How To Make Whipped Hot Chocolate
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Whipped hot chocolate makes the most decadent glass of hot cocoa. This sweet drink can be made warm or iced! With just a four ingredients, you can make this fun whipped drink at home too!
Table of Contents
What Is Whipped Hot Chocolate?
Tik Tok recipes have took the internet by storm! This whipped hot chocolate first came on the scene thanks to the infamous Dalgona Coffee. While I love a good decadent coffee here and there, I wanted to make something the kid could enjoy too. Enter this chocolatey, gooey whipped hot chocolate recipe!
This drink starts off by making whipped cream mixed with powdered hot cocoa mix and just a smidge of sugar. Whip the cold whipped cream and then use it to top either warm or cold milk.
Then add your favorite hot cocoa toppings and cozy up together. (You should also try my Whipped Strawberry Milk hot or cold for another yummy twist, delicious!)
This hot cocoa only takes a few minutes to make, but feels like you just walked out of a coffee shop with this fun whipped drink!
How To Make Whipped Hot Chocolate
Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements and directions below in the recipe card.
So when we’re making a whipped hot chocolate, we’re making a hot cocoa flavored whipped cream that becomes a dreamy topping on top of our glass!
- Place hot cocoa mix and powdered sugar into a cold bowl.
- Mix cold heavy whipping cream into the mixture.
- Beat the mixture first on low, then bump up to medium-high until soft and fluffy peaks begin to form.
Make The Bowl, The Cream and The Beaters Are Cold While Whipping
The trick to making an easy whipped cream is using an electric mixer and having everything cold. I put the bowl and beaters in the freezer for about 15 minutes to ensure they are super cold.
I started buying this shelf-stable whipped cream from Trader Joe’s because it’s convenient and they sell it in a package that has about a cup. The first time I tried it, the cream didn’t whip because it wasn’t cold! It would have whipped eventually, but it was taking forever!
Chilling the cream, bowl and beaters helps the fat in the cream to emulsify faster, and stays thick and stays emulsified longer when everything is kept cold. Now I make sure my cream has been in the refrigerator also if I didn’t buy it chilled.
Don’t Beat The Whipping Cream Too Long
You need to beat the whipped cream long enough that it whips, but not too long. Don’t walk away from the mixer! If you whip the cream too long it will become hot chocolate flavored butter, and I’m not sure what you’ll use that for…
How To Test If The Whipped Cream Is Ready
Once you start to see the whipped cream fluffing up, test it with a spoon. If you can run a spoon through it and you have a little indent through the cream, it’s ready!
Can I Use Unsweetened Cocoa Instead of Hot Chocolate Powder?
Hot chocolate powder and cocoa are similar, but hot chocolate mix already has some sweetener included. I have not made this recipe with hot cocoa powder before, but there is no reason you can’t.
I would suggest starting with mixing 2 tablespoons cocoa powder with 1/3 cup of powdered sugar. Add the heavy cream, then taste. The mixture should be a little on the sweet side, as this will also be mixed into milk when added to your cup.
If your mixture isn’t sweet enough I’d add powdered sugar one tablespoon at a time until it is sweet enough to your taste, then begin whipping the cream.
Need a dairy free hot chocolate option? My dairy free hot chocolate bombs have no dairy and are vegan friendly too!
Do I Have To Have Electric Mixer To Make Whipped Hot Chocolate?
You can make whipped cream without an electric mixer using a whisk, but you may feel like your arm is going to fall off! It’s much easier to use an electric mixer whether that’s a stand mixer, hand mixer or immersion blender.
Whipped Hot Chocolate Variations
In the recipe card at the bottom of this page I’ve shared how to make this whipped hot chocolate both hot and iced. There are plenty of other variations you can try to make the ultimate chocolatey whipped hot chocolate.
- Make It More Chocolately– Use chocolate milk (or regular milk mixed with chocolate syrup) to make things a little more chocolatey
- Add Vanilla– A 1/4 teaspoon of good quality vanilla will give your hot cocoa more of a vanilly twist!
- Swap the Hot Cocoa– Try other flavors of hot cocoa mix like white chocolate, caramel or even fancier flavors like eggnog, gingerbread, or strawberry!
- Add Peppermint– You can add peppermint extract to the whipped cream, I recommend 1/8 of a teaspoon. Peppermint extract is really strong, so you only need a tiny amount. You can also add crushed candy canes to the milk to give a peppermint flavor, though I recommend pulverizing them into tiny pieces so they aren’t gritty in your hot chocolate.
