gfe--gluten free easily

Living gluten free easily by eating real food and a few gf processed foods

 MENU
 SUBSCRIBE
  • Home
    • Home
    • Archives
  • About
    • About
  • Recipes
    • All Recipes
    • Most Popular
    • Best GF Bread
    • Pizza
    • Desserts
    • All Bread
    • Main Dishes
    • Appetizers, Soups, Vegetables, and Side Dishes
    • Breakfasts
    • Beverages
  • Most Popular
  • gfe Printables

Honey Hot Chocolate

Shirley Braden

Share on FacebookShare on PinterestShare on TwitterShare on Email
For affiliate links and as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Honey Hot Chocolate. Or Honey Hot Cocoa, if you will.

Call it what you like but make it. Definitely make it!

The Back Story on This Honey Hot Chocolate

Our family keeps bees and we belong to a regional beekeepers’ association. My husband and his mother sometimes attend the monthly meetings. They don’t attend the meetings often because they are held a good distance away from where we live.

Bradens' Honey.

Our Bees’ Honey (in a recycled jar)

For us, the best part of belonging to the beekeeping group by far is getting its monthly newsletters. My favorite part of the newsletters—not surprisingly—is the recipes.

But the “What’s Blooming?” section also pleases me. The January listing:  “rain—for the trees and bee plants; snowballs would be nice; house plants; and icicles.”

Back to the recipes. They’re always recipes that use honey, of course.

Beautiful and amazing honeycomb from our hardworking bees. [from GlutenFreeEasily.com]
We love using honey from our bees, so when we can incorporate it in recipes—it’s a lovely, sweet bonus!

This month’s newsletter recipes were Spaghetti Sauce and Honey Salad Dressing. Both were made from naturally gluten-free ingredients—so gfe!

I can’t wait to try both. However, it was a recipe from last month’s newsletter that came to mind when I finally settled down this evening.

It had rained endlessly all day and the promised high of 50-degrees had never materialized. It was in the lower 30s when I left home and equally cold when I returned.

At work, I had not made much headway on a work assignment with a rapidly approaching deadline and attendance at a meeting on Friday was strongly encouraged. Friday is my usual day off. Sigh.

Outings to attend other meetings during the cold wet day including a slow-to-open umbrella and standing water in our office parking lot had left me chilled to the bone. So I was a bit grumpy and looking for warmth and comfort when I finally hit home.

I changed into comfy, warm clothes, then added wood to the wood stove and cranked it up. I chatted with my husband a little before he left for a weekly visit with a cousin.

While my work decompression routine continued, our son packed up his stuff, hugged and kissed me good-bye, and headed out the door to return to college.

Feeling a bit of melancholy on top of my slight grumpiness, I found the recipe for Honey Hot Chocolate on the top of my “must try” recipe heap.

chocolate doughnut hot chocolate, hot chocolate, gluten free, dairy free

While the syrup mixture was warming on the stove, I located the friendly snowmen mug that had beckoned to me at the thrift store right before Christmas.

The full Honey Hot Chocolate recipe made four servings, but I made just one serving and filled my mug. The snowmen smiled broadly at me and I immediately started feeling better.
Honey Hot Chocolate Recipe at gfe--gluten free easily
The hot chocolate took little time to make and was very satisfying. It’s quite a nice balance of chocolate and honey—whichever variation you make (explained in the recipe below).

Either way it’s not heavy, as homemade hot chocolate sometimes can be. Usually, I alternate adding additional cocoa and sugar … trying to find that perfect, “just right” combination.

With this recipe, that kind of tweaking is unnecessary—the hot chocolate is “just right” as it is so you can have your warming and satisfying Honey Hot Chocolate fix quickly. And I love that!

Other Hot Beverage Recipes That Will Warm Your Body and Your Soul

~ Homemade Gingerbread Latte (can also be made as creamer)

Homemade Gingerbread Latte from Danielle Walker's Against All Grain Celebrations. Smooth and creamy coffee beverage with the holiday flavors of gingerbread blended in. Perfect to start or end your day or take a break for you! You can make this for creamer if you prefer. [featured on GlutenFreeEasily.com]

~ Pumpkin Kahlua Maple Latte

Heaven in a mug, and ideal for fall! Use pumpkin butter for an even richer flavor. Pumpkin Kahlua Maple Latte [from GlutenFreeEasily.com] (photo)

~ Slow Cooker Wassail (aka Spiced Apple Cider) (kid friendly)

Slow Cooker Wassail, also known as Spiced Cider, can turn any day--but especially a super cold day--into something magical! Family friendly unless you add the brandy. [from A Year of Slow Cooking via GlutenFreeEasily.com] (photo)

~ Velvety Pumpkin Spice “Latte” and Other Kid-Friendly Hot Beverages

Pumpkin Spice Latte

Honey Hot Chocolate Recipe

Yield:

Honey Hot Chocolate

Honey Hot Chocolate

This hot chocolate is "just right" as soon as you make it. No tweaking needed! So you can have your warming, satisfying Honey Hot Chocolate fix ASAP.

