Brrr... Baby it's cold outside!

First off, I'd like to thank everyone for all the great feedback from the last post! We hope our little Diner adventures excite you as much as it does us. Now let's talk about this weather...

Last year, living in Saratoga Springs, NY meant we had to be mentally prepared for the cold and snow. It snowed before Thanksgiving and it never stopped, even til the day we left the place in February. I knew what it felt like to lose your breath when walking against the strong, chilly wind and feeling like it would never stop. But nothing would stop me from walking to work or anywhere downtown. I'm a veteran when it comes to cold weather now! But here, in Buffalo, it's a little different.

Everyone said we would be getting another harsh winter, but I hadn't seen it yet, until now. (Duh, duh, duuhhhhhhh!!!!) Okay, so we've only had a little flurry, and the weather finally went under 30 degree F, but the point is, it's cold! I thought I was prepared but I quickly remembered HOW MUCH I do not like the cold weather. Hey, if there's no snow to play in, why do I want it cold? It didn't even snow on Christmas! I guess I will just keep fighting through the cold weather to get to and from the Diner. *Big Sigh*  Warning: People, if you see a white puffy marshmallow with a black and grey fuzzy hat walking down the street, don't worry, it's not the abominable snow man, it's just me.

Look! A live marshmallow!

Now that I've made you reallllly cold by reading this post, I will warm you up with one of my favorite homemade hot chocolate recipes. I learned to make it from scratch at one of my previous work places, and I have never looked back. So sit back, relax, and sip your delicious cup of cocoa while you watch the marshmallow walking down the street.

Kikko's Homemade Hot Chocolate

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups Milk
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
1/4 cup Dark Cocoa Powder (I use Hershey)
2 ounces chocolate syrup (Hershey again)
1/4 cup Granulated Sugar
Mini Marshmallow, as needed
Sweet Whipped Cream, as needed

Method of Preparation:

1) In a stock pot, pour the milk, heavy cream, cocoa powder, chocolate syrup, and sugar and turn on to medium heat.

2) Use a whisk to combine all the ingredients while it heats up. Stir occasionally until the content starts to simmer. Do not let it boil (or you'll have a mess!).

3) Remove from heat and ladle desired quantity into your favorite mug. Whip up some whipped cream (1/2 cup of cream with 1/8 cup powdered sugar in the electric mixer should be plenty) and add a ginormous amount of marshmallows.

4) Enjoy that cup of cocoa!

*If you think the hot cocoa is too thick, add more milk or warm water to the mixture to thin out. I just really like a thick cocoa