Fennel & Sea Salt Drinking Chocolate

Well here we are, the week of Christmas! Are you ready? I was hoping to be able to pull together a festive, holiday post and wasn’t sure I would be able to pull it off, but I made it happen and am so excited to share it with you. Is there anything better than a cup of hot cocoa enjoyed on Christmas eve by the fire with loved ones and/or a good read? I think not, and I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I have.

If you’ve grown up in the average American home, you’ve probably been used to that dry hot cocoa mix that you can buy in little packets to have conveniently whenever that craving comes for a cup of warm hot cocoa with marshmallows. I definitely have memories of “classic cocoa” growing up after coming in from playing in the snow throughout winter. It was perfect.

But… then I discovered how easy it is to make it from scratch and of course, how much better it really is. Absolutely delicious! I was inspired to develop this Fennel & Sea Salt Drinking Chocolate on my recent trip to England and couldn’t help but come home and share it with you. The fennel has an ever so slight taste- just enough to make it interesting in the best way. I originally developed the recipe without infusing the milk with the fennel stalks, thinking the fennel flavor would come through the infused sugar would be sufficient. What I realized though is that the intensity of the dark chocolate covered it up, so make sure to infuse the milk prior. If you want even more of a distinct fennel taste, I’d recommend using a drop of two of Fennel essential oil as the final step before serving, to taste. *Make sure to only use essential oils which you can ingest.

You can top a cup with whipped cream, but honesty it’s delicious right on its own. I also discovered last night that it’s kind of *the best* sipped cold. Probably the best chocolate milk I’ve ever had… but I’ll let you decide for yourself! You can also make a double batch and store in the fridge in a mason jar for a few days, reheating a cup at a time as you please. This would also make the perfect DIY gift, and even a great stocking stuffer. Just gift it chilled in an 8 oz mason jar with a little twine and a festive gift tag. Easy as that!

Well, a very Merry Christmas to you and yours. I hope your holiday is lovely, relaxing and beautiful in every way. Make sure to check back next week for a New Year’s post you won’t want to miss! It’ll be right on time to help you with any New Year’s parties you’re hosting or attending.

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Fennel & Sea Salt Drinking Chocolate

Serves 4-6

4 c. organic whole milk

3 Fennel stalks, including fronds, 2-3 ” long

4 oz 70% dark organic chocolate, chopped

2 T. dutch cocoa powder

1/2 t. sea salt

Fennel sugar

1/2 c. white sugar

1 T. fennel fronds, rinsed and dried

In food processor, blend sugar and fennel until the fennel is properly infused into the sugar. Make sure to watch it and don’t puree too long, or the sugar will begin to clump.

In a medium saucepan, warm milk on medium low heat, stirring consistently. When warmed, remove from heat and add fennel stalks. Cover and allow to infuse for 20-30 minutes.

Place infused milk back on the stove, remove fennel and discard. Warm milk on low again, stirring consistently. When warmed, add cocoa powder and blend in with a whisk quickly so that no clumps form. Add chopped chocolate, 3 T. fennel sugar and sea salt, stirring until melted. Keep whisking and allow to simmer on low for 2 minutes to thicken.

Remove from heat and serve. Note: drinking chocolate is much thicker than regular hot chocolate, so a 4 oz serving size is recommended. You can also spike it with 1 oz of whiskey which is absolutely delicious!

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