaks form. 
Add vanilla and sugar or stevia. Mix in with beaters.

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Spread the whipped cream on top of your brownie-pudding layers. 
If you’re talented and have time…put something fancy on top like put chocolate shavings. As you can see…I’m not that talented.

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Oh, but look how pretty that is!! 

This is the very bowl my mom always made Death By Chocolate in. I’m so thankful to have this bowl in my own kitchen now. 

Okay…chocolate lovers! Come up with some excuse to make this!!! Invite someone over. Have a party. Invent a new holiday. You HAVE to make Death By Chocolate!! (Ooh, someone should invent a new holiday…JUST to celebrate CHOCOLATE!)

Anyone else a chocolate lover like I am?!
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This post is linked to Ultimate Recipe Swap.

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