How is the holiday season treating you so far? Hopefully great. I honestly can’t believe it’s December 11th. What a whirlwind season. I just finished another round of book edits and now I’m currently in the midst of planning next week’s photoshoot for my next cookbook. Some of you might remember in The Oh She Glows Cookbook, we had various lifestyle photos throughout the book. Well, the second cookbook is going to have all new photos so I’ve been planning around 15 unique shots, all the recipes that will be featured (and what I have to prep in advance, what needs to be made the day of, etc), and everything in between (such as, what the heck am I going to wear). It’s been a bit of a hot mess around here, but I’m so excited for next week’s shoot! Hopefully it’ll all come together. My dear cousin Alannah is coming to help on the shoot days, and I couldn’t be more grateful to have her help.
In other news, you can now find me on Snapchat! I used to think Snapchat was just an app for sharing questionable content among teens, but apparently it can be used for other things too. New techy things intimidate me and “for dummies” tutorials confuse me so the fact that I’m currently using Snapchat (and loving the heck out of it) probably means it’s not even cool anymore. But, I love how easy-breezy it feels. (After I finally figured it out, that is.) Want to write all over the picture and make a hot mess? Sure. Want to snap some random, poor lit shot? Go for it. It feels fairly real as far as social media goes, and it’s fun to get snaps throughout the day of someone’s day to day life. Oh, and I somehow got my mom to follow me. She’s hip, I tell ya! I think she’s just holding out for more Adriana pics though…
So, if you are down for some “riveting” behind the scenes footage over at casa OSG, then follow along. My username is angelaliddon. I’ll be sharing day to day things, cooking videos (so fun – yesterday I did my homemade nutella), behind the scenes blog stuff, travel, as well as some blog/book/life sneak peeks. Odds are you will probably see it on Snapchat first because it’s just so fast to share things.
Here are a few random things I posted over the past week:
Like I said, hot mess.
Also, let me know if you are on it too!? I’m only following like 6 people right now which definitely makes me look a bit like a stalker. Ok, a lot like a stalker.
The second piece of news I have to share is to tell you that I’m back to shooting the photography on Oh She Glows! I know some of you have noticed this over the past month. The change is due to a couple reasons, one of which is that I miss shooting the photography greatly. I didn’t realize just how much I would miss this aspect of blogging after 8 years of doing the photography day in and day out. I still don’t have a proper photography set up and I rush through all my shoots since Adriana was born, but I hope to find a better system in the future. I will be bringing on a team member to OSG in the near future, and I hope that this will help me find a better balance with everything.
If you saw my snaps yesterday you probably spotted this hot cocoa in the making. It was all I could do not to bathe in this stuff, and it features my Homemade Mocha Nutella for a nutty twist on traditional hot cocoa! If you’re looking for a warming treat on a cold night, look no further.
Homemade Nutella Hot Chocolate
Yield
4 (1/2 cup) servings
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
A nutty, plant-based twist on traditional hot cocoa. This recipe features my homemade nutella nut butter which makes this drink so creamy and decadent! I also love adding 55-60% dark chocolate into the mix for even more chocolate flavour. For a luxurious twist, try stirring in a bit of full-fat coconut cream into the hot cocoa, or serve it topped with some vegan marshmallows.
Ingredients
- 2 cups unsweetened almond milk (homemade or store-bought)
- 50 grams 55-60% non-dairy dark chocolate
- 1-2 tablespoons pure maple syrup, to taste
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup Homemade Mocha Nutella (recipe linked below)
- Dash fine grain sea salt, to taste
Directions
- Prepare the Homemade Mocha Nutella.
- Break up the chocolate into chunks. In a medium pot, add the almond milk and chocolate pieces. Increase heat to medium-low. Whisk occasionally until all of the chocolate is melted.
- Whisk in the maple syrup, cocoa powder, nutella, and salt until super smooth. Heat over medium-low and remove from heat just before it simmers. If you can't get the hot cocoa smooth enough by whisking (this will depend in large part by how smooth your homemade nutella is) you can transfer it into a blender (with lid ajar) and blend until smooth.
- Adjust the sweetness to taste, if necessary. Serve and enjoy! Leftovers will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for 2 days or longer.
Tip:
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
Oh, and if you are interested in a impromptu video on me making my homemade nutella, check out this video I uploaded to Instagram.
If you are looking for all my holiday recipes, see this link!
Who wouldn’t be happy with chocolate as a gift? So delicious!
And yay that you’re doing your photography again that’s so great to hear Angela, your photos are gorgeous :)
Caveat: only tangentially related to the hot cocoa. :) I’m in the market for a new food processor (I’ve made do for years with a combo of my mini cuisinart prep and our Ninja). Any lessons learned or rec’s on your end? Kiddo #1 is on the way so I expect to kick up food processing as baby-food making gets added to my list. THANKS!
