Chocolate

Skinny Frozen Peppermint Hot Cocoa

I have something to say….it’s the very first MarlaMeridith.com GIVEAWAY!!! (cartwheels, flips, celebrations!) That means prizes y’all, sent with love from me to you!
Just in time for the holidays I present (drum roll please……)

Super Yummy Scharffen Berger Chocolate!!

I have been a fan of Sharffen Berger for quite some time.  Rich, deeply satisfying, clean, pure chocolate.  Thankfully I know the sweet PR gal over there and she so kindly sent over a large assortment of goodies for me to share with my fabulous readers!   From Dark Chocolate Baking Pieces to Hot Cocoa, to Unsweetened Baking Bars.  I have a splendid gamut of treats to giveaway.  Here is the deal I am only gonna do write-ups and promote products that I love to use.  This chocolate  I LOVE to EAT.

Skinny Frozen Peppermint Hot Cocoa | MarlaMeridith.com

In the next few weeks, I will dish out some Skinny and so not so Skinny ways to use your Scharffen Berger.  By the way, everything can be kinda skinny if we can maintain mindful portion sizes and infrequent indulgences!  For this giveaway, I will present 3 reader/winners with a sweet grab bag of Scarffen Berger chocolate.  I’ll package it up and send it your way.  All you need to do is unwrap and enjoy it.  Really, it’s that simple.

Ready to dig in?

This is all I ask from you, dear FFC readers……..

MarlaMeridith.com Scarffen Berger Contest Rules:

Winners will be chosen randomly, the more entries you have the more chances you have to win yum yums!!
To enter to win this Scharffen Berger contest: Leave a comment on this post telling me why you want this chocolate soooo very bad (that should be very easy!)
To receive a bonus entry: Spread the word about this giveaway.  Go ahead and Tweet it, Facebook it mention it on your blog (with a link back here,) send an e-mail to a group of buddies.  You know talk it up!!  Please come back this way and leave a second comment to let me know you spread the word and how you did it.
OK, you want another bonus entry? Leave a recipe in the comment field.  Chocolate-based…..skinny or not!

This contest will close Sunday, 12:00 am PST

CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED, Thanks for participating!  I will e-mail you if you won goodies.

Note: I LOVE my International visitors and I am truly grateful for your readership!  That said, this competition is open to US residents only.  Customs and all that red tape stuff gets in the way sometimes.  Thanks for understanding!


Skinny Frozen Peppermint Hot Cocoa | MarlaMeridith.com

Skinny Meets Chocolate

Is it possible to make such a thing happen?  Sure, why not.  When you use high-quality chocolate you get loads of flavor without weird additives. Your chocolate should have only recognizable ingredients.  Some include:

  • cocoa
  • maybe some sugar
  • vanilla beans
  • cacao beans

You get the drift.  Recognizable and pure.

Fresh Benefits

Chocolate is loaded with Flavonoids (antioxidants.)  The darker you go, the higher percentage of these benefits come your way. Chocolate is a win-win treat.  You get health benefits and taste bud satisfaction!!  

The Blender I use:

I have had great luck with the single-serve Rocket Blender by Bella Cucina.  My frozen drinks have a great texture and there is no guesswork as to how much ice and water to add.  I just fill the cup to the fill line.  Half ice and half water. Done.

Click HERE for Recipe Details.

Fresh Additions

Top or blend in your Skinny Frozen Peppermint Hot Chocolate with the following:

  • Non-dairy soy whip
  • dust with cinnamon or cocoa
  • chopped toasted nuts
  • roasted cacao nibs
  • pomegranate arils
  • raspberries
  • a hunk of coarsely chopped chocolate

~ Marla Meridith

Join the Conversation

103 thoughts on “Skinny Frozen Peppermint Hot Cocoa

  1. Yummy! I love chocolate, and keeping it healthy makes it easier to indulge. I have adopted your hot cocoa tips and been enjoying it nightly! What a treat. I would love, love, love to win some chocolate goodness so I could try even more of your wonderful recipes!!! Thanks

  2. I’m going to go with a basic brownie recipe. Simple, but def. one of my favorites.

    * 4 large eggs
    * 1 cup sugar
    * 1 cup brown sugar
    * 8 ounces melted butter
    * 1 1/4 cups cocoa
    * 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    * 1/2 cup flour
    * 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
    * 1/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

    Directions
    Preheat the oven to 300F. Butter and flour an 8-inch square pan.

