Hot drinks are an essential part of my family’s lives. Almost every day begins with tea for Michelle and coffee for me. Aly seems immune—she’ll drink tea or cocoa occasionally. As the weather turns colder, we find that one hot cup isn’t enough, leading to secondary and sometimes tertiary hot drinks throughout the day.
We try to avoid consuming too much caffeine, so we rarely have seconds of tea or coffee. More often, we move on to other choice. These include a variety of drinks, from Russian tea to broth. Mostly, we drink cocoa.
We go through canisters cocoa mix at an alarming rate. We’ve become concerned about the corresponding intake of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). At best, HFCS gives us extra, unneeded calories. At worst, it could be extremely unhealthy. HFCS is an all-pervasive additive—if we tried to cut it out all together, we’d waste far too much time policing our diet, but we try to eliminate or reduce it where possible.
Last winter we searched for an acceptable, homemade substitute for commercial instant cocoa. Internet searches produced recipes that used components that contained HFCS, or included so many ingredients that making it would be more expensive than buying cocoa mix.
After much experimentation, here’s what we discovered:
1 TBS baking cocoa powder
2 TBS powdered milk
3 TBS brown sugar
1/8 TSP salt
This recipe gives us a mug of cocoa fairly close to commercial. We tried for a creamier texture with xanthan gum, but it didn’t work. Interestingly, the salt was a very important, as it somehow brings out the cocoa flavor.
It still wasn’t quite right, though. We also discovered that Swiss Miss brand instant cocoa mix, while sweetened with corn syrup, does not contain HFCS. It also mixes more easily with water than others we’ve used.
Swiss Miss lacks something. Compared to another brand we used, it seemed a bit less “chocolaty.” As with many consumables, though, repeated use has accustomed us to it, and we don’t notice the difference anymore.
I intend to try mixing this recipe with cocoa mix, to extend the commercial product.
In my opinion, an essential ingredient to The Perfect Hot Drink is the right mug. Whenever possible, choose a mug you like, or even love. Don’t just grab whatever’s handy and clean—choose carefully! This simple step adds much to the pleasure of a hot drink. I have many mugs, but each gets its use as my mood changes from day to day. Some are gifts or souvenirs. Using these recalls associated memories as I sip my drink. This is one of the many small, simple pleasures of which a happy life is made.
As is a good hot cup of cocoa.
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Mark Zeiger is a regular contributor to Self Reliance Works. His family homesteads off the grid in Southeast Alaska, fueled, comforted, inspired and fortified by hot drinks. See more at AKZeigers.com.
