Candy Cane Hot Chocolate Recipe

I've gone a bit candy cane crazy here lately, what with my candy cane Christmas wreath, but they just scream Christmas to me and I wanted a treat for us, so this seemed perfect.  Mint and chocolate are a winning combination always, and what could be nicer on a yuletide evening than a sweet and warming hot chocolate made with candy canes and real chocolate?  Perfect to have after a busy day's Christmas shopping or snuggled in front of the fire.  The candy canes give a mild mint flavour to the drink so even children should cope with this level of mintiness.  

Melting the candy canes into the hot chocolate will make it even sweeter than usual, so I've opted for bitter dark chocolate, although if you have a particularly sweet tooth you could use regular milk chocolate.

There's always chocolate and candy canes knocking about this house at this time of year and this is a wonderfully different way to devour them.

Ingredients (per mug - adjust accordingly to personal taste)

50g chocolate

1 small mint flavoured candy cane

200 ml milk

Whipped cream and marshmallows to serve (optional)

Break up your chocolate into small chunks (or use buttons or drops if you have them, they'll melt quicker).

Wrap your candy canes in a clean tea towel and bash with a rolling pin to smash.

Reserve the larger chunks of candy cane for decorating, and pour the powdered candy cane into a saucepan along with the chocolate and milk.

Heat gently stirring all the time.

Once all the chocolate has melted it's ready to pour into mugs.

Decorate with whipped cream, marshmallows and the reserved shards of candy cane.