Homemade Chocolate Milk With Cocoa Powder

How to make the best homemade chocolate milk with unsweetened cocoa powder and honey. This healthy and super easy recipe is made without chocolate syrup or refined sugar!

Chocolate milk is our family’s favorite drink to have with breakfast on special days like holidays and birthdays. Smooth, rich, creamy and of course deliciously chocolatey. There’s nothing quite like a cold glass of chocolate milk!

But if you’ve never made your own chocolate milk before, you don’t know what you’re missing! It’s so much better than store-bought, and can be MUCH healthier. Especially when it’s made with honey and cocoa powder instead of chocolate syrup.

Have you tried making your own homemade hot cocoa mix yet?

It’s one of those things that once you see how easy it is to make good old fashioned chocolate milk from scratch, you’ll never feel the need to go back to store-bought!

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Why you’ll like this recipe

• delicious – if the only kind of chocolate milk you’ve had was from the grocery store, the you are in for a treat! Chocolate milk made with cocoa powder and honey is so much more less heavy but has an even more rich chocolate flavor because it’s made with real chocolate.
• healthy – the amount of sugar in store-bought chocolate milk is just nuts! This healthier recipe is made with real cocoa powder and naturally sweetened with honey instead.
• lighter and less sugary – homemade chocolate milk doesn’t leave you feeling heavy and like you just drank a cup of sugary chocolate syrup. It’s light and has more of a dark chocolate flavor.
• easy to make – this is such a simple recipe, it’s literally two steps: heat the ingredients, stir and you’re done!
• quick to make – it takes about 15 minutes to make a 1/2 gallon of chocolate milk!
• only 3 simple ingredients – milk, cocoa powder and honey. That’s it! Of course you can add vanilla and a pinch of salt for an even more delicious chocolate milk, but you don’t have to.
• can be made in advance – make a batch of chocolate milk to store in the fridge for about a week. Just give it a good shake in case the chocolate has settled on the bottom, and enjoy!

What you need to Make chocolate milk with cocoa powder

ingredients

unsweetened cocoa powder – high quality cocoa powder will give you the best results, but you can definitely use any other types of cocoa powder you might already have in your pantry.

honey – honey is a healthier way to sweeten your chocolate milk. If you’re thinking honey flavored chocolate milk sounds weird, don’t worry, you’d never know this recipe was made with honey from the taste!

milk – you can use any type of milk you like too! Skim, 2%, whole, half and half (for a richer chocolate milk), almond milk, oat milk…you name it! I like to use whole milk because its a good balance between healthy and fatty.

optional add ins:

vanilla extract – adding vanilla extract to the chocolate milk really brings this recipe to the next level. Just add a teaspoon to the pot after you remove it from the heat.

sea salt – a pinch of sea salt actually enhances the sweetness of the honey in this recipe.

supplies

saucepan – just a medium saucepan for heating up your ingredients on the stovetop.

whisk – using a whisk makes the hot chocolate more smooth and creamy.

jar and lid – it’s best to store this recipe in a jar with a lid if you’re making a large batch of chocolate milk or planning to drink it later on. That way you can shake it up to keep the chocolate from setting on the bottom.

FAQ about Homemade Chocolate milk With Cocoa Powder

why make chocolate milk with cocoa powder

Most chocolate milk recipes are made with chocolate syrup which is not even considered “real chocolate”. It’s also so high in sugars that just 2 Tablespoons of chocolate syrup contains half of your recommended daily intake of sugar!

Cocoa powder on the other hand is rich in nutrients that can actually protect you from heart disease and reduce inflammation in your body. Making chocolate milk with cocoa powder makes an otherwise unhealthy drink into a nutritious one.

can you make chocolate milk without chocolate syrup?

To make really good chocolate milk without chocolate syrup, all you need is cocoa powder and a sweetener like sugar or honey.

can you just mix cocoa powder with milk?

If you mix cocoa powder with a glass of cold milk, you’ll see that they don’t mix well at all. The cocoa powder gets very clumpy and floats on top of the milk.

To combine cocoa powder with milk, you can do one of two things:

• blend them in a blender or use an immersion blender until smooth.
• heat the cocoa powder with a small amount of the milk, stirring until the mixture is smooth. Remove from the heat and slowly add the rest of the milk.

is milk with cocoa powder healthy?

Yes! Cacao products that are minimally processed are rich in minerals and contain flavanols which are known for their antioxidant anti-inflammatory properties. Cocoa powder has many other health benefits and can even reduce the risk of cancer, diabetes and heart diseases!

Cocoa and milk together make a delicious and nutritious drink that is an excellent source of calcium, magnesium, iron, vitamins and minerals. Chocolate milk made with cocoa powder can actually give you a little boost of energy too since it contains a small amount of caffeine.

what cocoa powder is the healthiest?

The healthiest cocoa powders are the least processed ones. The most nutritious cacao powder I have found is made by Navitas Organics. Labeled as a “super food” it’s the richest in magnesium, iron, minerals, fiber and antioxidants.

how to make Chocolate Milk With Cocoa Powder

For a singe serving

Heat the Cocoa Powder and Honey – combine the cocoa powder, honey and 1/4 cup of milk in a microwave safe cup. Heat for 30 seconds, then stir until smooth.

Add The Rest of the Milk – Gradually stir in the rest of the milk, a little at a time so that it doesn’t end up with any chocolatey clumps.

Chill – Stick the cup of chocolate milk in the fridge for at least 15 minutes to cool before drinking.

For a half gallon

Heat the Cocoa Powder and Honey – combine the cocoa powder, honey and 1 cup of milk in a medium saucepan. Heat over low heat, stirring constantly until the cocoa powder is completely dissolved and the mixture is smooth.

Add The Rest of the Milk – Remove from heat and gradually stir in the rest of the milk, a little at a time so that it doesn’t end up with any chocolatey clumps.

tips for success

To Serve – After the chocolate milk has chilled in the fridge, give it a good shake/stir to make sure the chocolate mixture hasn’t settled on the bottom. After shaking, let it sit for a few minutes so the bubbles on top are mostly gone.

To Store – Store the chocolate milk in a jar with a lid so that you can easily shake it up before serving it. Homemade chocolate milk will last until the “best by date” on the gallon of milk you used.

Variations – To make chocolate milk with powdered sugar and cocoa powder, mix 1 Tablespoon of powdered sugar and 1 Tablespoon of cocoa powder in the blender with 1.5 cups of milk. Blend until smooth.

Substitutions – In place of whole milk, you can use 2%, skim milk or even non-dairy milks. Maple syrup can be used instead of honey.

More Desserts and treats from scratch On The Blog:

If you liked this recipe, I think you’ll really enjoy these other healthy desserts on the blog!

• Healthy Fudgesicles
• Honey Sweetened Whipped Cream
• Honey Lollipops Without Sugar
• Healthy Homemade Peanut Butter Eggs
• Greek Yogurt Swirl Popsicles

I hope you love this recipe for homemade chocolate milk with cocoa powder! If you make it, I’d love for you to come back and leave a comment and rating so that I know how you like it!

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