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Chocolate, Chai & Banana Milkshake

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Whenever we have milk that needs to be used it always tends to end up in some kind of milkshake or hot chocolate experiment. You may have noticed recently that I am a little bit in love with Chai so I decided to try making a milkshake including three of my favourite ingredients. Chocolate. Chai. Banana.

This is just chocolatey enough with a hint of banana and a layer of warming spice. It makes enough for one larger glass and a smaller serving..perhaps for a little one?

You will need:

Approx 400ml of milk
2 tbsp Chai Latte powder ( I used Baru Spicy Chai Latte )
2 tbsp Cocoa Powder
1 large ripe Banana ( chopped)

Chocolate chai milkshake

Pop all ingredients into a blender and blitz until smooth. You can sweeten if you like but I find most chai powders are fairly sweet anyway.

Take this up a notch with some vanilla whipped cream on top and a dusting of cinnamon..or make it even more indulgent with a scoop of chocolate icecream thrown in to thicken it up.

Chocolate chai and banana milkshake

Chocolate chai and banana milkshake

Enjoy it straightaway with a few biscuits…of course.

*In order to test this recipe thoroughly I tried warming it up and drank it as a hot chocolate which was surprisingly tasty but I definitely prefer it as a shake.

The kCook – Hot Chocolate Recipe

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I was recently sent a kCook from Kenwood to review and create some recipes.

If you don’t know much about the kCook, it’s a really clever product. It’s a neat, compact machine which takes up very little space in your kitchen yet delivers a whole host of uses. There are options for steaming one pot cooking and normal cooking. You can use it to make sauces, main meals, desserts, drinks, dips and more. Also there is an accompanying app which has 200 recipes for you to use.

I’m just getting to grips with it and I promise to share a more exciting recipe with you soon but for now I just wanted to let you know about a recipe I created for a very rich, dark hot chocolate. I tried the standard hot choc recipe which is on the app and it’s fabulous but being me I had to make up my own. I love dark hot chocolate and this is rich and luxurious. Thick and creamy without being sickly.

You will need:

500ml of semi skimmed milk
150g of dark chocolate ( approx 50% )
100g sugar
1tsp vanilla extract

Place your chocolate in the kCook with the chopping attachment in the pot. Put the lid on and chop for about 20seconds. Remove the chopper and add the stirring attachment. Add the milk and sugar, replace lid, press the start/pause button and reduce the cooking time to 6 minutes. Remove lid and pot carefully. Pour into a large jug first before serving with mini marshmallows.

Serves 2 – large mugs or Mason jars.

This hot chocolate is thick and indulgent so I don’t think it needs added cream but if you want to take it a step further just add a dollop of whipped cream and some sprinkled chocolate bits on top.

KCook hot chocolate

Christmas Drinks Guide

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Most of us have a drink or two at Christmas time, whether it be at the works Christmas Do or around the dinner table. We don’t tend to drink that much at home but at Christmas and New Years we like to try different drinks or make cocktails etc.

Here are a few of the different drinks we will be enjoying this festive season:

A Pretty Pink Prosecco – I use Villa Vincenta Prosecco NV from Waitrose to make this drink along with raspberry or strawberry sirop from The Preservation Society and it’s just incredible. You could garnish with a strawberry or raspberry to make it look even more appetising.

Salted Caramel Hot chocolate – I use the Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate from Gu along with Tesco Salted Caramel Liqueur for THE best hot chocolate. Served of course with piles of cream and chocolate shavings. YUM.

After Eight Cocktail – I use Baileys or any supermarket Irish Cream to make this cocktail and add some whole milk, chocolate milkshake powder and peppermint flavouring. You could garnish it with an actual After Eight on the side of the glass or a candy cane.

As well as cocktails and hot chocolate we need wine for the table and to have with cheese and crackers. I’ve got all my wine needs covered with this Festive Box from Waitrose
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And the Bin series from Lindemans
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After dinner we may indulge in a glass of Cockburns Port:

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And we always, always have mulled wine and of course Bucks Fizz! What drinks do you always enjoy over the festive period?

* Some of the products mentioned have been gifted.

Salted Caramel Luxury Hot Chocolate

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Oh my. This stuff is good. If you liked all the flavoured hot chocolates and coffees on offer during the festive season you will love this.

