You've probably been seeing hot cocoa bombs everywhere on the internet for the past few months. Costco now makes them and sells them in multi-flavor packs. Even smaller producers are offering them on Etsy. And while I don't normally jump on trends, I've made a few of these for clients and, well, they're just so cute and fun.
With Valentine's Day coming up, I thought some boozy bombs would be a fun couple treat. Or, make a whole bunch and give them as gifts to friends. The "original" version is a chocolate shell filled with hot cocoa mix and mini marshmallows. Nothing wrong with that but I was in a more playful mood.
It should come as no surprise to any regular blog reader of mine that I love peanut butter so I decided to make a chocolate and peanut butter shell. The inside is filled with a mixture of hot cocoa mix and bourbon and I'm serving them with full size marshmallows on the side. Definitely an adult treat.
Once you've made the shells, though, you can put in different fillings. Boozy for the grownups, regular for the kids, even different flavored hot cocoa mixes or different spirits in the boozy versions. A chocolate liqueur or Irish cream would be delicious if bourbon is not your thing. The balls get decorated with a bit of melted white chocolate or pink candy melts and some festive sprinkles. Who wouldn't want to get that as a treat, right? Enjoy!
Boozy Chocolate and Peanut Butter Hot Cocoa Bombs
Ingredients
- 1 Cup milk chocolate chips
- 1 Cup peanut butter chips
- 18 tablespoons hot cocoa mix
- 6 oz. Bourbon (try peanut butter or chocolate bourbon)
- 4 oz. White chocolate for decorating
- 4 oz. Pink candy melts for decorating (optional)
- Sprinkles for decorating
- Marshmallows for serving
- Milk
Instructions
- Note that this recipe is for 6 full balls and each mold contains 6 half spheres so either use two molds or finish one set and repeat the process.
- Set two bowls over two pots of simmering water and add the milk chocolate chips to one and the peanut butter chips to the other. Make sure the bowls do not touch the water. Gently stir until the chips have melted. If you do this in a microwave, heat in 30 second intervals until melted.
- To create the marbled effect, spoon some of the chocolate into each cavity of your mold and swoop it up only one side. Then repeat on the other side with the peanut butter. Be sure the mold is fully coated and don't worry about it being perfect since it will have a marbleized look. Freeze for about 5 minutes to set.
- Repeat the process with the chilled mold so that you have a double coating. That will make a thick enough ball. Return to the freezer for another 5 minutes to set.
- Gently remove the chocolate shells from the mold. Don't worry. They'll come out of a silicone mold easily. You should have a total of 12 shells.
- For each bomb, combine 3 tablespoons of hot cocoa powder with 1 oz. of bourbon or other spirit until you have a paste. Add the paste to 6 of the shells. If you're making these non-alcoholic, add 3 tablespoons of hot cocoa mix to the 6 shells and top with a handful of mini marshmallows.
- Place a plate over one of the pots of simmering water to heat it up a bit. Then press the rim of each of the empty half spheres to the plate to melt it a touch so that it will adhere to the filled half sphere.
- Melt your candy melts and/or white chocolate and drizzle over each ball. Top with your favorite sprinkles. Note that you can place the melted chocolate in a plastic baggie and snip off the end to get a cleaner drizzle. Refrigerate the completed balls.
- To serve, place a ball into a cup and pour hot milk over it until the ball bursts open. Stir until smooth and top with marshmallows if desired.
Peanut butter whiskey would be good with this also.
ReplyDelete