Pepper's Spicy Cocoa

WOW! This really warms up the back of the throat!!! Very tasty and easy. And much more economical than the packaged brand I have used (plus I can control the amount of sugar) I subbed Splenda for the white sugar, but kept the brown sugar. I cut the recipe in half to make a jar just big enough for the two of us to use up. Made for Spring 2011 PAC game.

We minimized the recipe to try just a couple of cups, so our measurements weren't exact. Ours came out a little dark (too much cocoa), but the overall very nice! I am going to make a half-batch next time and get the measurements more exact. We really liked it!!! (And that's saying a lot because my other half makes the best traditional/sweet hot chocolate I've ever had. :)

I just made this dry-mix to use later today and so far Im very pleased with it. The mix comes together super quickly and smells heavenly! :) It might have a bit too much nutmeg for my taste, but well see about that later. Ill come back to update my star rating and comment on the taste of the cocoa once Ive drunk it.<br/>THANK YOU SO MUCH for sharing this wonderful gift recipe with us, unicornbeauty!<br/>Made and reviewed for one of my Preemie Babies during Pick A Chef March 2011.<br/>Update: As of May 2011 I have prepared and drunk the dry mix as a cocoa and it was lovely! The flavours worked great together and all the spices were very balanced. It is indeed quite spicy, but not overly so. Im going to give it 5 stars now. :)

I am always looking for mixes to put in my gift baskets so I had to try this one. It certainly could not be easier to put together. It smells great and tastes quite good and unique. The next time I make it, I would reduce the nutmeg and the chilli powder a bit but that is just my preference. Thx for the recipe unicornbeauty. Made for Spring Pick a Chef 2011.