Hot Chocolate – A Morning Ritual

Hot Chocolate, Drinking Chocolate & Sipping Chocolate

My morning ritual includes starting the day with some form of chocolate, usually a mug of hot chocolate.

I like slow starts to my days and taking the time to prepare and enjoy a mug of hot chocolate is how I choose to begin my day.  I am not a coffee or tea drinker, never have been, do not ever expect to be.  So, I choose hot chocolate. 

I call my morning hot chocolate my morning ritual.

Here is the thing, it’s almost always the same, yet different.

It begins with filling the kettle and turning it on.  While it is boiling, I grab a mug, usually my favourite, and walk down the hall to my office, which is where the chocolate lives.  Then I pause and think about what I want.  Sometimes I feel the flavours within a certain bar or origin calling me, other days I am up for anything, while sometimes I reach into my bits and bites jar and grab a few mismatched pieces to combine.  I put several pieces, usually about 2 pieces of chocolate, maybe 8-12 grams, into the bottom of my mug and head back to the kitchen to see if the kettle has boiled.

Then I pour the hot water into the mug, just enough to cover the chocolate, occasionally a bit more, and let it sit for about five minutes.  As it sits I put on some music and grab a book about chocolate to read after my drink.  Sometimes I open the blind or walk a few times around the main floor as I wait for my chocolate to melt.

Next, I use a frother, just a small battery powered one, and mix up my drink, combining the hot water and melty soft chocolate into a smooth drinking chocolate.

So good!

Then I head to my cozy chair near the window and slowly savour the drink.  Sometimes I notice the flavours that pop out, other times my mind drifts to a peaceful place.  Some days I am done the hot chocolate in minutes, other times it takes closer to half an hour before I am finished.  There is never any rush to finish.  After my drinking chocolate I usually read about chocolate for thirty minutes before getting to the rest of my day.

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The only time I do not begin the day with hot chocolate are days when I swim.  I prefer to swim on an empty stomach, ideally first thing.  Those days I have a bite of chocolate after my swim before a proper breakfast, likely waiting on a hot chocolate followed by a read later in the day.  If I do swim first thing it usually means I am headed to work, so I wait until I am back home to enjoy a sipping chocolate.

You can also check out my previous post about hot chocolate here.

How do you enjoy your hot chocolate?  Do you enjoy hot chocolate all year long?