Do you remember that feeling of playing outside or sledding for hours in the snow? Your hands and feet were absolutely numb, your nose felt like there was frostbite on it, your snow pants had long ago stopped working up to par and you had chunks of snow at the bottoms of your boots. And then you walked inside… it was wonderfully warm and cozy and you threw off your winter jacket, hats and mittens and your mom made you a mug of hot chocolate that thawed your hands and made you glad to be inside.
This post is for the grown-up who misses those days… the days of sledding for hours and coming inside to get warm and be cared for. I can guarantee that any group of kids that you create this for, no matter what their ages, will love it. Maybe not everyone will appreciate an antique flying saucer (this one reminds me so much of the amazing old sleds I saw at the Vintage Bazaar!) but I know they will love being able to heap their mugs full of hot chocolate and add some fun treats into their mugs.
There are so many different ways to set up a hot chocolate bar but this one is simple. It’s made for the kids just running in from the snow who don’t want (or shouldn’t have!) Bailey’s in their hot chocolate or more grown-up flavorings. There are just some candy canes to munch on or swirl in the hot chocolate…
or marshmallows dipped in crumbled candy canes if that’s more your style…
and then you can top the whole thing off with homemade whipped cream.
To further work with the warm and cozy theme a scarf is layered around the base of the buffet and little touches of Christmas are popped in with fresh hypernicum berries and greens.
Tell me, what is your favorite addition to hot cocoa? Or are you a purist and love it as simple as it comes? For more warm and cozy inspiration visit our warm & cozy page!
