Make decadent, gourmet Valencia Orange Hot Chocolate from scratch in under 10 minutes! This easy recipe makes 2 servings, and is packed with flavor!
I just found out that today is NATIONAL HOT CHOCOLATE DAY while writing this blog post.Who knew? Certainly not me… until a few minutes ago when I saw this “news” on Facebook. What??? I didn’t even KNOW there was such a thing, but I sure do love a yummy mug of hot chocolate every now and then!
Several days ago, it was FREEZING cold outside early in the morning. Having just come in from walking our dog a couple of miles, I was really cold, and knew a cup of hot chocolate would warm me up! I’ve made hot chocolate from scratch many times over the 40+ years we’ve been married, but this time wanted to “kick it up a notch”!
The decision was made to create a Valencia orange hot chocolate, because orange and chocolate is a favorite flavor combination of mine. I’ve used this flavor combo before, in my delicious recipe for chocolate chip orange scones. For this recipe, I tweaked the “normal” way I make hot chocolate from scratch, and this easy to make hot chocolate is the result! YUM! Best part? I didn’t have get in our car, drive somewhere, and pay close to $5 for a mug of it!
Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page
How To Make Valencia Orange Hot Chocolate
Place the cocoa powder, granulated sugar, a dash of salt, and 1/4 cup of the milk (save the rest for later) into a medium sized saucepan. Note: The dash of salt helps bring out the flavor! Whisk these ingredients together. You will notice that there are a lot of lumps while the milk is still cold! That’s okay… they will go away, I promise!
Heat this mixture on medium high heat, continuing to whisk as it cooks. As it cooks and the milk gets hot, the lumps will dissolve into smooth chocolate goodness. Continue to cook (and whisk) until the ingredients become fully blended, and the sugar has dissolved. Cook only until the chocolate starts to boil.
Once the milk begins to boil, add the remaining 2 cups of milk to the saucepan. Stir, then add the orange zest, orange extract and 2 heaping Tablespoons semi-sweet chocolate chips. The added butterfat from the chocolate chips adds to the creamy chocolate flavor, for sure!
Turn the heat down to a low simmer. Continue cooking on low heat, stirring often to prevent burning, until the Valencia orange hot chocolate is fully heated through, and all the chocolate chips have melted.
Taste Test The Valencia Orange Hot Chocolate Before Serving
At this point, you should taste test a spoonful of the hot chocolate. If you want more orange flavor, add a tiny bit more orange extract. If you want it sweeter, add a tiny bit more sugar (then heat until sugar has dissolved). Once you’ve fine-tuned the Valencia orange hot chocolate to your personal liking and everything is heated through, remove the pan from the heat. It is now ready to serve!
Serving Valencia Orange Hot Chocolate
Ladle or pour the Valencia orange hot chocolate into two mugs. Garnish each mug of steaming hot chocolate with a nice amount of whipped cream (I used spray whipped cream). Sprinkle the whipped cream with grated (or zested) chocolate and orange zest. I used a microplane to zest the oranges and a few chocolate chips to make the topping.
Another Way To Serve Valencia Orange Hot Chocolate
Another way to serve the finished Valencia orange hot chocolate is to top it with whipped cream, then shave some chocolate “curls” on top to garnish. To make the chocolate “curls”, I use a milk chocolate bar (mini sized), and peel off the chocolate curls right onto the whipped cream, using a hand held vegetable peeler.
However you enjoy your Valencia orange hot chocolate served – plain or fancy, definitely top it with some sweetened whipped cream (or marshmallows)! That simple addition, alone, will make every sip of this delicious hot drink even better!
Hope you enjoy this delicious Valencia orange hot chocolate! It absolutely was a warming treat on a cold winter day, let me tell you! If you enjoy hot chocolate, be sure to check out my post detailing how to make Hot Cocoa Bombs! I really think you will enjoy this decadent beverage. Hope you have a great day!
Looking For More HOT BEVERAGE Recipes?
You can find ALL my recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. I have several yummy hot beverage recipes you might be interested in, including:
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↓↓ PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW ↓↓
Make your own decadent, gourmet Valencia Orange Hot Chocolate from scratch in under 10 minutes! This easy recipe makes 2 servings, and is packed with flavor!
- 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
- 2½ Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2¼ cups low-fat milk (1%) , divided
- 1 dash salt
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- 3/4 teaspoon orange extract
- 2 Tablespoons semi-sweet chocolate chips
Place the cocoa powder, granulated sugar, a dash of salt, and 1/4 cup of the milk (save the rest for later) into a medium saucepan. Whisk ingredients together. There will be lumps while the milk is still cold! Heat on medium high heat, continuing to whisk. As it cooks and the milk gets hot, the lumps will dissolve.
Continue to cook (and whisk) until ingredients are fully blended, and sugar dissolves. Cook until chocolate begins to boil. Once it begins to boil, add remaining 2 cups of milk. Stir, then add the orange zest, orange extract and 2 heaping Tablespoons semi-sweet chocolate chips. Turn the heat down to low. Continue cooking, stirring often, until hot chocolate is heated through, and all chocolate chips have melted.
Ladle or pour the hot chocolate into two mugs. Garnish each mug of steaming hot chocolate with whipped cream, then sprinkle with orange zest and grated (or zested) chocolate. Serve, and enjoy!
NOTE: The caloric calculation per serving does NOT include the optional whipped cream, or chocolate garnishes. Also, this recipe is calculated using 1% low-fat milk. Full fat milk will make a creamier hot chocolate, but with additional calories.
Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!