Spiked Hot Chocolate Mix With Homemade Peppermint Marshmallows Gift Kit

There’s so much goodness in this post I can’t even stand it, y’all. Tie all three elements–creamy hot chocolate mix; soft, homemade peppermint marshmallows; mini bottles of peppermint schnapps–together and you’ve got the best-ever gift idea for anyone (over 21, that is). Keep the homemade hot chocolate mix for yourself or simply whip up a batch of the homemade peppermint marshmallows. Personally? We’re indulging in the kit on Christmas Eve to start a brand-new tradition at 40 Aprons HQ. So, we’re building a house. Quel seque, non? We’re building a house, and we may have gone a bit overboard. Interest rates increased, and here you have us, scrimping and saving every single penny to put towards that brand new house we’re closing on in literally days now. Am I excited? Well, “excited” might be the understatement of the year. Not only are we moving closer to my parents (and, more importantly, Leo’s grandparents), we’re moving into our absolute dream house and increasing our space by over 200%. We’ve lived in this little house for a while, and I’m so ready to not have to take turns brushing our teeth at night… But again, we’re closing in literally days, which means right after Christmas, which means… everyone’s getting homemade gifts this year. I wanted to make up for our thriftiness by packaging indulgence, though, and so the spiked hot chocolate mix with homemade peppermint marshmallows gift kit was born! Heat up a bit of milk, stir in a couple tablespoons of mix, stir in half a bottle of peppermint schnapps, top with marshmallows, and you’re on your way to a serious holiday reprieve.

If you’ve never made homemade marshmallows before, they’re so easy! You do need a candy thermometer, but that’s the most complicated part. Mix a few packets of gelatin and a bit of water in a mixer, boil a few other ingredients, pour the syrup into the bloomed gelatin, and then mix for 10 minutes? So easy, so impressive, and light years above the prepackaged things. I also layered a small piece of wax paper over the hot chocolate mix to separate it from the marshmallows. You could cut out a piece, traced from the bottom of the mason jar, but I totally winged it. Lastly, I tied the two peppermint schnapps bottles together first then tied the rest onto the lip of the mason jar. I attached a little tag with instructions, as well, reading: Spiked Peppermint Hot Chocolate Kit! Heat 1 cup milk or almond milk, stir in 2-3 tablespoons of mix, 1/2-1 bottle of peppermint schnapps, and top with peppermint marshmallows. And I can tell you with 100% certainty simply from tasting and testing this recipe… anyone would be extremely happy to get one of these kits. ??? If I could bold and all-caps this winky face, you guys, I would. Boozy Christmas cheer ftw.