Hot Chocolate Bar Board

And today’s board is perfect for snacking, perfect for drinking, and perfect for warming you up from the inside out.

Today, we’re making a Hot Chocolate Bar Board!

This board is so fun and whimsical! We’re loading it up with sweets that taste delicious both in and alongside a big ol’ mug of fudgy hot chocolate. So, let’s get to it!

Let’s start with the namesake of this board. The hot chocolate! My board (actually, I used a galvanized serving tray for this one) was large enough to hold a couple seasonal mugs, so I let them add some height to this board. I used packets of hot chocolate and stuck them right in the mugs. And, using packets allows you to offer a variety of flavors so your loved ones can choose their own adventure. If you don’t have the room for the mugs on your tray, offer them right next to the tray, and just line up the packets right on the board. However, if you have a container of loose hot chocolate, you could certainly display it in a fun bowl with a scoop that let’s everyone know how much they need to use for one cup. Serve hot milk in a fun carafe on the side, and the drink part of this board is ready to go.

To fill in our board we’re going to thoughtfully choose items that we can stir right into our mug of hot chocolate or that would taste great as an accompanying snack. I like to offer a few different flavors of chocolate bars, some mini candy canes, and some seasonal miniature chocolate candy to scatter throughout the board. I also like to have some peppermint pretzels and crème filled wafer cookies on the board, but you could really use any kind of cookie. All cookies are perfect for dunking in hot chocolate!

Now, we all know that you can’t have hot chocolate without marshmallows. So, it’s super fun to offer a variety of marshmallow options, as well. Of course, mini marshmallows are the obvious choice. But this year, I found some themed marshmallows made by Peeps in Christmas tree and snowman shapes. Stuffed Puffs are also a super fun option, because they come in a couple of different flavors. So, you’re getting a two for one addition to your drink!

Since this is a clearly seasonal board, I like to add an extra dash of pizazz with a theme shaped ramekin of some kind. You can typically find smaller sized holiday serving dishes in the Bullseye Playground section of Target, at Homegoods, or even at the craft store. And if you’re a forward thinker like me, grab some this year after the holiday when everything is on sale, and store them for next year’s festivities!

Ok, everyone! Our sweet tooths have been satisfied, for now. So, it’s time to shift into a less obvious holiday themed board tomorrow. And, I think tomorrow’s board is my second favorite of this series. So, make sure you don’t miss it.

I hope you enjoy! And, let’s drink!