The only warm drink you need this winter is this Baileys hot chocolate. Bozzy, creamy, and perfectly thick. It has the right consistency and it’s mixed with the two types of chocolate, cocoa powder, and a great kick of liquor cream. I’ve been wanting a good hot chocolate recipe for years, and this one never disappoints.
Rich Baileys Hot Chocolate
There’s nothing like a shared mug of boozy Baileys hot chocolate with the ones we love in the wintertime. We all have different preferences when it comes to hot chocolate, but there’s one thing we all agree on: every hot chocolate should be perfectly thick and creamy, should have a real chocolate flavor and a generous amount of toppings.
Throughout the year’s I was trying different hot chocolate recipes. All too often, the standard hot chocolate served in the bars, knows to be without any wow flavor or overly thick (just like pudding), which is not the best, and with little or no toppings.
This winter, I finally spent a good amount of time in the kitchen testing this recipe until I created something that tasted like a real hot chocolate. A recipe that’s spot on – with the right ingredients, thickness, spiced up with some baileys liquor, and some delicious creamy whipping cream liquor topping for more flavor.
Why this Bailey’s Hot Chocolate is so special?
- It is perfectly creamy and thick but doesn’t get like a pudding when it cools down.
- It has the right sweetness, as it’s balanced with the dark chocolate and Bailey’s liquor cream.
- I used cornstarch and not heavy cream for thickener, making it way easier to prepare and won’t get overly thick if you boil it for some time. The chances to make a mistake are down to 1%.
Ingredients needed to make this creamy hot chocolate:
- Milk – preferably full fat, but any other can work as well.
- Dark Chocolate, the one that is 70%, and as always the higher quality, the better result
- Milk Chocolate, to give it a great balance with the dark chocolate.
- Cocoa Powder, to boost the flavor of the dark chocolate
- Corn Starch additionally thicken the hot chocolate
- Sugar, either brown or white
- Baileys Irish Cream
- Toppings: whipping cream with Bailye’s liquor cream /marshmallows
How to make this recipe?
At first I would recommend having all the ingredients measured, as process goes pretty quickly and you won’t have time to measure while the chocolate is on the pot.
Cut the chocolate into chunks, add it to a saucepan over medium heat with a splash of milk, wait for the chocolate to melt while whisking from time to time and making sure that it won’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Once the chocolate is melted, add the cocoa powder and sugar. Whisk until everything is melted and smooth.
In a small bowl, mix the corn starch with a tbsp of milk and add it to the hot chocolate, whisk again;
Slowly pour the cold milk while whisking.
Wait for the milk to start boiling while whisking every 20-30 seconds. Once it starts boiling, take it out of the heat and add the liquor.
Whip some cream with another tablespoon of Bailey’s cream add it over the hot chocolate. Serve warm and enjoy!
Tips!
- Have all the ingredients prepared in advance, because once the chocolate starts melting, everything from this point happens really quick.
- The chocolate will melt quickly, and if you don’t move quickly to the next step, it can burn and get stuck to the pan.
- Always use a whisk when preparing hot chocolate to avoid lumps and burnt hot chocolate on the bottom of the pan.
- Whisk constantly while pouring the milk so that all chocolate can get incorporated with the milk
- Also, whisk while you wait for the milk to start boiling so you don’t burn the bottom of the saucepan
Hot chocolate toppings:
- Marshmallows, if you are in a rush and don’t want to spend more time preparing toppings, marshmallows would fit perfectly.
- whipping cream and caramel
What to use if you don’t have Liquor cream?
The liquor is here to add some boozy twist to the hot chocolate, Baileys is the best one as it has a creamy similar consistency to the coffee. If you don’t have the Baileys cream, you can use any other liquor cream that you prefer or have. Please note that if you decide to use another cream, you might need to add less or more as all the liquors are different in alcohol levels, consistency, etc.
If you prefer, you can totally skip this step and make a non-alcoholic hot chocolate.
Boozy Baileys Hot Chocolate Recipe
Ingredients
- 350g milk
- 150g Baileys Irish cream
- 70g Dark Chocolate
- 50g milk chocolate
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp corn starch
- 50g whipping cream
Instructions
- Chop the dark chocolate, and transfer it into a saucepan together with 4tbsp of the milk, melt on low-medium heat.
- Once it starts melting add the cocoa powder and whisk again.
- In a small bowl, add the cornstarch and sugar with 2 tbsp of the milk.
- Whisk until the chocolate is smooth and melted, but don’t durn it. Slowly start pouring the milk into the chocolate while constantly whisking.
- Once all the milk is in and the chocolate is fully incorporated, whisk every 20-30seconds waiting for the milk to start boiling.
- Boil for 10-20seconds and take it out of the heat.
- Add the Baileys Irish cream and whisk again.
- Add 2 tbsp Bailey’s cream to the whipping cream and whisk with a mixer until thick and creamy.
- Pour the hot chocolate into a mug and add spoon the whipping cream on top!
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