Hot chocolate advent calendar

December brings a wide range of emotions for a variety of reasons. The beginning of the month is filled with dread, nausea and anxiety due to the onset of final exams; the middle is filled with joy, relaxation and good cheer due to finals being over and knowing that Christmas is just around the corner; the end of the month is a mix of both, excitement for the New Year but also great sadness knowing another semester is only days away. I’m on the border of the feelings for the beginning and middle of the month. As my exam marks haven’t come in yet, I’m basking in the blissful ignorance of assuming everything is fine!

In order to calm my exam anxiety and revel in the best Christmas tradition (advent calendars), my roommate and I sat down and came up with a genius idea. Instead of the usual chocolate advent calendar, we created our own hot chocolate advent calendar – a different flavour of hot chocolate for everyday leading up until Christmas. 24 exquisite flavours in which we could have to tantalize our taste buds until Christmas Eve, it was going to be epic.

To commemorate this tasteful adventure, we have been documenting our creations with photos everyday and shared them for the world to see (if you haven’t seen them, please feel free to check out either Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram for some holiday entertainment). Day 1 was kicked off with Nutella; followed by Orange, Irish, Caramel, Peppermint, Peanut Butter, Cinnamon & Cayenne, and White Chocolate. The last week of finals was fueled by chocolate, copious amounts of milk, and alcohol. Needless to say I was able to hammer out studying in a much happier mood.

All of the flavours start with the same base: bittersweet chocolate and milk. Then, depending on the taste of the day, the flavour generator would be added. The amount of extra flavour added is totally personal; I would just add a little bit at a time until you find the perfect combination. Aside from the standard bittersweet chocolate and milk, the main ingredients that were added into the first 8 days of our Christmas countdown are as follows.

Nutella: nutella (omit the bittersweet chocolate)

Orange: orange zest, vanilla, sugar

Irish: Baileys & Carolyns (either works, but why not have both?)

Caramel: caramel sauce (homemade if you have the time)

Peppermint: peppermint schnapps

Peanut Butter: smooth peanut butter, sugar (using natural peanut butter makes for a strange texture, but delicious all the same)

Cinnamon & Cayenne: powdered cinnamon, cayenne, Fireball, sugar

White Chocolate: substitute bittersweet chocolate for white chocolate

To make these festive beverages even better, garnish them with whipped cream, sprinkles, chocolate shavings, etc.