My French Press Breakfast Chocolate recipe is an easy method for making a thick, rich, frothed hot chocolate just like the Europeans enjoy! Drinkable chocolate is a great mid afternoon pick me up, or a decadent after dinner treat.
Try my French Press Breakfast Chocolate instead of coffee!
I’m taking a break from my daily coffee routine. I’m fixing myself a classic European breakfast chocolate. It’s incredibly rich and sophisticated thanks to the high cacao bittersweet chocolate I’m using, and incredibly thick and frothy thanks to my French press.
This is the kind of hot chocolate so thick and rich that you’d swear it was made with pure heavy cream. But it’s not.
My oldest daughter and I have been on the quest for the secret to a thick homemade drinking chocolate for a couple of years now. If you’ve ever had drinking chocolate from one of those super fancy chocolate shops you’ll know what I’m talking about. Those drinks are chock full of fat and calories, but with this simple technique, you can even use low fat or skim milk!
The secret to thick rich hot chocolate
There are two keys to the puzzle.
- The first secret to getting the decadent chocolate flavor you crave is to use actual chocolate, not cocoa powder. I discovered this technique when I used my food processor to chop chocolate for truffles. I let the machine run a little longer than necessary and I ended up with a fine powder. With the chocolate ground so fine it melts easily into the hot milk—no need for a saucepan on the stove. This process also allows you to store the chocolate in a convenient jar all ready to go for your next batch.
- The second secret to the unbelievable thickness of this hot chocolate is the frothing. The French press makes the perfect easy frother. The milk almost doubles in volume as you pump the press up and down vigorously for about a minute. Your arm will get a good workout and you’ll get impossibly thick luxurious cocoa. Maybe that’s how the French stay so svelte.
You’ll get plenty of antioxidants from the dark chocolate, and calcium from the milk.
No added sugar, whipped cream, or marshmallows necessary. This is what Europeans have been drinking for breakfast for generations. It’s truly a wonderful way to start a January morning.
Grinding 10 oz of good quality dark chocolate will yield you a nice jar of ready to use instant hot chocolate mix. I layer mine with leftover vanilla bean pods for extra flavor. If you can’t quite give up your morning coffee, add a little espresso powder to the hot milk. If you want an even more decadent chocolate drink, add more chocolate.
Love hot chocolate? Check out these other recipes on the blog:
- DRINKABLE NUTELLA ~ a decadent sippable version of your favorite chocolate hazelnut spread.
- THE ULTIMATE HOT CHOCOLATE ~ the classic, stepped up a notch.
- HOMEMADE VANILLA BEAN MARSHMALLOWS ~ don’t forget the marshmallows!
tvfgi recommends: a French Press Coffee Pot
A French Press coffee pot is always good to have around. It has saved our mornings on numerous occasions. It not only makes coffee, tea, and hot chocolate, you can use it for making easy mulled or spiced cider as well. In fact you can use it to make all sorts of quick infusions.
French Press Breakfast Chocolate
Ingredients
- 10 oz good quality dark or bittersweet chocolate, cut in rough chunks
- leftover vanilla bean pods, optional
- 1 cup 8 oz milk
- 1/4 tsp espresso powder, optional
Instructions
- Put the chocolate in the bowl of a food processor. Make sure the bowl is completely dry. Process until the chocolate is finely ground. You want a coarse granular texture. Stop if the chocolate starts to clump together and release its oil.
- Let the chocolate dry at room temperature for several hours. Then process again briefly. The chocolate will have lightened in color.
- Store the chocolate in a mason type jar with a tight fitting lid. If you are using the vanilla bean pods, layer them in as you fill the jar.
- Put 4 Tbsp of the chocolate powder in the bottom of the French press. Add in the espresso powder, if using.
- Put the milk in a quart sized Pyrex measuring cup. Microwave for 2-3 minutes, until it just comes to a boil. You can do this on the stove if you want to.
- Pour the scalding hot milk over the chocolate and put the plunger top on the pot, but don't depress it yet.
- Let the milk sit for 2 minutes.
- Then plunge vigorously for 1 minute to froth the hot chocolate. It will increase in volume. Do this on a steady surface.
- Pour into 1 large or 2 small cups and enjoy!
Thanks for pinning this French Press Breakfast Chocolate!
I was wondering if you do not like dark chocolate and someone would prefer Milk Chocolate. Would that be an option or affect any difference?
That would be just fine, switch it out to what you love.
This was easy and so fabulous!!
Can I make this breakfast chocolate out of cocoa powder,imitation vanilla extract and no expresso powder?
Yes, feel free to experiment and substitute.
There are different sizes of presses, I have a large 4 cup press. Does this factor into this recipe?
You can use any size you like, just make sure not to over fill it so you have room to pump the press.
Hi , it’s looking so yummy!!
By the way I love the cups with little birds ,
May I ask where you got them from?
I think i got them at Cost Plus/World Market Lou.
it works very well with almond milk, the hot chocolate is very creamy. I used dark chocolate with 80% cocoa in order to keep the sugar content low. Greetings from Switzerland 🙂
YAAAAS!!!! I am SO pumped about this! The drinking chocolate bit is amazing, I tried it and am loving it (though I didn’t properly take the time to process my chocolate because I’m impatient, impulsive, and bad at planning) but the MILK FROTHING!!!!! My life has changed. Thank you.
I am going to try this! I’ve been looking for a sugar free hot chocolate recipe and this is definitely sugar free! Thanks!
Hey Laura ~ I just want to be clear that bittersweet chocolate does contain sugar. It’s less than other types of chocolate, but each brand will contain at least 10% sugar. Check your labels if going sugar free is important to you.
Actually, Lilly’s chocolate is made with stevia and is a great sugar free option, also there are baker’s unsweetened chocolate
Baker’s unsweetened will have a very different taste! The Lilly’s with stevia would be a better option for SF for the taste of hot chocolate.
Hello and thanks for this recipe !
Can you explain what you mean by espresso powder ?
Is it instant coffee (the one you dissolve in water) or true coffee (the one you filter) ?
Thanks a lot !
It’s instant coffee, in this case, instant espresso. You can usually find it in the coffee section of your supermarket, but you sometimes have to look for it.
Try using crushed peppermint sticks. Pretty tasty.
I can taste it now…yum 🙂