Hot Chocolate Floats upgrade regular hot chocolate by adding ice cream, hot fudge sauce, and other gourmet toppings. Hot chocolate has never tasted so good!
Three words: Hot. Chocolate. Floats. Did I just blow your mind, or what?
Maybe the rest of the world has been enjoying hot chocolate floats for years, but for some reason this concept had literally never occurred to me before. I don’t know why not—I like ice cream, I love hot chocolate, and I adore anything that I can put in a cute mug and douse in fudge sauce. This is obviously my culinary soul mate.
But I had never heard of hot chocolate floats until my friend Jane threw a party last week. I arrived, she handed me a mug filled with peppermint ice cream and rich, steaming hot chocolate, and then the heavens opened and a choir of angels sang. That Jane, she knows what’s up.
You know how, when you add marshmallows or whipped cream to hot chocolate, they melt and create a sweet, rich foam on top of the chocolate that you can scoop up and slurp with a spoon? And if you’re really lucky, the marshmallows or cream will keep producing that foam and you can get a good half-mug’s worth before it’s gone and you’re left to drink the chocolate? Well, hot chocolate floats are like that, but are so much better because the frothy foamy goodness is actually melted ice cream, which is 65% more delicious than anything else.
Obviously, the idea behind hot chocolate floats is so simple that you don’t really need a recipe. Ice cream + hot chocolate = done. A reasonably competent monkey could make them, provided they had the ingredients and the wherewithal to work an ice cream scoop. I’m sure you can figure out the logistics yourselves.
But I am sharing a recipe for a good, thick cup of hot chocolate, because I do think that they’re much improved by using a homemade version. You’re turning these into a dessert extravaganza, for crying out loud, now is not the time to use that sorry powdered stuff! If you have a favorite hot chocolate of your own, feel free to substitute it, or make it with the powdered stuff and thumb your nose in my direction. It’s cool. As long as I can enjoy another hot chocolate float of my own, all’s right in the world.
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Frozen Hot Chocolate
Hot Chocolate Floats
Ingredients
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 3 cups milk, I used whole milk
- 2-3 tbsp brown sugar, to taste
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 6 oz bittersweet chocolate, good quality, finely chopped
- 4 oz milk chocolate, good quality, finely chopped
- 1 quart ice cream, vanilla, peppermint, and coffee all work well!
- Fudge sauce, try this homemade hot fudge sauce
- Chocolate shavings, or other decorations, optional
Instructions
- Whisk together the cream, milk, 2 tbsp brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a medium saucepan. Place the pan over medium heat and cook it, whisking occasionally, until it starts to simmer.
- Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the chopped chocolates, stirring until they’re melted. Carefully taste the mixture and add more sugar, if desired.
- Place 2-3 scoops of ice cream into mugs. Pour hot chocolate on top of the ice cream, and garnish with whipped cream, fudge sauce, chocolate shavings, or other toppings. Serve with spoons for maximum slurping.
Recipe Notes
Measuring Tips
Our recipes are developed using weight measurements, and we highly recommend using a kitchen scale for baking whenever possible. However, if you prefer to use cups, volume measurements are provided as well. PLEASE NOTE: the adage “8 oz = 1 cup” is NOT true when speaking about weight, so don’t be concerned if the measurements don’t fit this formula.
Want to learn more about baking measurements and conversion?
Nutrition
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Wow! I want to jump through the screen and slurp until I can’t slurp anymore! Might be easier to make it in my own kitchen though LOL. My kids are going to think I’m the best EVER! Thank you!
Could this be made using almond milk and still use the heavy whipping cream?
Hey Amber, I haven’t tried it myself however I think it should work totally fine. I would love to hear how it goes once you give it a try!
Amazing and my mind is
Definitely making this again for Valentine’s Day ❤️
Hi Jessica, I am so glad to hear you like it so much! Thank you!
I got dared too pur hot choco into my ice cream it was good
Haha sounds like a fun dare! Glad you enjoyed it. 🙂