    In a large bowl, beat the eggs at medium speed until fluffy. Mix in both sugars. Add remaining ingredients, and mix to combine.

    Pour the batter into a greased and floured 8-inch square pan. Sprinkle the choc. chips on top and bake for 45 minutes. When done, a toothpick inserted into the center of the pan should come out mostly clean. When it’s done, remove to a rack to cool. Cool until still a little warm. Enjoy

  3. Yum. Love Scharffen Berger chocolate. Great giveaway! My favorite recipe with cocoa? This week, it’s pancakes. 🙂

    1 scoop chocolate rice protein powder
    2 TBSP coconut flour
    6 egg whites
    1 heaping TBSP cocoa powder
    1/4 tsp baking powder
    1/4 tsp baking soda
    cinnamon
    stevia
    salt

    Whisk together ingredients and cook pancakes in coconut oil coated skillet. Top with maple syrup and almond butter. 🙂

  4. Why do I want this chocolate you ask? Well, if it will make me skinny – then I’m begging for it. Oh wait…..that is not what you said it would do did you? Anyway, I love the photo of the Skinny Frozen Peppermint Hot Chocolate. I looks devine! Honestly, what am I going to do with vanilla and cocoa beans after this first recipe. Will cocoa powder and vanilla extract ruin this recipe?

  5. What a wonderful giveaway! Marla, I love how you said that anything can be skinny with the proper portions…these are words to live by! I’d love to win this chocolate because unlike diamonds, chocolate is this girl’s best friend! 😉

  6. Chocolate and sweetness are essential for the holidays! YUM! And the recipes on Scharffen Berger’s website look delicious!

  7. I love chocolate because no matter what age I am it always brings me back to childhood. It’s one of those flavor profiles that matures as we mature…I went from milk chocolate to loving the darkest kind now. Its brillant! My favorite way to use chocolate is making frozen hot chocolate actually and chocolate muffins are grand too!

    xoxo
    Maggie

  8. Yummm! I’ve never tried this kind before, so that alone is reason enough to want to win! 🙂 But with several Christmas parties approaching I am bringing Katie’s fudge babies, by request, so I’m in need of some good chocolate!!! 🙂

  9. The drink you made looks so delicious!
    Have pity on me as I’ve never tried the Scharffen Berger chocolate (of any type) – thus I need to be a beneficiary of some.

    Also – need to try Heather’s pancakes.

  10. I would love to win this Chocolate! I am a chocolate lover and have never tasted it but have heard sooo many great compliments about it that I am dying to try it! Great giveaway!

  11. What a wonderful giveaway! I have emailed my girlfriends, who are also chocolate lovers, about your giveaway! Thanks so much! 🙂

  12. One of my favorite recipes is melting dark chocolate and dipping fresh strawberries, dried apricots, and other fruit in it! Yum yum!

  13. I found your blog from Heather…this is an awesome give away! I want to win because I love love love chocolate. The darker the better!

  14. Hi there – I would love to win this chocolate because it is my only indulgence! I don’t eat any other type of sugar otherwise. Surely, I deserve to win?? 🙂

    I am also in So Cal by the way!

  15. I have not made these, but mom has and they are so yummy!

    Ghiradelli Peppermint Brownies (All Recipes.com)

    Ingredients
    4 ounces Ghirardelli 100% Cacao Unsweetened Chocolate baking bar, broken or chopped into 1 inch pieces
    1 cup unsalted butter
    3 large eggs
    2 cups granulated white sugar
    1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
    1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
    1/4 teaspoon salt
    1 cup all-purpose flour
    1 (5.32 ounce) bag Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate with White Mint Filling Squares™, unwrapped 4 small candy canes, crushed

    Directions
    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch square baking pan with cooking spray and dust with flour, tapping out any excess.
    In the top of a double boiler or in a heatproof bowl over barely simmering water, melt the unsweetened chocolate and butter, stirring occasionally until smooth. Cool to room temperature.
    In a large bowl with an electric mixer or whisk, beat the eggs, sugar, vanilla, peppermint extract, and salt until combined. Beat in the chocolate mixture. Gently stir in the flour. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
    Bake for about 45 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the brownies comes out clean. Arrange the mint squares on top in one layer and return the brownies to the oven until they are just melted, about 1 minute. Evenly spread the chocolate with a spatula and sprinkle with the crushed candy canes. Cool completely before cutting into 2-inch squares.

