Hazelnut Liqueur Hot Chocolate

It’s almost the weekend and it’s time for a hazelnut liqueur hot chocolate.  Bonus points – I’m including a recipe for the best homemade hot chocolate mix that you can booze up…or not.  Hubby reminded me the other day that we are just ten weekends away from Christmas.  Which means six or so weekends until it’s time to put up the Christmas tree, make some fruitcake, and start listening to holiday music.  I can promise you I’ll be sipping on hazelnut liqueur hot chocolate throughout the season.

I’ll also be enjoying my instant hot chocolate mix.  I’ll confess – one of my all time favorite things when I was growing up was the instant hot chocolate that came in packets and had those little mini-marshmallows in them.  Nowadays, I’m a little fussier about what I eat and, unfortunately, that packet hot chocolate has some ingredients in it I’m not so likely to want to drink.  I discovered a few years ago that I could, with just a few ingredients, easily make my own instant hot chocolate.  So around this time of year, I love making up a large batch for both home and work.

#Choctoberfest motivated me to make my instant hot chocolate early this year.  And then, because it was almost the weekend, I opted to add in some hazelnut liqueur, along with little bit of a secret ingredient: a half ounce of Godiva chocolate liqueur.  It’s not absolutely necessary for this recipe, but if you have some on hand, definitely toss it in.  Best yet, make up some fresh whipped cream with just a dash of hazelnut liqueur.

Here’s my advice for enjoying this hazelnut liqueur hot chocolate: get into a comfy sweater.  Pull out a good book (here of late, Louise Penny, Janet Evanovich, and JD Robb have been my favorite writers for cozy weekends).   Snuggle with the nearest pet.  Enjoy!