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

Chocolate Syrup Ingredients

  • ½ cup honey (local, raw/unpasteurized, if available)
  • ½ cup unsweetened cocoa
  • ½ cup water, optional (see notes)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Milk

  • 3 cups hot milk (dairy or non-dairy--not skim milk if you're using dairy milk; full-fat coconut milk also works)

Instructions

Chocolate Syrup Instructions

  1. In a small saucepan, combine honey, cocoa powder, and water (if used); mix well.
  2. Cook over low heat until the mixture is slightly thickened.
  3. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla extract. Set aside until ready to serve.

Milk Instructions

  1. When ready to serve, heat milk (in saucepan or microwave).

Hot Chocolate Instructions

  1. Stir chocolate syrup mixture into hot milk until thoroughly combined.
  2. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

How To Make a Single Serving

1. For a single serving of hot chocolate, stir ¼ cup chocolate syrup into ¾ cup hot milk.

Other Notes

The chocolate syrup part of this recipe may be prepared in advance and stored (covered) at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

For the chocolate syrup, you can leave out the water or only add a tiny amount that you used to rinse out your measuring cup after measuring honey and cocoa. The amount of water to make your chocolate syrup really depends on how thick both your honey and milk are. 

Many believe that local honey provides some relief against allergies. Local honey is typically not pasteurized. Pasteurization of honey is not needed; this heating just allows the honey to be processed more quickly as honey flows more readily when heated. Many (myself included) maintain that the flavor for pasteurized honey is less appealing than that of non-pasteurized honey.

Important note:  The CDC recommends that children younger than 1 year of age should not be given honey.

This recipe is a member-submitted recipe at the National Honey Board.

© Shirley Braden
Category: Beverages
Originally published January 7, 2009; updated January 31, 2020.

Free Email Updates to gfe

Please wait...
Please enter all required fields Click to hide
Correct invalid entries Click to hide
Share on FacebookShare on PinterestShare on TwitterShare on Email

Filed Under: BeveragesTagged With: beverage, chocolate, honey, hot chocolate, hot cocoa20 Comments

« Gluten-Free Popovers
Is Spelt Gluten Free? The Spin on Spelt »

Comments

  1. Jennifer Smith says

    January 8, 2009 at 3:36 pm

    Sounds yummy, except for the milk! I have done hot chocolate with unsweetend almond milk, and it is quite good. GFCF, gluten free casein free, what’s next????

    Reply
  2. noble pig says

    January 8, 2009 at 6:27 pm

    I never would have thought to put honey in hot chocolate, very interesting!

    Reply
  3. Shirley says

    January 9, 2009 at 9:16 am

    Jennifer-You can be one of our GCGF contributors … telling us how to easily make recipes CF or expand upon my comments on making a recipe CF-just like you did here! Do you make your own almond milk? If so, could you share that info here … or what kind you purchase. Thanks so much!

    noble pig–I hope you’ll try it. I think you’ll like the taste very much. 🙂

    Reply
  4. H.Peter says

    January 9, 2009 at 12:58 pm

    I grew up on honey. Mostly dark amber colored pine honey from the forests around the village.
    Daily breakfast.

    It is amazing how honey from region to region can taste very very distinctly different.

    Here in Canada I purchased some pine honey from Turkey, though same in color, the flavor was much stronger.

    Reply
  5. Kay Niedenthal says

    January 9, 2009 at 5:14 pm

    Hi Shirley,

    I’m having “bee envy!” I eat a lot of honey. My grandpa had bee hives and I loved the early dark honey from tulip tree blooms.

    I was tempted to sign up for a beekeeper class offered locally. But I need to get ready for my chickens (coming in May!) They will probably be enough of a challenge.

    Reply
  6. Shirley says

    January 10, 2009 at 11:48 am

    H. Peter–We always like to sample local honey when visiting different areas, and I agree the differences in taste can be dramatic. I don’t have a sense for what pine honey tastes like at all. Our honey is light and mild most years. Unlike “professional” beekeepers, we don’t move our hives to different areas to ensure we get honey from a particular flower. Ours is a lovely blend, but it changes slightly from year to year according to what is blooming the most.

    Kay–LOL “bee envy” … I am sharing that with my husband. He’ll get a chuckle out of it! Ah, poplar honey (a.k.a. tulip tree or tulip poplar) … that is VERY good, too. (The only bad honey is uncapped honey … taken before the bees have finished their work.) May will be here before we know it. Looking forward to hearing about your chicken experience! Several members of my husband’s family raise chickens and there always fun tales as well as FABULOUS eggs, of course.

