Holistic Hot Chocolate

This is my go-to. I have made this hundreds of times, especially during my grief journey. It is calming, composing, warming and like a kiss on the forehead after a hard day. It’s truely lovely. Chocolatey, rich, slightly spicy, stimulating and nurturing, you won’t reach for a different hot chocolate ever again.

This contains cacao, turmeric, cayenne, cinnamon, a small kiss of cardamom, black pepper, warming fresh ginger, a teeny bit of salt and a pinch of nutmeg. It will really reduce that tension headache, lift you out of your numbness and give you an inner hug.

Let me tell you about how this is fantastic for you –

The active compound in turmeric, curcumin, has a huge range of medicinal benefits including being an anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-oxidant. As well as this, curcumin is being looked into for alleviating the symptoms of mood disorders. Scientists say that curcumin may provide benefits for mental health disorders by regulating dopamine and serotonin production in the brain (for those of you who don’t know, those are your natural happy makers). Awesome. Black pepper enhances the absorption of curcumin.

Cacao has an incredibly high natural dosage of magnesium. Symptoms of a deficiency in magnesium could mean a higher sensitivity to noise, insomnia, high levels of stress, irritable bowel syndrome, tension headaches, depression, anxiety, restlessness and muscle soreness. It relaxes the nervous system and calms your entire being, hence why I add 1 1/2 tsp cacao to this hot chocolate.

Ginger and cinnamon are incredibly warming and increase circulation. In aromatherapy, cinnamon is used to reduce the feeling of numbness in grief, loss and hopelessness.

Cayenne is a natural decongestant, relieving you of a snuffly nose. It’s enlivening and warming. You only feel a hint of this in the hot chocolate, but it’s just enough to notice.

Finally, nutmeg is a natural stimulant to pick you back up off of your feet.

I like to make batches of this mixture up and keep it in a jar – if you plan to do this too, use ginger powder instead of fresh grated ginger.

Ingredients

200ml milk of your choice
1 1/2 tsp raw cacao powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/3 tsp cinnamon powder
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp freshly grated ginger
1 pinch of cayenne pepper
2 cardamom pods, crushed
A pinch of black pepper

Directions

Using a knife, bruise the 2 cardamom pods and add to a small pan with the milk.
Place the pan on the stove to a low heat.
Add the rest of the ingredients to the milk and stir in until fully mixed.
Slowly warm the hot chocolate for 10-15 minutes (this is key – don’t be impatient, it tastes wonderful when it’s been heated slowly).
Once ready, remove the cardamom pods and transfer to a mug. Add sweetener if you wish. Sprinkle with cinnamon.

Enjoy,

Anna xxx