Mexican Hot Chocolate is creamy and delicious with the perfect kick of heat. These DIY hot cocoa jars make great winter gifts — free printable gift tags included!
Mexican hot chocolate is a fun, warming way to celebrate the cozy winter season.
I love making my own hot cocoa mix. When I managed a bakery in New York City, we made homemade hot chocolate mix by the tubs weekly. Swirled into perfectly warmed milk and topped with fluffy scratch-made marshmallows, it was one of our most popular cold-weather treats.
I also particularly love gifting homemade hot chocolate mix. It’s easy to whip up and makes for a thoughtful, useful gift.
Mexican hot cocoa is a fun twist on this beloved winter beverage.
What is Mexican Hot Chocolate?
Mexican hot chocolate is made very similarly to regular hot cocoa. However, unlike your classic cocoa, it includes cinnamon and spicy cayenne pepper.
I like to balance it with fragrant vanilla bean and some chopped chocolate, which makes it luxurious and rich.
This Mexican hot cocoa is made of just a few ingredients:
- Dark cocoa powder
- Chopped semisweet chocolate
- Sugar
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Cayenne
- Salt
- Vanilla bean
- Marshmallows and/or crushed candy canes, optional
What makes this homemade hot cocoa so sweet is that it makes for a perfect gift.
You can make a big batch of this cocoa mix and store it for the whole winter, while layering some of it in mason jars for lovely, simple gifts.
I like giving hot cocoa jars as little thank you gifts, and it’s so easy to put together the kids can even get involved!
I love tying a festive ribbon and a cinnamon stick to the jars. A personalized gift tag completes this festive edible gift.
And I have free printable gift tags for you below!
I hope that you make and enjoy this homemade Mexican Hot Chocolate! Enjoy our free printable gift tags below and check out some of our other DIY gift ideas.
Download your free printable gift tags here! Resize them as you’d like, print, and gift!
White Lid Mason Jars | Rodelle Cinnamon Sticks | Organic Cocoa Powder | Simply Organic Cayenne Pepper
This post contains affiliate links but are always products I love & highly recommend.
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Mexican Hot Chocolate Mix
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 5 mins
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: About 60 cups of hot cocoa 1x
Description
Mexican Hot Chocolate is creamy and delicious with the perfect kick of heat. These DIY hot cocoa jars make great winter gifts — free printable gift tags included!
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups dark cocoa powder
- 3/4 cup chopped semisweet chocolate (or mini chips)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 vanilla bean, scraped for seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Marshmallows, whipped cream, and/or crushed candy canes, for serving
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder, chopped chocolate, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla bean seeds, salt, and cayenne.
- Divide the mixture between 4 mason jars, topping each jar with marshmallows and crushed candy canes, if desired.
- To make a cup of Mexican Hot Chocolate, dissolve 2 heaping tablespoons of the mix into 3/4 cup hot milk. Enjoy!
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If you wanted to add dry milk to this recipe how much do you suggest?
Make this as holiday gifts for my coworkers. Finally tried the leftover mix I had today and it was so decadent! I used water instead of milk because of a dairy sensitivity, and it was so very delish! I will be making a new batch just for our household!
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I’m planning to make this, because I have all the ingredients except for the vanilla beans. Is it super crucial to have it or will it not taste the same?
Hi Leah, that should be fine. I might adjust the heat and do less cayenne in this case.
Hi. Love Mexican hot chocolate and will be making this in great quantities to give as xmas gifts. For families with small children, will it taste good without the cayenne?
Thanks.
Hi Anne, absolutely! It would still be delicious! 🙂
I’m sorry if i missed it, but your recipe says to divide into 4 mason jars. What size jars are you using?
Hi Natascha, I used the ones I linked to above the recipe which are 12-ounce! 🙂
I knew i missed it 🤦🏼♀️ Thank you!
That is looking quite delicious. I’ve never tried Mexican Hot Chocolate before but will definitely do this someday.
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Yum to the yum! I love Mexican Hot Chocolate but have never made it myself. Thank you for the recipe!
Love the spice in this mix! And your jars are so cute!
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Mexican Hot Chocolate is one of my favorites! I hope to make this during the weekend. It sounds so yummy!
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Oh my God, this is something that i would drink. I love that combo of flavours.
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I never had Mexican hot chocolate but I would be open to it! Its gonna have a kick to it with that cayenne pepper!
Wow, I love this and it is so delicious and look so easy to prepare. I will def try to make this for the whole family.
Yummy..! Can’t wait to try this one.. It sounds so indulging.. I’m always on the go for something sweet.
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What a lovely idea for homemade gifts! I’m saving this one!! I wish I had known about this before Christmas though!
Loving that this is homemade and has a little spice to it!
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These would be a great treat for the kids. More so during the cool nights/
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I love the idea of adding cayenne pepper! I’ve never had Mexican hot chocolate but I’m definitely going to try this recipe!
Completely adorable. I was hoping to find a little treat for a group of friends and I think this will do nicely!
Aaaahhhhmmmmm….I want a cup of this! I haven’t had a cup of this before.
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I love the packaging so much. Pretty pretty!!! such a great gifting idea. Am gonna try this out this weekend :))))
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I have tried making it and it turned out to be amazing. My kids loved it. Now I’ve to make it for them every weekend 🙁
Thanks for sharing this! It’s a great Valentines gift idea. It looks so delicious.
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That looks so good! Definitely a perfect gift idea! 🙂 🙂 Thanks for sharing.
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That is so perfect for the cold months. I love the flavors, and I love how cozy it is. I’m feeling warmer and happier already, and I haven’t even made it yet!
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What a great gift giving idea! And easy too! I will have to give these out for teacher appreciation week!
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I love spicy drinks! And what a great gift idea. 🙂
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Such a great gift idea for someone you love and especially to make just for you!!
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I absolutely love this. Thank you for sharing!
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I love having that little bit of spice in there. It’s so delicious! I think I’m going to make these for my kids’ teachers for Valentine’s Day.
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