Winter months and Hot Cocoa just seem to go hand in hand! If you’re planning to have guests over during this chilly time of year… what better way to soothe their soul, and warm their toes than to set up a Hot Cocoa Bar!
When I was asked to host a brunch this winter, I knew that no matter what else I planned… I was going to have a Hot Cocoa Bar! I’ve been seeing these amazing bars grow with popularity over the years… and I finally had to have one!
To be honest, I’ve always been a Hot Tea girl… and my husband is a die hard Coffee guy, so Hot Cocoa has never really been a staple in our house. Then… a couple of weeks ago, in preparation for my Hot Cocoa Bar, I did A LOT of taste testing to find the perfect Hot Cocoa recipe. Suddenly I was hooked! I have gotten up every morning since then, looking forward to that creamy cup of goodness. Where has this been all of my life? I have to admit… the Hot Cocoa Recipe winner of my taste test is pretty amazing! You have to try it if you missed it!!
When preparing for a Hot Cocoa Bar, there a few important choices to make…. What kind of cocoa are you going to serve and how are you going to serve it? What toppings will you offer? And how are you going to style it all? Here’s a look at all of the choices I made, along with all of the how-to’s for recreating this bar!
Because I was putting this bar together for a party, I decided to offer the Hot Cocoa already cooked and ready to serve. I’ve noticed that a lot of these bars offer the powdered cocoa mixture. I think that’s a great idea and an obvious choice for an everyday home Hot Cocoa Bar setup…. but I didn’t want my guests to have to worry about mixing the cocoa. I wanted something clean, quick, and simple. Once that decision was made, I had to choose what kind of Hot Cocoa to serve . Check out the post on the Hot Cocoa Cook-Off to see all of the details of how I came up with the perfect Hot Cocoa recipe! After doing a bit of research, I decided the best way to serve the Hot Cocoa, and keep it hot was an Airpot. I found mine at Homegoods.
For the cups, I purchased these Disposable Insulated Paper Cups
Next to the Hot Cocoa itself, the toppings and mix-ins really are the most important part of this bar… well, at least it’s the most fun part! I believe that anything goes when it comes to Hot Cocoa toppings! Why not give your guests a chance to be adventurous and try something new that they may not otherwise try at home! I decided to serve a few staples like marshmallows, cinnamon, and whipped cream, but also chocolate sprinkles, chopped hazelnuts, and peppermint crunch. For mix-ins, I offered Girardelli Caramel and Chocolate Sauces, as well as a Hazelnut Foam.
Last, but certainly not least…. the booze. Sometimes Spiked Hot Cocoa is in store. I didn’t take this choice lightly. As with everything else I do, I weighed my options… and prepared a taste test to choose the best mix-ins! After tasting 8 different alcoholic combinations, we landed on 3 distinctly different favorites: Kahlua, Peppermint Schnapps, and Frangelico (which was accidentally left out of the shot!). It was a tough job, but someone had to do it! 🙂
I also added some Egg Nog Rolled Wafer cookies from World Market, and Snowflake Stirrers from the Target Dollar Spot. I figured both went well with the Winter theme, and both would come in handy to mix all of those add-ons!
Now for the styling of the bar… I went with a black & white theme. I know… not the most inventive color scheme for a Hot Cocoa Bar… but it was being paired with an all white brunch, and I wanted it to compliment. Besides, I like the clean look of the black & white!
For the food & liquor tags, I used the same 2″ Punch to cut black cardstock circles, and then used this 2 1/4-Inch Circle Punch
If you’ve read my past posts, you’ll know that I love to shop for “junk”, and repurpose it. This Hot Cocoa Bar set up is a great example of how I like to use my finds. The pedestal holding the sauces was a plant stand that came from a yard sale, which I painted black, and the tiered baskets of marshmallows came from a thrift store. Both of those pieces are featured in my post Thrift Shop Junkie Vol. 2. Check it out for lots of other great trash to treasure ideas! The vase of stirrers as well as the three small white topping bowls also came from thrift stores. I love that milk glass bowl and look for any excuse to use it!!
I also decided to get a little creative with the bowl holding the hazelnuts. I like to have an eclectic mix of serving pieces, so to make sure that little white bowl had some character, I paired it will a small metal candlestick…. yep – that black base used to be a red candlestick. I painted it gloss black, and used E600 glue to adhere it to the bowl…. making a cute little pedestal for the nuts!
I like to use a variety of heights when setting up a bar or buffet… so I added a wooden crate that I picked up at a craft store. I painted the crate black, and used it to stack the cups and free up some space on the table.
The final touch was my DIY Chalkboard Hot Cocoa Sign. This was another trash to treasure project. Check out the post for all of the details on how to make this chalkboard!
Hope you’ve enjoyed my Hot Cocoa Bar set up! Now I’m going to figure out how to turn this into an everyday bar, so I never have to miss my Hot Cocoa fix!!
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