  16. I would love to win some chocolate to bring some sweetness to my friends and family for the holidays.

    Here’s a very easy very vegan semi-homemade chocolate/almond butter pie I make a couple times a month lately!

    Ingredients
    -semi-sweet pure chocolate chips
    -almond butter
    -grahm cracker crust

    I buy the grahm cracker crust at Whole Foods (I get a dairy free one).
    I melt the chocolate and coat the whole bottom of the pie with melted chocolate. Once cooled, I warm almond butter (the chunky kind) and spread that all over. I alternate two layers of each!

    Then I put in the oven and bake at 350 degrees for 15 mins. This helps it become solid and not crumble when you cut it. Let cool for another 15 minutes and, voila, the easiest semi-home made pie evahhhh!

  17. And here is my favorite chocolate recipe (not so skinny 🙂 )

    Puppy Chow (for Humans)!

    9 cups Chex cereal (I like Rice best)
    1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
    1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
    1/4 cup butter or margarine
    1 teaspoon vanilla
    1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

    1. Into large bowl, measure cereal; set aside.
    2. In 1-quart microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter uncovered on High 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 30 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla. Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Pour into 2-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag.
    3. Add powdered sugar. Seal bag; shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.

    Yum!

  18. I woud love to win this chocolate because I live near Hershey, PA and am so accustomed to only eating Hershey’s chocolate. I would love to try something new!

  19. this is one of my fave brownie recipes.

    1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels
    2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
    8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
    1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
    3 tablespoons cocoa powder
    1 teaspoon baking powder
    1 teaspoon salt
    2 tablespoons instant espresso
    1 1/4 cups sugar
    3 eggs
    2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    1 cup coarsely chopped hazelnuts (optional)

    Melt chocolates and butter over a double boiler, stir until smooth and remove from heat. In a large bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and espresso. Set aside. In a mixing bowl, beat sugar, egg and vanilla on medium high until light colored about 2 minutes. Beat in chocolate until well combined. Add flour mixture slowly until well blended. Stir in hazelnuts.

    Pour mixture into a 11 x 7-inch non stick baking pan and bake for 35—40 minutes or until toothpick inserted 2 inched from the side comes clean. Cool completely. Cut into 12 rectangles.

  20. scharffen berger is my FAVORITE!! i live in the boonies in Wisconsin, and let me tell you it’s not easy to find here 🙂

    great giveaway!

  21. ok, still need to healthify this bad boy, but it’s my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe!

    * 2 cups all-purpose flour (280 gms)
    * 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (20 gms)
    * 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
    * 1/2 teaspoon salt
    * 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm (170 gms)
    * 1 cup packed brown sugar (light or dark, 236 gms)
    * 1/2 cup granulated sugar
    * 1 large egg
    * 1 large egg yolk, from a large egg
    * 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    * 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (semi-sweet, milk chocolate or any combination, 300 gms)
    * 1 cup of chopped walnuts (114 gms) (optional)

    Directions

    Place oven racks in the upper and lower 1/3’s of the oven.
    Pre-heat oven to 325°F.
    Cover 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper Mix flour, baking powder & salt in a bowl or bag and set aside.
    Mix butter and sugars with with a mixer until blended and smooth, add egg, yolk & vanilla.
    Mix until incorporated.
    Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
    Stir in chips and optional nuts.
    Divide into 18 equal balls, a 2″ cookie scoop works just about perfectly, about 60 gms each.
    EVENLY space 9 on each cookie sheet.
    Bake for 12-18 minutes, rotating front to back and top to bottom after 8 minutes.
    Cool on sheets to maintain chewy texture.

