With just a few ingredients and less than five minutes to prepare, Slow Cooker Hot Chocolate is a rich, creamy hot chocolate that is great for entertaining and chilly winter days. (If you are making this for guests, check out my post about How to Set Up a Hot Chocolate Bar for some festive fun.)

I love a warm mug of hot chocolate almost as much as my kids. My mom always used to make special hot chocolate around the holidays, using chocolate chips whisked into heated milk. Once you’ve had hot chocolate made with real chocolate, powdered hot cocoa mix is never quite the same. This version in the slow cooker comes together fast and can be held on the warm function in the slow cooker to enjoy whenever you’re ready. 

I like to put a batch of this hot chocolate in the slow cooker when all the kids are home for a snow day. It cooks on low for 2 to 3 hours and then can be held on the warm setting for 3 hours, so it’s ready any time the kids come in from building snowmen. 

Why Make Hot Chocolate in the Slow Cooker

Hot chocolate made with real chocolate and milk has a rich flavor and creamy texture. If made on the stovetop, it requires a lot of attention – the milk can easily scald if the pot gets too hot. In the slow cooker, the low temperature removes the risk of scalding, plus you can let it hold on warm to enjoy whenever you’re ready.

Ingredients

• Milk – Any type of milk will work here. Whole milk will make in a more rich and creamy result, but the 2% or skim work just fine. Almond milk or another alternative milk can be used as well.
• Brown Sugar – Brown sugar lends the hot chocolate a hint of caramel flavor.
• Chocolate Bars – This, of course, is the key flavor in the hot chocolate. In testing, the best, creamiest result came from bars of high quality baking chocolate. I prefer Baker’s chocolate (either 55% or 66% cocoa). They come in 4-ounce bars, so no measuring necessary. Just drop them in and they’ll slowly melt into the milk. (A lot of recipes out there use chocolate chips. You can absolutely use chocolate chips, but I didn’t find the result to be as creamy as high quality baking chocolate.)
• Cinnamon Stick – Add a single cinnamon stick into the hot chocolate as it heats. The cinnamon flavor is subtle but goes well with the chocolate. You can skip this if you’d like.
• Pure Vanilla Extract – Whisked into the end of cooking, this adds a nice vanilla flavor to the finished hot chocolate. Like the cinnamon, this is just another layer of flavor that makes for a really special mug of hot chocolate.

More Easy Drink Recipes

Bourbon and Apple Cider Punch

Cold Brew Coffee Spritzer

Bourbon Sweet Tea Cocktail