Love Chocolate? Try These Super Chocolaty Recipes Too!
Hot Chocolate Peppermint Thumbprint Cookies– If you love peppermint and chocolate together, you have to try these cookies!
Chocolate Whoopie Pies – These taste like an inside out chocolatey cupcake.
Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie Sticks– Perfect for dunking!
No Churn Chocolate Chip Ice Cream– Smooth and creamy, this delicious homemade treat doesn’t require a machine and is delicious!
Making This Hot Chocolate With Your Kids?
Sign up for our email list and we’ll send you free printables to have the BEST hot chocolate day ever with your kids!
- Help the kids find their hot cocoa in the maze after playing in the snow with this free printable maze.
- Use our idea list of hot chocolate toppings to build the best hot chocolate ever, or even set up your own hot chocolate bar!
It’ll be a happy day in the memory books! Get these free printables now.
Whipped Hot Chocolate
Equipment
- Large Cold Bowl (preferably metal if you have one)
- Electric Mixer
- 2 Drinking Glasses
Ingredients
Whipped Hot Chocolate Ingredients
- 1/4 cup hot chocolate mix
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream Needs to be cold!
- 1 cup milk
For Whipped Iced Hot Chocolate
- Ice optional
Instructions
Whipped Hot Chocolate
- In a large cold bowl add cold whipping cream, hot chocolate mix and powdered sugar. Beat on high until the mixture begins to thicken. Keep beating until the mixture has soft peaks, or you can make an indent in it that holds it's shape.
- Warm the milk in the microwave until hot. (Warm works fine for kids.) Add 1/2 cup of milk to each glass.
- Place the whipped cream into a piping bag or strong zip-top style bag. Snip the corner of the bag with scissors and pipe a swirl over the warmed milk. Add mini marshmallows, chocolate bits or any other of your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Whipped Iced Hot Chocolate
- In a large cold bowl add cold whipping cream, hot chocolate mix and powdered sugar. Beat on high until the mixture begins to thicken. Keep beating until the mixture has soft peaks, or you can make an indent in it that holds it's shape.
- Fill two glasses with ice and add ½ cup of milk to each cup.
- Place the whipped cream into a piping bag or strong zip-top style bag. Snip the corner of the bag with scissors and pipe a swirl over the iced milk. Add mini marshmallows, chocolate bits or any other of your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- For a more decadent whipped hot chocolate, use chocolate milk instead of plain milk.
- If substituting for a dairy allergy, I recommend trying coconut milk as it is the creamiest of the milk alternatives for the bottom. Other alternative milks (almond, oat, etc.) can also be subsituted for the bottom milk. For the top, try making cocoa flavored whipped coconut milk. You can learn how to make whipped coconut milk here.
Nutrition
Did You Make This?
I would love to see it! Share your thoughts with me in the comments below!
I just made this, being in Aust, i used our Cadburys Bournville Baking Cocoa as i didnt have any Cadburys Drinking Chocolate in the pantry. and it was fantastic… I also think it would be great to be piped on a cake or even filled instead of using just whipped cream..
Sounds delicious Cara!
I was wondering if you can just do the topping and freeze it for a frozen dessert? At first glance I thot it was a frozen pudding….
Hi Sue- It is more similar to a hot chocolate-flavored whipped cream than pudding. While you could freeze it, you may want to pair it with berries or a cookie base if you freeze it. I bet it would make delicious cookie ice cream sandwiches! -Kristy
Can you use sweetened condensed milk for the whipped cream??
Hi Emily, No I’m sorry you can’t substitute condensed milk for whipping cream in this recipe, it won’t work correctly. Whipping cream whips up light and fluffy which is the main part of this dessert, and condensed milk just won’t do that at all. -Kristy
Awesome, want to try immediately!
Hope you enjoy!
Whoa! I didn’t know you could whip hot chocolate and whipping cream together and it would still work. Definitely going to try this.
It’s so fun, and it only takes a little switch right? Hope you love it!
Can u use almond milk
Hi Connie, You can use almond milk for the bottom part of the drink, but for the whipped cream part you would need a dairy alternative recipe for whipped cream. I think you can make whipped cream from coconut cream, but I haven’t tried it myself. -Kristy
Love this recipe, I actually made an espresso and added that to my cold milk and the whipped hot chocolate. Yum Move over Starbucks !!!! Lol
That sounds amazing Kecia! I’m going to have to try it that way too, yum! -Kristy
My family will love this so much! It’s perfect for our New England winters!