  22. Ohh, thank you for this incredible giveaway! I’d love to win some Scharffen-Berger chocolate because I’ve heard fantastic reviews about it and it sounds so decadent and rich, perfect for a chocolate lover like me! 🙂

  23. I’ve never tried Scharffen Berger and would love to! My favorite chocolate is Dagoba, especially the New Moon bar, which is infused with lavender and has has dried blueberries!

  24. I love chocolate because it feels like you are pampering yourself when you eat it! Plus there are sooooo many delicious recipes you can use it in!!

  25. I am a chocolate addict…life without chocolate is not a life worth living. Scharffen berger is one of my favorites.

  26. I love chocolate (anyone who doesn’t is crazy!). I’ve heard so much about Sharffen Berger chocolate and would love to try it. Thanks!

  27. I love chocolate, especially hot chocolate! I want to win this giveaway because it is COLD here in Boston, and I could use some hot chocolate to warm up!

  28. My favorite skinny chocolate recipe is to mix 1/2 cup of cottage cheese (lowfat works, but full fat is great for a splurge) with cocoa powder and agave syrup to taste. Then I sprinkle on some chocolate chips and some crushed graham crackers. It’s like a healthy chocolate cheesecake!

  29. Chocolate is actually one of the good tasting things that are good for you.
    I remember when I was in the hospital and being told all the things I could and could not have due to medications one of the first things I asked was if I could still have chocolate because there was no way I could give up chocolate. I love chocolate. It helps when you are down. This is why I would love to win.

  30. I went to Belgium during the summer, and I had the best (and most!) chocolate of my life. I miss European chocolate. This sounds like it could help =)

  31. One of my favorite recipes is from Jamie/Living for truffles:

    2 c walnuts
    1 c pitted dates
    1 c frozen blueberries
    1/2 c cocoa

    Blend ingredients in a food processor until the mixture is smooth. Shape the mixture into small balls and roll into crushed oats, cocoa powder. (I like to roll my truffles in shredded unsweetened coconut). Refrigerate for 4 to 6 hrs, then serve. (makes 12 truffles)

  32. Yum! I use chocolate powder everyday in my Greek yogurt or my cottage cheese at breakfast :). I could always use some more!
    Love me some frozen cocoa, thanks for sharing your recipe.

    Heres my vegan chocolate pancakes…
    * 1/3 cup ww pastry flour
    * 1/2 cup almond milk
    * 2/3 tsp baking powder
    * dash of salt
    * 1 tbsp dark chocolate cocoa powder
    * 1 tbsp applesauce
    * stevia to taste

    mix all dry ingredients and then add wet, cook in a hot skillet, add toppings..

    ~Justine

  33. I would love to make this chocolate to make myself a graduation cake! (I’m graduating from college a semester early and have decided that is a cake-worthy occasion. And if the cake has Scharffen Berger chocolate in it, it will be even more celebratory because it will be even more delicious!)

  34. I would love to try this chocolate….I am a huge good quality dark chocolate lover, plus its healthy for us ladies! 🙂

  35. I’ve never had this chocolate, but I’ve wanted to try it after seeing it around the blogosphere. And this is the time of year for hot chocolate. 🙂

  36. Thanks so much for the opportunity! I would love to win this giveaway because I have atleast one(from hot chocolate to a small piece)food item that contains chocolate each day!

  37. I’ve been making this a lot lately..it’s so delicious! I don’t remember where I found the recipe from though!

    Choco Banana Cheesecake Pudding
    -2/3 cup lowfat cottage cheese (can use up to 1 cup depending on how
    much you want)
    -1/2 banana, mashed
    -cocoa powder or square of chocolate(I like it extra chocolatey!)
    Put everything in a mini food-processor and blend. Serve chilled. ENJOY

  38. Oh gosh! Hard to figure out why I WOULDN’T want some tasty chocolate…probably mostly to fuel my hot cocoa addiction!

  39. I think this recipe is awesome. As a reformed chocoholic, I feel this recipe will not cause me to have a binge. I look forward to trying it this weekend, when I am stuck in because of our potential blizzard.

