This easy homemade vegan hot chocolate mix is full of all the flavor of classic hot chocolate, made in minutes from simple ingredients. (It also makes a great edible gift!)
When it’s cold or rainy outside, my kids crave a big mug of hot chocolate, (Honestly, same!), so right now seems like the perfect time for our easy vegan hot chocolate recipe!
We’ve been making this healthier take on hot chocolate for years. It’s more naturally sweetened, dairy-free, and downright delicious! Plus, you can make the mix to keep on hand any time your hot cocoa craving strikes.
And, best of all, this cozy vegan hot cocoa mix starts with 5 simple ingredients. Here’s all you need to get started…
Start With Simple Ingredients
So, what do you need for this homemade hot cocoa mix? Just 5 simple ingredients! Let’s take a look…
- Vegan Chocolate or Chocolate Chips. IMO, the BEST homemade hot chocolate has actual chocolate in it! Pick up your favorite dairy-free & vegan chocolate chips or use a good-quality chocolate bar for even more elevated flavor. We usually use dark chocolate chips for richer flavor, but semi-sweet chocolate also works!
- Coconut Sugar. For a more naturally sweetened option, we usually make this vegan hot cocoa with coconut sugar, but vegan granulated sugar (cane sugar) also works here!
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder. Then, you’ll need some unsweetened cocoa powder. We usually go with Natural cocoa powder rather than Dutch-processed cocoa for this recipe, but you do you!
- A Pinch of Salt. My secret to the best dairy-free hot chocolate is a tiny pinch of salt. Just a *tiny* bit of salt really balances the flavors and elevates the notes of chocolate & vanilla.
- Maybe: Vanilla Bean Powder. IF you have it, or it’s easy for you to get, we LOVE adding a bit of vanilla bean powder. This type of vanilla is made from ground vanilla beans, so it’s PACKED with real vanilla flavor. Don’t have it? Just add a few drops of vanilla extract to your cup later. Easy-peasy.
- Some Dairy-Free Milk. Last, but not least, you’ll need some plant-based milk. Whatever you normally drink at home will be great, whether it’s unsweetened almond milk, cashew milk, soy milk, oat milk, etc.
Our go-to chocolate chips for this recipe are Enjoy Life, but you can try Guittard (dairy-free, but not certified vegan), or your favorite brand (like Hu Kitchen or Lily’s) instead, depending on your needs.
How To Make Vegan Hot Chocolate, Step By Step
As always, you can find the full recipe with ingredient amounts, detailed step-by-step instructions, and tips in the recipe card below.
- Make The Mix. In a blender or food processor, combine chocolate chips, coconut sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and vanilla powder (if using). Pulse or blend until no large chunks of chocolate remain. (At this point, you can store the hot chocolate mix in an airtight jar for about 2 months!)
- Heat The Milk. To make a cup of hot chocolate, heat 8 ounces of non-dairy milk in the microwave or in a small saucepan on the stove over medium heat until it’s steaming.
- Mix Up Your Cup. Stir in 1 1/2 to 2 Tablespoons hot cocoa mix (depending on how chocolatey you like it!) and whisk or stir to dissolve. If you didn’t add vanilla bean powder to the cocoa mix, you may like to add 1-2 drops of vanilla to your cup as well at this point.)
- Add Some Fun Finishes! Garnish with vegan marshmallows, coconut whipped cream, crushed candy cane, chocolate syrup, or your favorite mix-ins!
Elevate Your Cocoa With These Twists!
Now that you know how to make our vegan hot chocolate mix, let’s talk about how to take a delicious mug of hot chocolate to the next level.
- Vegan Marshmallows. Some vegan mini marshmallows, like Dandies or Trader Joe’s brand, are a great option! Keep your eye out at the holidays for fun seasonal flavors like peppermint marshmallows or pumpkin spice marshmallows! (Dandies even makes vegan marshmallow fluff these days!)
- Crushed Candy Cane. Yum Earth candy canes are vegan! You can stir your cocoa with a candy cane, or crush it up to stir in. Either way is delicious!
- Coconut Whipped Cream. Pick up some CocoWhip, Vegan TruWhip, or another non-dairy whipped cream (you can find oat milk, almond milk & coconut milk whipped cream these days!)
- Chocolate Syrup. Play up the chocolate flavor even more with a drizzle of chocolate syrup in your cup. When made with vegan sugar, this chocolate sauce is vegan! (And it tastes like absolute heaven!)
- Extra Chocolate. Can you tell I’m a chocolate fan? Try some shaved chocolate, mini chocolate chips, and more!
- Sprinkles. Making this for kids? Add some sprinkles on top of the whipped cream!
- Extra Flavors. Add a few drops of almond extract, orange extract, or peppermint extract for extra flavor! Or, you can add a pinch of cayenne pepper and cinnamon for a vegan Mexican hot chocolate vibe.
