I’ve made a ton of holiday gifts in reusable jars to give this year, and one of my favorites is this Double Chocolate Hot Cocoa in a Jar. Who doesn’t love a mug of hot chocolate to warm you up! This gift is not only simple to make and pretty to look at, but a delicious way to say thank you to those you love and appreciate!
Why Hot Cocoa in a Jar Make the Best Edible Holiday Gift
- Personalized Touch: What sets this gift apart from the rest is the personal touch. It’ll show that you’ve taken the time to curate a jar filled with comfort, and that extra thoughtfulness goes a long way in spreading holiday cheer.
- Perfect for Anyone: Hot cocoa knows no limits – it’s a treat for everyone! Whether you’re gifting to a cocoa connoisseur or someone with a sweet tooth, this jar of joy will be perfect for anyone on your list.
- Last Minute Holiday Hero: Hot Cocoa in a Jar is the perfect “oops, I forgot someone” last minute gift. I actually keep several ready to go during the holiday season just in case I run into someone that I want to give something special to. They only take minutes to whip up though, so you can get it all together in no time if you need to!
- DIY and Budget-Friendly: Putting these jars together is not only fun but also super affordable. You only need a few ingredients making it a budget-friendly yet heartfelt gift option. Plus you can customize it to anyone’s taste!
How to Make Hot Cocoa in a Jar
The Ingredients
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Granulated sugar
- Chocolate chips
- Cinnamon stick
- 16 ounce mason jar with lid
The Instructions:
1. Layer Ingredients: In the mason jar, layer the cocoa powder, sugar, chocolate chips, and top with the cinnamon stick. To ensure even, uniform layers use a funnel or fashion a makeshift funnel using parchment paper.
2. Gift with Instructions: Place the lid on top and tie a festive bow around the lip if desired. If gifting, include a card with these instructions: To make the hot cocoa, place the contents of the jar in a medium saucepan with 8 cups of milk. Simmer until the chocolate is melted and the hot cocoa is warm and smooth!
Tips for Creating Hot Cocoa in a Jar
- For Perfect Layers: Use a small funnel to get the perfect even layers. If you don’t have a funnel, you can create a makeshift funnel using parchment paper.
- Add Some Personality: Get crafty with your jar! Wrap a colorful ribbon around the lid, attach a cute tag with the recipe instructions, and maybe throw in a candy cane or two for stirring. Let your creative spirit shine as you prepare this lovely gift.
- Cinnamon: If you don’t have cinnamon sticks at the ready, you can substitute with 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon.
More Edible Holiday Gifts
It’s no secret I love using mason jars for gifting. This hot chocolate recipe is perfect in a jar, or you could use a mason jar gift Easy Winter Chili In A Jar or some festive Sun Dried Tomato Basil Pesto too. Here are some more of my favorite edible holiday gifts to give!
- Fresh Gingerbread Bundt Cake
- Pumpkin Spice Mixed Nuts and Seeds
- Classic Spritz Cookies
- Chocolate Reindeer Bark
- Christmas Tree Brownies
Let me know in the comments if you’re gifting hot cocoa in a jar this year, and tag me on social media if you make these!
DIY: Double Chocolate Hot Cocoa in a Jar
Equipment
- 12-16 ounce mason jar with lid
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 16 ounce mason jar with lid
- holiday ribbon
- gift tag
Instructions
- In the mason jar, layer the cocoa powder, sugar, chocolate chips, and top with the cinnamon stick. To ensure even, uniform layers use a funnel or fashion a makeshift funnel using parchment paper.
- Place the lid on top and tie a festive bow around the lip if desired. If gifting, include a tag with these instructions: "To make the hot cocoa, place the contents of the jar in a medium saucepan with 8 cups of milk. Simmer until the chocolate is melted and the hot cocoa is warm and smooth!"
gracias por sus recetas aprendo cada dia mas
16 ounce jar!
I am going to make these. They look supercute and homemade and they are simple! What size jar did you use?
