Hot chocolate is a staple during the colder months. A cup of creamy hot cocoa made with chocolate hazelnut spread and a hint of cinnamon is a great way to warm up!
Not sure what part of the country you’re reading this from. I’m guessing it’s as cold as a penguin’s bootyhole where you’re located since you’ve stumbled across this recipe. However, hot cocoa is a year round treat for me. Maybe that’s what also brought you here, and of course I understand. I would drink a cup of hot cocoa everyday if my skin would allow it, but once a week works too.
The chocolate hazelnut spread makes the hot cocoa a bit richer, almost as if you’re drinking the spread. A pinch of ground cinnamon gives it a hint of spice, warming up the flavor a bit more.
What is chocolate hazelnut spread?
Chocolate hazelnut spread is a smooth blended mixture of cocoa powder, hazelnuts, sugar, vanilla, and palm oil, blended until smooth. The spread is the same consistency as peanut butter and is commonly used in desserts as well as breakfast.
There are several brands with their own version of this chocolatey goodness, but the most popular brand is Nutella. Use any brand you’d like for this hot cocoa.
How to make hot cocoa
Hot chocolate is super easy to make! Simply heat the ingredients in a small pot while whisking.
A bit of the milk is poured in with the dry ingredients while whisking to prevent clumping. Once all the milk is in, warm the mixture and add the chocolate hazelnut spread to melt.
Lastly, immediately remove the pot from the heat when steam forms. You don’t want the hot chocolate to be too hot to drink. In case it overheats, let it cool for a few minutes in a mug to cool down a bit before consuming.
The best type of milk to use for hot cocoa
Hot chocolate works with whatever milk you have available. 2% milk is a staple in my home, which I use for this recipe. If you want to use skim or whole, you’ll be good to go.
Premade hot cocoa mix
No need to keep packets of hot chocolate in your pantry any more. The dry ingredients in the recipe can be mixed ahead in a larger batch!
For a batch of hot chocolate mix, combine:
5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
10 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
The hot chocolate mix is very shelf stable. The shelf life is determined by which of the dry ingredients expires first. Store it in an airtight container.
The mix yields 8 servings of hot chocolate. Use 2 tablespoons of the mix for 1 serving of hot cocoa. Then warm the mix with a cup of milk and a splash of vanilla extract.
Toppings for hot cocoa
My favorite hot chocolate toppings are miniature marshmallows and whipped cream, used interchangeably (and sometimes together.) I like to dust a little ground cinnamon on top as well. Chocolate shavings are a fun garnish too!
Depending on my mood, I’ll add a small scoop of ice cream into the hot chocolate mug. It will slowly melt, and it makes the hot cocoa even creamier.
Tis the season for figs! This fig and white chocolate bread pudding with a hint of espresso and a drizzle of bourbon caramel is a delicious dessert for holiday gatherings!
Figs remind me a lot of my dad. We would eat Fig Newtons faithfully. It was our guilty pleasure! (Or maybe not since figs are healthy?) Bread pudding is another important thing in my life, so why not put the two together!
How to make bread pudding
Bread pudding is a fool proof recipe…something that you do not have to be a professional baker to execute. Old bread is cubed, soaked in an egg and milk mixture, and baked until fluffy. Serve it up with some ice cream and you’ve got a yummy dessert in about an hour and a half!
Day old bread is cubed, and mixed with toppings of your choice
Milk and egg mixture is mixed separately
Pour the mixture over the cubed bread in baking dish and let soak
Type of bread to use for bread pudding
It’s best to use bread on the sweeter side for bread pudding since this is a dessert. By “sweet”, I really mean to stay away from the savory breads. One rule to go by is to use a bread that you would use for french toast.
I prefer to use challah or brioche, but have used white bread in a pinch. The final product isn’t as good with white bread, but it gets the job done.
Why should I use old bread for bread pudding?
The cubed bread will soak in the milk and egg mixture for some time, which will make the bread pretty soggy if it’s fresher and soft. Using bread that is drier (aka, older) is much better to use. The bread will still soak up the milk, without the bread turning into a pile of mush.
When I know ahead of time that I’ll be making a batch of bread pudding, I cube the bread and leave it on the counter top at least a day before baking. Or, you can lightly toast the bread in the oven if it’s a last minute idea. Cool completely before soaking.
