Learn how to make the Best Vegan Hot Chocolate EVER! Even readers agree! Just 6 ingredients and ready in 5 minutes! This is better than the dairy versions I used to drink. Semi-sweet chocolate and cocoa powder are what gives a rich chocolate flavor!
Today I’m sharing the absolute best hot chocolate I’ve ever had, vegan or not! It is so creamy, so rich and so decadent and nobody would guess it’s vegan. The same goes for my Homemade Vegan Chocolate Milk.
This recipe is the dairy-free chocolate of my dreams and very exciting to share today.
I haven’t posted here in about a month and I don’t think I’ve ever done that since I started this blog in 2013. However, I had been working nonstop and posting new recipes weekly and was feeling a bit tired. Then I got into a really bad car wreck and got pretty bruised up and really sore. I’m completely healed and fine now, but my car was totaled. I’m truly the most thankful that my daughter was in school and not in the car with me!
I also am back with this delicious best vegan hot chocolate recipe! This dairy-free hot chocolate recipe was a creation from last year and shared a snap of it on this Instagram. I never got around to sharing it on my blog, but now that the weather is cold again and I’m drinking it again, now is the time.
WHY THIS IS THE BEST VEGAN HOT CHOCOLATE
I’m very, very picky when it comes to hot chocolate. Too many recipes are too watery, too bland, not chocolatey enough or sweet enough for me. I’ve tried so many. I don’t want my hot chocolate cloyingly sweet, but I don’t like it too bitter either.
Well, this dairy-free hot chocolate is my favorite ever.
It’s rich, creamy and a rich, decadent chocolate flavor, as well as perfectly sweetened. It’s not too thick, in other words, it’s not a French hot chocolate, haha. I’ve had a French hot chocolate in Paris many years ago and it’s VERY thick and rich and like drinking straight chocolate. Yummy, yes, but a bit too much for when I want to sit down and enjoy a full cup of hot chocolate.
THE BEST INGREDIENTS FOR VEGAN HOT CHOCOLATE
So, to achieve my perfect Vegan Hot Chocolate, I used:
- semi-sweet chocolate
- unsweetened cocoa powder
- maple syrup
- canned “lite” coconut milk (forget almond milk, not creamy enough and too strong of a flavor)
- ground espresso
- vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
Lite coconut milk leaves no flavor whatsoever of coconut, but is the perfect creamy base for this.
The need for chocolate chips is because they contain cocoa butter and that is what helps make this a rich chocolate flavor, as well as thicken it up when it heats up. My favorite brand is Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips, because they are vegan. Just cocoa powder is hot cocoa, but this is hot chocolate. It should be richer and creamier. I see many often get them confused, but they are definitely different.
See those delicious cookies in the photos? They are my DOUBLE CHOCOLATE FUDGE CRINKLE COOKIES and are to die for! Get them here!
The Best Vegan Hot Chocolate!
Ingredients
- One 13.5 oz can "lite" coconut milk (this truly is the best milk to make hot chocolate, I would advise against subbing as others I've tried were not good. Lite leaves NO coconut taste!)
- 2 tablespoons (12g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3 heaping tablespoons (40g) semi-sweet dairy-free chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life)
- 1-2 tablespoons (20g) maple syrup, depending on your sweet-o-meter, I did 2
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground espresso or instant coffee
- 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
- Optional: whipped cream, shaved chocolate, marshmallows, etc.
NOTE
- I recommend Thai Kitchen brand for the lite coconut milk. It is amazing and always so smooth and creamy, not watery. Many brands can be rather watery and not smooth.
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to a blender and blend for a few minutes on high until completely smooth and frothy.
- Add the mixture to a pot over medium heat. Once it begins to bubble, whisk continuously for about 4 minutes until well heated, the chocolate has completely melted and has thickened just a bit. You don't want to overcook it, or it will get too thick.
- I found this to be the perfect level of sweetness, but if you want yours a tad sweeter, add a little more maple syrup. Remove and pour into mugs and add whipped cream, shaved chocolate, marshmallows, cinnamon, etc. Enjoy!
- This makes enough for 2 mugs. If you are just wanting 1 serving, then place the rest in the fridge and when you are ready to use it, give it a good whisk and reheat on low.
Notes
Nutrition
Sadly, this recipe keeps getting stolen and posted on other sites. If you make this recipe, please do not re-post it on your site, please link to me instead giving proper credit. If you are inspired by this recipe, again, please give proper credit and do not simply post it on your site.
Made this for a hot cocoa competition at work since I can’t have dairy. People were blown away that it was dairy free and that it didn’t taste like coconut. Fantastic recipe!
The original and the best. I drank gourmet hot chocolate in Paris, France once and it was something you never forget. And now I can recreate the deliciousness, but vegan, any time.
That is so amazing to hear Lauren!!
Hi! 🙂 Random question…once I blended all the ingredients.. can I use a milk frother/steamer to bring the drink to warm temperature, or does it have to be heated over the stove?
I’m not sure it would thicken properly with just a frother!
Best hot chocolate I have ever made. Made this for my vegan bf but will continue to do this for myself.