I made these to give as Christmas gifts this year! They were fun to make and a practical and unique gift for families 🙂 Thank you as always!
Yep! That would make 1 single serving of cocoa.
I think if your co-workers have a couple of children you would give them the full recipe. For a couple you could 1/2 the recipe. I wouldn’t give someone a tiny jar with enough for only 1 cup of hot chocolate.
I would love to make this for my co-workers. Would I just divide the recipe by 8 to get single servings?
cute!
I make a sort of funnel out of parchment paper! Place it down into the jar so the cocoa powder slides down the parchment paper and doesn’t smudge the jar. 🙂
I love this idea, but I have question about its execution. My daughter and I have trouble getting it to look so neat. The cocoa sort of sprays up on the sides when added and mixes with the sugar a bit. It doesn’t look as pretty as a result. Any suggestions? Thanks! 🙂 Jenny
Where did you get the lids for the mason jars? It didn’t look like the amazon ones came with them.
a single serving would be 1 cup milk plus 2 tablespoons of the mixture!
how do you make a single serving size?
My kids LOVED making these with me. We used the smaller size (pint?) mason jars, and instead of including the cinnamon stick, I cut a circle from waxed paper to put on top of the chips and added mini marshmallows on top (to keep them separate). They turned out really cute! Thanks for a great idea.
Semi-sweet, but you could use any you prefer!
What type of chocolate chips did you use (Semi-sweet, dark chocolate, milk chocolate etc)? Thanks : )
About 1/2 teaspoon! 1 full teaspoon if you like it really cinnamon-y!
How much cinnamon would you use in this if you put ground cinnamon instead of a stick?
You would need to use a milk substitute because the cocoa powder won’t dissolve completely in just water.
Has anyone tried making it with water instead of milk? I have some friends with a lactose intolerance and wanted to know if you could just simmer it with water or if you would have to use a milk substitute?
I just made these for hostess gifts and they looked adorable. I wrapped some ribbon around plain mason jars and attached the directions on the back of a large holiday gift tag. Super simple. Thanks, Catherine!!
You have such great edible gift ideas. I’m thinking next cookbook for you should be: Weelicious Edible Teacher’s Gifts.
Hello! May I know if it’s possible to change the 8 cups of milk into dry powdered milk to put into the jar too? and if so, how much would that be? 🙂 Thank you!
I love making things like this for gifts. People seem to really appreciate the effort that goes into homemade gifts. I love that you used jars with handles. I now need to run out and find those. I’m obsessed with mason jars.
These are so cute! Do you think I can fit them in 8oz mason jars instead of the 16oz? I am looking for something just a little smaller? Maybe if I don’t include the cinnamon stick?
Where to get the lids?
I just wrote the directions on a gift tag!
Is there a link for printing the tag you show in the picture?
Real brain power on dilsapy. Thanks for that answer!
Any tips on where to find lids that fit the jars you linked to? Are they regular or wide mouth mason jars?
8 cups of milk! It comes out to about 1 tablespoon of cocoa to 1 cup of milk! 🙂
8 cups of milk? is that right; or is that supposed to be 8oz of milk making one cup for the whole jar?
Just found this site (thank to Pinterest) and I love it!
What a great gift idea! My kids would love to help out with making these. 🙂
Hi! Great idea and so festive. Was able to find the (lid-less) mason jars online but where did you order the adorable red lids from? Thanks!
The directions are on the recipe card!
did you include the directions? I can’t what the paper says. this is such a fun idea!
You should be able to find mason jars in your local grocery! They’re sometimes hidden in the baking aisle, or on the very top shelf of a random aisle where you wouldn’t think to look!
Hmmm any reusable jar should work! You could even use a large coffee mug!
Any alternatives to mason jar you can think of? Crunched for time!! 😉 Hannukah party tomorrow.
These ones do not. You have to purchase the lids separately.
So sweet! Quick question, do those mugs/jars come with lids? I went onto Amazon but couldn’t tell from the product description…
So cute!!!
This is so cute! I am going to include this with my secret santa gift at work. Thanks so much!