Soaking the bread
I took a shortcut with this recipe by soaking the bread cubes for 15 minutes right before baking. However, you can prep this a few hours ahead of time. Follow all the steps in the recipe card, tightly cover the pan with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to bake.
How do I know my bread has finished baking?
Bread pudding does not bake the same way as cakes and cupcakes. Using the “clean toothpick” method is not ideal here, since there should still be some moisture once finished.
The top layer will be lightly toasted once baked. The bread pudding will jiggle a bit when lightly shaking the pan. If you lightly press the top, it should be slightly springy.
Which figs should I use for this recipe?
Depending on where you live, fresh figs may be hard to find. I used dried mission figs for mine, but definitely use fresh if you can! Dried figs can be found in the same aisle as raisins in your local grocery store.
How to make caramel sauce from scratch
Homemade caramel sauce may seem a bit daunting to execute. Here’s a fool-proof way to make it, with a few simple ingredients!
In a small pot, pour the granulated sugar into a pile. Keep the sugar more towards the center if you can.
Next, add the water by slowly pouring it along the inside edges of the pot to surround the sugar. Do not stir this together just yet.
Add the sugar into a small sauce pot
Pour the water along the edge of the pot to surround the sugar.
Now it’s time to cook! Heat the pot on medium heat, still no stirring. Eventually, the pile of sugar will dissolve into the water. The liquid should lightly simmer, causing the sugar to melt and eventually caramelize.
Over a 5-7 minute time span, the liquid will go from clear to light brown in color. Once it’s the light brown shade, give the liquid a quick stir with a wooden spoon and take the pot off of the heat. Now it’s time to turn this into a nice buttery sauce!
Simmer on medium heat for 5-7 minutes, without stirring.
The sugar will turn light brown in color.
Once the sugar water gets this color, give it a quick stir and take off the heat.
The residual heat from the hot pot will continue to cook the caramel, so adding the cold ingredients will slow down the cooking. Add in the cold butter and heavy cream, but be cautious because there will be A LOT of steam! Stir the ingredients until fully combined.
Add cold butter to slow down the cooking.
Slowly pour in heavy cream and stir. Watch out for lots of steam!!!
Add additional flavorings if you prefer!
Additional flavorings can be added here. I’ve added vanilla extract and bourbon for this recipe.
Once incorporated, immediately transfer the sauce into a heat proof container so it no longer cooks. Congrats! You’ve just made homemade caramel sauce!
Storage:
The caramel sauce will last 2 weeks in the fridge in an airtight container. The sauce can be reheated in the microwave when ready to use.
Variations to the fig and white chocolate bread pudding recipe
I’ve added a bit of espresso to this recipe. This can be completely omitted, or replaced with decaf coffee.
Any milk that you have on hand will work for the bread pudding. I always have whole or 2% milk on hand, and use those interchangeably.
The caramel sauce contains bourbon, which can also be omitted.
What to serve with bread pudding
The best toppings for a scoop of warm bread pudding is either a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream! The slight heat will slowly melt the toppings, making it nice and ooey and gooey, like eating a warm brownie a la mode. And of course, the caramel sauce is another great addition!
1tablespoonespresso powderor 2 shots of cold espresso
2 tablespoonsunsalted buttermelted
Bourbon caramel sauce
1 cupgranulated sugar
¼cup water
1tablespoonunsalted buttercold
¼cupheavy creamcold
1tablespoonbourbon
1teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Bread pudding
Spray a 9×13 or square baking dish with pan spray.
Cut the bread into large cubes and add to a large bowl. Add the diced figs and white chocolate chips. Lightly toss to combine and pour into the baking dish. Set aside.
In the same bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until combined. Add in remaining ingredients and thoroughly mix with the whisk.
Slowly pour the milk mixture into the baking dish over the bread to soak for 15 minutes.
While the bread is soaking, turn on your oven and heat to 350 degrees. After the 15 minutes of soaking, bake the bread pudding for 40-45 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let it cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Top with a scoop of ice cream or dollop of whipped cream, and a drizzle of bourbon caramel.
Caramel sauce
Pour the sugar into the middle of a small cold pot.
Pour the water along the insides of the pot, so that the water surrounds the sugar.
Put the pot on the stove onto medium heat.