FAQ + Tips And Tricks For The Best Vegan Hot Chocolate
What’s The Best Milk For Vegan Hot Chocolate? This will pretty much always be up to personal preference, but my best suggestion is to use what you normally drink. For us, that’s unsweetened plain almond milk, but soy milk, cashew milk, and oat milk all work! Or, you can use some canned full-fat coconut milk for added richness. (I’d recommend 2/3 your favorite non dairy milk + 1/3 coconut milk if you go this route.)
Can I Use Water Instead? Nope. Not with this hot cocoa recipe. If you use hot water instead of dairy-free milk, it will taste like chocolate water. Ew. I promise it’s worth using milk instead!
How Long Does This Hot Chocolate Mix? When stored in a mason jar or airtight container, this homemade hot chocolate mix will keep about 2 months!
What Brands of Hot Chocolate Are Vegan? If our homemade mix isn’t in the cards for you, you can keep an eye out a the grocery store for vegan brands of hot chocolate, like Swiss Miss Non-Dairy, Starbucks Double Chocolate, Lake Champlain, Raaka, Siete, and Tcho. Our favorite store-bought vegan hot chocolate brand is Silly Cow, which is non-dairy and made with cane sugar.
Recipe Card
🌟 Did you make this recipe?
Leave a star rating below when you try our Vegan Hot Chocolate recipe! We can’t wait to hear how it goes.
Dairy-Free & Vegan Hot Chocolate
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: about 8 servings 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This healthier take on classic hot chocolate has all the flavor you crave, made from simple ingredients. It’s more naturally sweetened, dairy-free, and downright delicious!
Ingredients
For Vegan Hot Cocoa Mix:
- 1/2 cup vegan/dairy-free dark or semisweet chocolate chips (or 3 ounces chocolate)
- 1/3 cup coconut sugar or cane sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa or cacao powder
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla powder (optional! See notes)
For 1 Cup Hot Cocoa:
- 1 cup (8 ounces) non-dairy milk*
- 1 1/2–2 Tablespoons hot cocoa mix (above)
- 1–2 drops vanilla extract, if needed*
Optional Garnishes:
- Chocolate syrup, dairy-free whipped cream, vegan marshmallows, crushed candy cane, mini chocolate chips, shaved chocolate, etc.
Instructions
- Make The Mix. In a blender or food processor, combine chocolate chips, coconut sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and vanilla powder (if using). Pulse or blend until no large chunks of chocolate remain. (At this point, you can store the hot chocolate mix in an airtight jar for about 2 months!)
- Heat The Milk. To make a cup of hot chocolate, heat 8 ounces of non-dairy milk in the microwave or in a small saucepan on the stove over medium heat until it’s steaming.
- Mix Up Your Cup. Stir in 1 1/2 to 2 Tablespoons hot cocoa mix (depending on how chocolatey you like it!) and whisk or stir to dissolve. If you didn’t add vanilla bean powder to the cocoa mix, you may like to add 1-2 drops of vanilla to your cup as well at this point.)
- Add Some Fun Finishes! Garnish with vegan marshmallows, coconut whipped cream, crushed candy cane, chocolate syrup, or your favorite mix-ins!
Notes
- Vanilla Bean Powder. IF you have it, or it’s easy for you to get, we LOVE adding a bit of vanilla bean powder. This type of vanilla is made from ground vanilla beans, so it’s PACKED with real vanilla flavor. Don’t have it? Just add a few drops of vanilla extract to your cup later. Easy-peasy.
- Dairy-Free Milk. I recommend you use whatever plant-based milk you normally drink. For us, that’s unsweetened plain almond milk, but soy milk, cashew milk, and oat milk all work! Or, you can use some canned full-fat coconut milk for added richness. (I’d recommend 2/3 your favorite non dairy milk + 1/3 coconut milk if you go this route.) Do NOT use hot water with this recipe.
- Cocoa Powder. We usually go with Natural cocoa powder rather than Dutch-processed cocoa for this recipe, but you do you!
- Extra Flavors. For variety, you can add a few drops of almond extract, orange extract, or peppermint extract for extra flavor! Or, you can add a pinch of cayenne pepper and cinnamon for a vegan Mexican hot chocolate vibe.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Drink
- Method: Blender
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 Tbsp.
- Calories: 109
- Sugar: 16 g
- Sodium: 6.5 mg
- Fat: 4.4 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 18.6 g
- Fiber: 1.8 g
- Protein: 1.5 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Recipe originally shared December 2016. Fully updated with new photos, video & updated notes and republished December 2024.
This sounds delicious! And the fact you can control the amount of sugar is perfect! Thank you 💕
MY pleasure!
How many calories per mug please?
Brenda – I don’t have nutrition facts available on my site yet (hopefully soon!), but you’re welcome to plug the ingredients into any free online calculator. MyFitnessPal is one of my favorites (the free app or the site). Happy Holidays!
So excited to try for me and my daughter…and thanks for the advice about the marshmallows at target
My pleasure Shirlene! I hope you LOVE it!