You will need:

1 cup of milk ( I used skimmed but you could use whole for extra indulgence)
1 small handful of chocolate buttons
1 tbsp of salted caramel sauce – recip ehere
2tsps of good quality hot chocolate or cocoa powder
Squirty Cream to top and a drizzle of sauce

If you are using a Vitamix place all ingredients apart from the squirty cream in the blender and starting at variable 1 increase to variable 2 and speed 10 and blend for around 4 minutes until hot. If you don’t have a Vitamix place ingredients in a saucepan and whisk well over a moderate heat.

Top with squirty cream and a drizzle of salted caramel.

This is utterly gorgeous and you may burn your tongue if you don’t exercise a little restraint 😉

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Enjoy 😀

Jamie Oliver Epic Hot Chocolate

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I first saw this recipe on one of Jamie Oliver’s Christmas cookery shows a few years ago. The Jamie Oliver Epic Hot Chocolate Mix. I decided to give it a whirl and was so impressed I swore to make it up into jars for gifts for friends and family. I didn’t end up doing it until last Christmas when I made small jars to place in my Christmas hampers and everyone loved it.

I’ve made this on the stovetop and it’s a thick gooey indulgent cross between a hot chocolate and a chocolate dip.

Anyway without further waffling ( Oh did I mention it is really good served with waffles? )  I promised to share the recipe so here we go:

Jamie Oliver Epic Hot Choc

You will need:

2 tablespoons Horlicks/malted milk powder
2 tablespoons cornflour
3 tablespoons icing sugar
4 tablespoons quality organic cocoa
100 g good-quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), finely grated – Chill your chocolate first to make it easier to grate
1 pinch ground cinnamon
1 pinch sea salt

*Ingredients can be multiplied depending on how big your jars and how generous you feel.

Combine all ingredients and place into a small jar. Tie a piece of pretty ribbon around the rim and give to someone you love.

Here is the method to making the hot choc:

To make two pints, place 2 pints of semi skimmed (or full fat for ultimate indulgence) milk in a saucepan and bring almost to the boil before adding 10 tbsp of your mix, whisk in quickly and leave to bubble for a few min before serving. Your mixture should be thick and luxurious.

*Write the instructions on a small piece of brown card and attach to your jars.

You could serve with toasted marshmallows or waffles/churros to dip in 😀

jamie oliver epic hot chocolate

 

Got Milk?

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I don’t drink enough milk. In fact I rarely drink any. I never have time to have cereal in the mornings and I realised the other day that other than drop in my tea I hadn’t had any all week. Not having enough calcium in your diet is not good,especially when you spent 5 years of your adulthood on the contraceptive injection which can cause osteoporosis. Anyway I’m rambling. When I was pregnant I made sure I drank milk,in fact I drank a ton of it due to horrendous heartburn but since I stopped breastfeeding last year I have stopped taking care of my body as much which is sad.

I have decided to have a milky drink/ milk based smoothie etc every day to get some extra calcium in and enjoy it too.

This started this week and so far I’ve enjoyed Nutella hot chocolate and Banana&Vanilla smoothie. Yum. What a good excuse to drink delicious things. I take my hot choc in an insulated cup on my journey to work. It smells so good I’ve had envious looks all week. Smug smiles from me until I get to work and see I have chocolate milk over my nose 😮

You don’t really need recipes for these drinks as they are self explanatory but here you go:

Nutella Hot Choc

1/2 pint of semi skimmed milk ( you could use any type)
1 tbsp Nutella
Approx 1 inch of boiling water

Heat your milk. I zap it in the microwave for 2 mins. Mix your Nutella with your boiling water and then top up with the boiling milk and stir well. If you like a more cocoa..y type of drink add a spoonful of drinking chocolate powder ( such a cadburys or green and blacks) but its truly delicious just left alone. No sugar,no extra flavours just warm hazelnuty Chocolatey milk. Ahhh. Bliss.

My love affair with Nutella hot chocolate began last June in France. Hot chocolate tastes even better on holiday.

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Banana Vanilla Smoothie

1/2 pint of skimmed milk
1 ripe banana
1 tsp of vanilla essence ( I use NielsenMasseys)
4/5 ice cubes

Blend all of above in smoothie maker or blender. Serve. You could also add strawberries. If you want to be super healthy add a handful of baby leaf spinach. You won’t really taste it but its so good for you.

So there you go,simple delicious ways of getting your calcium requirements. Or you could just eat cheese…hmm but that’s another blog post.