I am going to make it for my family and see if they notice it’s vegan
Yay, really glad to hear that!
I made it this morning for a Christmas treat. SUPER Delicious!! Thank you!
SO wonderful!!
I’m confused on the instructions on Step 2. If we have a Vitamix blender do we add in the chocolate chips, blend, then heat over the stove, but adding in (MORE?) chocolate chips? Or is the Step 2 for those w/o the Vitamix?
Hi, sorry for any confusion! I edited the directions.
Hi Brandi,
Is it possible to make this without the ground espresso?
yes!
Oh that’s great, thanks!
Perfect! Couldn’t have found a better flavor anywhere. The texture is so authentic and old fashioned.
Bravo!
Aww thank you so much!!
Absolutely delicious!
Hello!
For the ground espresso/instant coffee ingredient – are you literally adding the ground beans/instant granules or the shot of espresso made from them.
Hi! The dry grounds of instant espresso 🙂
Do you taste the coffee in this recipe? I wish I enjoyed the taste of coffee but I just can’t. I just want to know if I should omit it.
Thanks, I am so excited!
In my opinion, not at all, just super chocolatey. Espresso just enhances the rich flavor, but you can leave it out if you like.
This hot chocolate is absolutely decadent. I didn’t want the coffee flavor so only omitted that from the recipe. Perhaps it was because of this that I ever so slightly tasted the coconut. But it was just a nice mild flavor that adds to the drink. I could only drink half however. It was extremely rich and I calculated that in one portion only there is 21 grams of fat, slightly higher than what is written on the recipe. Not a huge difference but I don’t have a strong stomach for rich, high-in-fat foods or drinks. So, I’ve kept the other half for tomorrow and I’ll definitely keep doing this recipe but I’m going to try mixing half coconut milk and half a non-dairy milk. I think for my sensitive stomach that’ll cut down the fat and richness and, for me, it’ll be a better alternative. But it’s definitely delicious as is!
We tried this quick recipe on a whim, and it was phenomenal! The 3 year olds went nuts! Incredibly creamy & frothy, and I subbed a little orange extract vanilla on round 2. Great variation.
So wonderful to hear this Elizabeth!
I’ve tried making this with lite coconut milk from a can and it tasted really coconutty in my opinion. Lovely texture, and still enjoyable but the coconut was too prominent.
What brand are you using? I find brands to vary greatly in flavor.
My whole family has gone dairy free and I was feeling guilty because every vegan hot chocolate had been awful and I just wanted my kids to have hot chocolate on snow days 😝. Small things. This was it! The best! And we do not kiss the dairy. Thank you!
Made this with my three yo this am as a last minute request bc I forgot to restock her mix. Well we won’t be restocking her mix! She loves helping and letting her dump stuff into the blender and flip the switches (with supervision) is a way we can be together in the kitchen. She’s delighted with both the making AND the taste! She’s carefully carrying her mug announcing this is MY VEGAN HOT COCOA!! It’s nice bc I wasn’t a huge fan of the mix and she really didn’t like the taste that much anyway!! I’ll definitely be checking out more on your blog and from your book which I actually had gotten but hadn’t had a chance to look through!! N
Lovely recipe. My husband suddenly became lactose intolerant and he is a die hard hot chocolate fan. He’s been really upset about not being able to have hot chocolate. Now the problem is solved. This recipe is the best. German light coconut milk is too thick for this so pick up a Thai brand. I also tried it using coconut milk powder. This also works but it tastes more of coconut. Thank you so much for this recipe.
Wow, such an amazing recipe. I look forward to making this recipe soon.
This recipe is amazing! Perfectly sweet with all organic ingredients. I mixed coconut and almond milk since I had both open, used the blender method and putting the chocolate chips in the warm liquid was genius. I also added TJ’s vegan peppermint mini marshmallows on top. So good!
So delicious! I added a few drops of peppermint extract and wow! Also tried 1/2 cocoa powder and 1/2 carob powder just to cut down on caffeine at night. Will definitely be making this again, thank you . Your book is on my Xmas list, excited. 😊
So thrilled you loved it so much Shelley!
Ran out of normal milk and was looking for some coconut milk one. Used the normal silk runny one not thai canned. But still came out amazing. Thank u for this recipe.
Awesome!
Hi Brandi.
Can i substitute the lite coconut milk with soy milk?
I’ve never tried that but I think it should work! Let me know after you try it!
I’ve made this recipe many times and it is always delicious! I think about it like “sipping chocolate” since it is so rich.
This was good. I left out the espresso since I don’t drink coffee. I used regular semi sweet chips too. The ‘vegan’ chips cost a fortune where I live. I heated in the microwave as well.
So glad you enjoyed it!
I ‘ve read great critics about your recipe and I think it would be a good idea to try it. I havent tried many vegan alternatives yet but I usually like to add some hazelnut syrup in my hot chocolate, so I wondered whether hazelnut milk would give the flavour I wanted and whether I could replace the coconut milk with it. What do you suggest? <3
* sorry I'm not a native speaker
You can certainly try it!