Definitely this recipe is a sweet way to warm you up on a cold New England day! -Kristy
If you mess it up and it turns to butter, it would likely be pretty good on toast. Hot Chocolate Buttered Toast……YUM!
I mean, I think you’re on to something Symone. Hot Chocolate Butter on toast, I wouldn’t be sad about it… I bet it would be divine on french toast too! 🙂 -Kristy
I made this for my family and everyone loved it my mom was literally scraping the bottom of the bowl we had it on chocolate milk it was the bomb totally recommend
So glad you enjoyed it CaittyLin, sounds like a fun night with the family! Thanks for the note, it made my day. -Kristy
What about cool whip instead of whipped cream?
Hi Ally, I haven’t tried Cool Whip, but I wouldn’t recommend it for this recipe. Cool whip can work when you’re topping a dessert with a small dollop or folding it into a nobake recipe like cheesecake. It tends to thin out when you mix it into something else, which is why it mixes with the cream cheese easily as the cream cheese can help it keep more of a shape. The hot cocoa isn’t going to help it keep its structure, so likely the cool whip would just kind of fall apart when you start mixing in the hot cocoa. To make whipped hot cocoa you really want the cream to stand tall. This way when you add it to the milk it mixes into the milk a little at a time and doesn’t just deflate immediately. If you do try it, let me know how it goes! -Kristy
Hi! I love this recipie! It was so creamy and thick! Thank you, Kristy!
Hi Olivia, Thanks for the note, you made my day brighter! Glad you loved the recipe, I think it’s a pretty delicious treat too. -Kristy
How about adding a half teaspoon on instant coffee?
Hi Carol,
Adding instant coffee would be pretty delicious and 1/2 teaspoon sounds about right. You can mix it into the cream with the hot cocoa mix and sugar, and then taste before you whip the mixture to make sure the coffee flavor is strong enough to your taste. You could also dissolve the coffee into the milk at the bottom of the cup as well. Let me know if you try it how it goes, sounds delicious! -Kristy
How could you make it sugar free? Or at least less sugar
Hi Elizabeth- You can use the unsweetened cocoa powder and substitute your favorite sugar alternative. I would start by adding the cocoa powder to the heavy cream (I recommend further up in the post when I talk about how to use cocoa powder starting with 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder.) Then add your favorite sweetener alternative and blend into the cream. Some sugar alternatives are sweeter than sugar though, so add it a tablespoon and taste before you whip the cream so the sweetness level is right. Once the mixture is sweet enough, then whip the cream and top the milk with your whipped cocoa cream. I haven’t made it this way before, but most sugar alternatives should substitute easily into this recipe. Happy holidays! -Kristy
This is an awesome drink… I’m not fond of hot chocolate but yur recipe got me hooked. Thanks
So glad you enjoyed it Darlene! You’re very welcome! -Kristy
Can you use half and half?
Hi Jean, I have heard that you can make whipped cream from half and half if you add a tablespoon of butter, but I have never tried it myself. Half and half doesn’t have quite enough fat content on it’s own to whip into whipped cream, it will only froth on it’s own. Hope that helps. -Kristy
I have used a BAMIX to whip up skim milk like whipped cream. It works really well but all utensils and bowl or really tall cup need to be cold.
How do I make it hot? Says use everything cold.. at what point do I heat any of the milks
Hi Sherri- In step 2 after whipping the whipped cream, you warm the milk and add it to the bottom of your glass. Then you add the hot cocoa whipped cream on top. There are directions for making this drink both warm and iced, perhaps you were accidentally reading the iced section? Hope you enjoy your hot chocolate! -Kristy
Your instructions say to pipe over iced milk, even for the hot version.
Oh I see it now, thanks Gina. It should be fixed now. -Kristy
1/4 c of powdered sugar per serving is more than “just a smidge,” especially when you’re adding it to already sweetened hot chocolate.
This should be seen for what it is- a candy bar in a cup.
Hi Lily,
This is a dessert, but it’s no sweeter than a regular hot chocolate topped with sweetened whipped cream. You’re welcome to adjust the sweetness to your taste, I’ve even talked about it in the post. Perhaps if you’re looking for a lighter chocolate recipe, you may want to check out my chocolate walnut protein bites instead. All the best, -Kristy
It was so tasty! I made it for my husband and I after going to see some lights downtown last night. I can’t wait to make it again for the kids.
Yay Rochelle, I’m glad you liked it and I hope the kiddos love it too! The perfect way to end a cold fun night out. -Kristy