    Reply
  7. Nance says

    January 10, 2009 at 2:46 pm

    Hey, Shirley, is the water really necessary? I like thicker hot cocoa, and maybe leaving it out won’t matter much.

    Reply
  8. Shirley says

    January 10, 2009 at 4:25 pm

    Nance–I was surprised at water being an ingredient as well. I did like how it turned it though. However, since I just came in from more rain and cold and chocolate is calling my name, I think there’s only one thing to do–test per your query. Besides, it’s my job to adequately research recipe questions and respond to you, my dear readers. Will be back as soon as I can whip up a new cup. With plans for our upcoming Valentine’s Day party running through my mind (appetizer recipes, GFE party protocol, etc.), I think I’ll use the larger mug covered with multi-colored hearts and LOVE emblazoned across the top. So I’ll just halve the recipe this time, sans H2O. I’ll report back promptly. 😉

    Reply
  9. Shirley says

    January 10, 2009 at 4:59 pm

    Nance–Reporting back … results: in one word, outstanding! I wouldn’t say it’s tremendously thicker, but the cocoa packs more of a punch (which can never be a bad thing in my book). 🙂 I did add a very small amount of water to help remove the honey from the measuring cup, plus I don’t really like heating honey “directly” because I think it changes it a bit and makes it lose some of its natural flavor (part of my objection to pasteurization). You’ve improved the recipe, Nance! I will update the recipe with that note. Thanks!

    Reply
  10. glutenfreeforgood says

    January 11, 2009 at 9:04 pm

    Shirley,

    Wow, you have bees?! I’m impressed. You lucky girl, the honey must be divine. I use light coconut milk in my hot cocoa. And a touch of honey and a bit of cinnamon.

    I might have to go make myself some right now. Sounds to good just to think about.

    🙂

    Melissa

    Reply
  11. Shirley says

    January 11, 2009 at 10:01 pm

    Melissa– 🙂 … yes, the honey is divine! Bees are such amazing creatures. I’ve been trying to greatly reduce my intake of refined sugar so I’ve used more honey than ever for sweetening the last several months. I find that if I consume foods sweetened with honey, I am satisfied and don’t want more, more, more. LOL

    Your recipe for hot cocoa sounds very nice. I need to determine if I have any issues with coconut milk. (I just found out I can’t tolerate coconut oil.) Do you buy your coconut milk in large quantities? I’ve only seen small cans in the store. Furthermore, now that I recall, it all contains guar gum and I don’t do well with that either. Anyway, hope you made some cocoa and enjoyed it!

    Reply
  12. glutenfreeforgood says

    January 12, 2009 at 7:52 am

    Shirley,

    Yes, most (all?) coconut milks contain some sort of “gum” in small amounts. I buy the organic version, either by the case or when it’s on sale to get a discount. I use organic brown rice milk in my baking, cooking, or on cereal as well. The coconut milk is only for certain things. There’s a coconut sugar available as well.

    As for your bees — talk about eating LOCAL! Good for you. I’m fascinated.

    Also, thanks SO much for the comment about grains and dogs. I really appreciate you adding that. I should have included it to begin with. I actually have that info on my “About” page — briefly mentioned, but just failed to include it on this post.

    Thanks! You’re a good gluten-free girlfriend!

    Reply
  13. Shirley says

    January 12, 2009 at 1:15 pm

    I’ve looked online before for the coconut milk without guar gum, but just looked again. I see statements on a mothering forum that Trader Joe’s own brand and Natural Value coconut milk do not contain guar gum. The nearest Trader Joe’s is an hour and half away from me, but, surprisingly, the Natural Value brand is carried by both a grocery store and a health food store in “town” (a half hour away). So I’ll pick up some and see how I do with it. 🙂

    I think I may have been taking our bees for granted … they do work so hard for us to benefit from their efforts I made some out-of-this-world wassail in November and December using honey (recipe from Stephanie’s crockpotting blog, http://crockpot365.blogspot.com). As I’ve told others, my main responsibility with our honey is ordering the supplies, making mite prevention “patties,” bottling the honey, and cooking with it. My husband does everything else. (Don’t ask me about the time in my husband’s novice days of beekeeping (independent from this father’s supervision for the first time) that he forgot to smoke the hive and came into the house covered with bees … who then immediately moved to me!)

    You’re quite welcome re: the comment on your latest post on your beloved Fairbanks II and foods dogs can’t eat safely. We have to spread the word on gluten affecting our pets just as much and take care of our faithful companions!

    LOL … you’re welcome and back at you … the value of comments can’t be underestimated, because we all can’t remember everything when we post an entry!