Let the sugar slowly dissolve with the water, without stirring. Eventually, all of the sugar will be dissolved and will slowly simmer. After 5-7 minutes the mixture will turn into a light brown color.
Once the mixture is light brown, lightly swirl the mixture with a wooden spoon for 10 more seconds.
Remove the pot from the heat. Add in the butter and quickly stir to incorporate. The butter will create steam, so be cautious to not burn yourself.
Slowly add in the heavy cream, stirring to incorporate and being cautious of the steam.
Stir in the remaining ingredients, and pour into a heat safe container to stop the cooking process.
Strawberry key lime sorbet is the perfect treat to close out a warm summer evening. With just 4 ingredients, you’ll fall in love with the ease of this no churn recipe!
Making a sorbet at home may seem a bit scary. But it’s one of the easiest homemade desserts that can be made! Just a few ingredients and a couple of hours for freezing is all you need!
How to make homemade sorbet
To make a simple sorbet base at home, all you’ll need is a blender, a freezer safe container, and fruit! No ice cream machine needed. Just blend, freeze, scoop, and serve!
For this particular recipe, there are additional ingredients to jazz up the strawberry sorbet base. The addition of an acid, key lime juice in this case, brightens up the flavor. Honey is a natural sweetener, which will help if you’re using strawberries outside of strawberry season. Lastly, the ginger adds a very slight spice kick that isn’t overwhelming (I love using Gourmet Garden’s ginger paste!)
Honey vs simple syrup for sorbet
Sorbet is commonly made with a simple syrup – equal parts of sugar and water simmered together and cooled.
While it’s delicious, it’s better to use the simple syrup method for a sorbet that will be used in an ice cream maker. The churning helps to make the sorbet base smoother, which is important for the liquid content being added.
Since this strawberry key lime sorbet is a no churn recipe, I used honey! Not only is it a natural sweetener, the water content is much lower so the churning isn’t necessary!
Sorbet storage
The homemade sorbet should be stored in a freezer safe container with an airtight container.
It’s shelf life is around a month. Ice crystals will start to form on top of the sorbet, but can be lightly scraped off before serving.
Frozen fruit vs fresh fruit for sorbet
This strawberry key lime sorbet recipe calls for fresh strawberries. However if you can not get your hand on any, frozen is a great alternative.
When the ingredients are blended together using frozen fruit, the end result will be more of a frozen slushy than a puree when using fresh fruit. Don’t worry though….it will still be delicious! Proceed with pouring the slushy into the freezer-safe container, and spread evenly before freezing for about an hour.
How to serve homemade sorbet
Once the sorbet is frozen, sit the container out at room temperature for about 5 minutes. The sorbet will be a bit easier to scoop this way.
If you want to be fake fancy, slice up some fresh fruit to serve on the side of the scooped sorbet!
What I love is that sorbet can also be served as a drink! Scoop the frozen sorbet into a blender, and pulse until smooth. Make it an adult beverage by adding a shot (or 2) of your favorite alcohol while blending. Or pour your favorite wine or hard seltzer over a scoop of sorbet in cups. Perfect summer treat!
If you’re looking for another easy dessert, you’ll definitely want to check out my no churn ice cream flavors: Cookie Butter, Cereal Milk, and S’mores!
Strawberry and key lime sorbet is the perfect treat to close out a warm summer evening.
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Freeze time3 hourshrs
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: key lime, no churn, no churn sorbet, sorbet, strawberries, strawberry
Servings: 4servings
Author: Crystal
Equipment
Blender
Freezer safe container with a lid
Ice cream scoop
Ingredients
1poundfresh strawberriesrinsed with stems removed
¼cuppure honey
3tablespoonskey lime juice
1teaspoonginger paste(optional)
Instructions
Place all the ingredients into a blender.
Quickly pulse the ingredients to break the strawberries into smaller pieces by quickly turning the blender on and off in 1 second intervals, for about 10 seconds in total.
Turn the blender on blend or puree for 20 seconds, mixing until smooth.
Pour the mixture into a freezer safe container. Cover tightly with plastic wrap or a tight-fitting lid. Freeze for 2-3 hours.
To serve: Remove sorbet from the freezer and let sit at room temperature for 5 minutes. Scoop and serve!
Notes
Ginger can be omitted from recipeFrozen strawberries can be replaced with fresh strawberries.