  40. I love chocolate, especially the dark stuff… 😉 I would love to try the Scharffen-Berger because I’ve heard such awesome things about it, and I think it’s an indulgence worth having!

  41. From Cookin’ Canuck
    http://www.cookincanuck.com
    From Bon Appetit Magazine

    Chocolate & Peppermint Bark Cookies

    2 cups all-purpose flour
    1/4 tsp salt
    1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
    1 cup sugar
    1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    1 large egg yolk
    6 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
    1/2 cup finely chopped red & white candies or candy canes (about 3 ounces)
    2 oz. high-quality white chocolate

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 13x9x2-inch baking pan with cooking spray and line the bottom of the pan with parchment, letting it hang over the sides of the pan.

    In a medium bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of a mixer, beat butter until creamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually beat in sugar. Continue to beat for an additional 3 minutes, until the mixture is light and creamy. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla extract and egg yolk. Turn the mixer to low speed and gradually beat in the flour mixture, until just combined. Do not overmix.

    Scatter the dough over the bottom of the prepared pan and gently press it, with slightly moistened fingers, to form a flat layer. Prick all over with a fork.

    Bake the cookie layer until golden brown and slightly puffed, and edges are beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan, 25-30 minutes. Place on a cookie rack and immediately sprinkle chopped bittersweet or semisweet (or a combination of the two) over the cookie layer. Let the chocolate sit for about 3 minutes. Using an offset spatula, spread the chocolate into an even layer over the surface of the cookies. Immediately sprinkle 3 ounces crushed red and white peppermint candies, or candy canes, over the chocolate layer.

    Place chopped white chocolate in a medium metal bowl set over a simmering pot of water. Stir constantly until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Using a fork, drizzle the white chocolate over the peppermint candies. Chill for approximately 30 minutes.

    Gripping the overhanging parchment paper, lift the cookies out of the pan and place on a work surface. Using a large, sharp knife, cut the cookies into irregular pieces. This can be stored in an airtight container in a refrigerator for one week.

  42. Hello Marla! What a terrific give away! I am looking forward to trying the Scharffen Berger Cocoa mix. So where can we buy it if we do not win this contest? I have not had a frozen hot chocolate since the last time my family visited NYC in 2008. Now, I am going to make my own!!! Thank you for sharing!!! Melanie

  43. What an awesome giveaway! I came by way of Faith’s blog, Thought4Food. Ok so why I want this chocolate….ummm it’s awesome 🙂 Also here in New York I cannot seem to find Scharffen Berger. I don’t know why but Ghirardelli must have a monopoly around here….

  44. Here is my most favorite chocolate recipe. It’s an old fashioned sugary melt in your mouth fudge. It’s not creamy like most fudge.

    4 cups sugar
    1 & 1/2 cups milk
    1/2 cup cocoa
    8 T butter
    1/4 tsp. salt
    2 tsp. vanilla

    Mix sugar, milk (and I usually use evaporated) salt, and cocoa. Cook over medium – high heat, and be stirring while heating so it doesn’t burn, until it reaches the soft ball stage. This will be marked (or should be) on your candy thermometer and I usually bring it just a little above the soft ball mark. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes and then add vanilla and butter and mix well. Pour into lightly buttered 9×13 dish. Cut when cooled.

  45. Who doesn’t want chocolate? It is a life enricher!

    A simple chocolate recipe I like is for health makeover hot chocolate.

    1 cup of almond milk/soy milk/water – warmed for about a minute
    1/2 tablespoon agave
    1 tablespoon of cocoa powder

    Stir and enjoy!

  46. I want this chocolate because I love chocolate and cooking with chocolate and eating what I make and why in the world would I NOT want this chocolate???
    Plus, I’ve heard that Scarffen Berger is amazing.

  47. And for my bonus entry, I just told a bunch of people over email & facebook, and made it my fb status.
    If only I used twitter.

  48. This frozen hot cocoa with peppermint sounds amazing, a wonderful chilled treat and I love your coffee granita too! Thanks so much for sending them for the 5 star makeover event!