    Reply
  14. glutenfreeforgood says

    January 14, 2009 at 3:38 pm

    Yes, it’s nice to have “back-up” when you need it! We’re in this together.
    🙂
    Melissa

    Reply
  15. glutenfreewholefoods says

    January 20, 2009 at 11:26 pm

    I make hot chocolate too with honey – a local raw honey I buy from the Farmer’s Market here in Bellingham, WA. I use organic almond milk, Dagoba organic cocoa powder (which is GF), vanilla, and honey. Mmm, its my favorite on a chilly rainy day.

    -Ali 🙂

    Reply
  16. Shirley says

    January 21, 2009 at 12:21 am

    Ali–Everyone raves over the Dagoba organic cocoa powder. I really must get some soon. It’s definitely cold enough here for some more honey hot chocolate. Maybe tomorrow … must turn in now. 😉 Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting! I hope everyone checks out your blog, especially your recent post on Vit D!

    Best,
    Shirley

    Reply
  17. Kelly says

    January 24, 2009 at 4:00 pm

    I’ve been meaning to tell you my hubby is crazy for bees! He may have his own hive at our neighbors down the street this year 🙂 She already has two of her own. Go honey bees!

    Reply
  18. Shirley says

    January 24, 2009 at 5:06 pm

    Kelly–Woohoo for hubby!! We can’t have enough folks keeping honeybees—they need our help in the worst way these days. And, that will be great if he works with your neighbor … it really makes it easier starting out to have someone else leading the way. My husband worked with his dad for several years before we had our own hives. I am so excited—please keep me posted. I know you’ll make good use of that divine honey when you finally have your own (that will take a good while) or you get some from the neighbor’s hives for helping her. I am getting ready to serve some honey this evening for dipping homemade GF chicken nuggets (so easy, I’ll post that recipe soon). Yum. Thanks so much for telling me the great news! Shirley

    Reply
  19. Rebecca says

    December 1, 2012 at 11:08 pm

    Just wanted to let you know that people are still finding this post. 🙂 We have eliminated most refined sugar over the past couple years. I started buying raw honey in 5 gallon buckets! I found your recipe last winter and made it several times. I came looking for it again this week, for cocoa to take with us as we cut down a Christmas tree. I’ll be making it for friends tomorrow, served with homemade honey marshmallows (which are also fantastic)! http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2011/08/fluffy-honey-sweetened-homemade-marshmallows.html

    Reply
    • Shirley says

      December 2, 2012 at 11:30 am

      Hi Rebecca–Welcome to gfe! 🙂 Yippee on folks like you still finding this recipe and enjoying it! 🙂 Love, love honey for natural sweetening! And I also love that you are making this cocoa to take along for your Christmas tree cutting adventure and other gatherings. I’m sure that this cocoa is even better when Kimi’s homemade honey marshmallows are involved. 😉

      Thanks so much for taking the time to comment. Merry Christmas!
      Shirley

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  • Subscribe
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Email Shirley

Trending

  • Homemade gluten-free bread made in the bread machine compared to the popular store-bought brand. [featured on GlutenFreeEasily.com] Top 20 Best Gluten-Free Bread Machine Recipes Plus More Info on Bread Machines
  • Gluten-Free King Cake from She Let Them Eat Gluten-Free Cake with slice removed on white cake platter. Gluten-Free King Cakes for Mardi Gras and More
  • Holy Cow Pizza! Gluten-Free Pizza Worth Having Every Night. Learn the secret ingredient that makes this gluten-free pizza crust taste so much like that gluten-full pizza crust from back in the day. [from GlutenFreeEasily.com] Holy Cow Pizza Crust! Gluten-Free Pizza Worth Having Every Night
  • The 5-Minute Secret to Easily Cleaning Pots and Pans without Harsh Chemicals. So easy you won't believe it! With an ingredient you already have in your pantry! [from GlutenFreeEasily.com] (photo) The 5-Minute Secret to Easily Cleaning Pots and Pans Without Harsh Chemicals
  • You are absolutely going to love the caramelized goodness of these Flourless Oatmeal Cookies! Be sure to use certified gluten-free purity protocol oats. [from GlutenFreeEasily.com] (photo) Flourless Gluten-Free Oatmeal Cookies
  • Top 20 Gluten-Free Challah Bread Recipes
  • This John Wayne Mexican Casserole made with beans and tortilla chips is naturally gluten free and loved by everyone who has tried it! It's a great addition to the one-dish meal category, which is a personal favorite of mine. From Gluten Free Easily. (photo) Easy Mexican Casserole (Naturally Gluten Free)
Subscribe by Email
Copyright © 2008-2021 • All Rights Reserved · Gluten Free Easily • Privacy Policy • Disclaimers and Disclosures • Makeworthy Media