*consider baby-led weaning and skip making millions of purees–just start with finger-foods–just putting it out there! (congrats, btw!)
I’ve had a 14-cup cusinart for over 10 years and I love, love it. I really enjoyed making purees for my boo (he’s 15 months old now), but I more often used a blender to make them. I’d definitely recommend getting containers to freeze the purees in– it makes it so much easier to give your baby variety when you a selection to (quickly) choose from. I was given these Beaba freezer trays and they were awesome.
So much love and luck to you! Having a little one is the best :-)
Congrats! Food processors are useful for new moms for so many reasons…not only purees but speeding up a lot of prep for meals. I asked Angela this same question and she replied with the same info as Katie. I bought the 12 cup cuisinart elite and haven’t looked back! It is incredibly efficient and just goes and goes! Good Luck!
**forgot to say,Angela has a great post about the cuisinart at http://ohsheglows.com/2012/04/27/kitchen-sink-nut-butter-cuisinart-food-processor-review/
This looks ahhhhhmazinggg! I really love all your recipes! I’m sure you’ve answered this question before, but is there a store bought almond milk/nut milk you recommend? I’m concerned about all the additives and I can’t seem to find one I’m always comfortable purchasing. I’ve made my own before but I don’t seem to have the time to it as much I would need too. Homemade by trumps store bought (being able to control thickness, flavor and knowing what’s in it)…just wondering if you have a “go to” when in a pinch. Thanks and Happy Holidays!
This look so heavenlly! I too am so glad you are doing your photography again. I have really missed your photos. Can’t wait for the gingerbread cookies too. I make so many of your cookie recipes for the holiday season and have been anxiously checking for a few new ones to add to the cookie tray! Thank you!!!
Nutella hot chocolate?! I think I’m in love! I’ve been searching for a few homemade gift ideas (nut butters, jams, and such) to gift people this holiday season so I’m excited to have another recipe to make! And I’m thrilled you will be behind the camera again. Your photos are always so warm and inviting. (:
I wish I had a smartphone so I could have snapchat! But until it’s affordable to a broke college grad (and by affordable I mean next-to-nothing cheap haha), I guess I’ll stick with my clunker of a phone.
When I saw this recipe, I knew I had to make it… and it did not disappoint! The Nutella adds a fun twist to traditional hot chocolate and besides having to make the Nutella, this recipe was pretty easy to whip together. I also highly recommend giving your hot coco a whirl with an espresso frother. You can get them online and at IKEA for a reasonable price.
The gingerbread man looks adorable–we just made “gingerbread” men with your graham cracker recipe this weekend! Lots of fun, and a non-refined-sugar way to celebrate the season–Thanks!
How long does the Nutella last for in the fridge?
I’ve never heard of Nutella hot chocolate! Thank you so much for sharing. I also LOVE the idea of homemade Nutella as a gift.
Dreaming of Palm Trees! Collaboration With Lilly Pulitzer
Wow it Looks delicious!
Definitely I will try this
It will be great if you share the recipy also.
Oh I got the recipe Don’t how how I missed the recipe. Actually I love Cooking and Thats’ why I have made it my Profession also.
Any way When I try I will tell you how tasty it will be
Aahhhhhhh I totally know what you mean about the photography. Since my little one was born (Chloe is now 9 months old), writing posts and carefully constructing the pics is SO hard, but I love learning about photography and I think that is one of the reasons many of us have food blogs. Anyway – the pics are still looking great and the recipe looks yum too! We are in Australia though the weather now is warm. I get very jealous looking at all these blogs with winter Christmases!
Wowza! This hot chocolate looks so rich and chocolatey :) I also love the idea of giving a jar of the Mocha Nutella as a gift! Homemade gifts are the best- especially when you can eat them.
It looks yummy .I really want this and you have made it simple and really well .I really appreciate your efforts .A big thanks for sharing .
Made this last night- SO delicious, nutty, rich, creamy and definitely cured my chocolate craving!
This looks divine! What a delicious treat for a cold winter day
This may not be the appropriate post to which to add this comment, but I’m a bit desperate for ideas and tips so I thought I’d give it a shot :)
(By the way Angela, huge fan for 7 years now – you helped me through naturally treating Lupus with your recipes!)
I’m a young wife (despite the misleading Granny name..hehe..), married to a non-vegan guy. I went vegan for a couple of years to treat Lupus, then I re-introduced animal products for almost 2 years, and then I started to feel sicker again. So now I’m back to eating vegan, with the occasional exception of seafood (as that doesn’t seem to cause any nasty symptoms). The problem is…trying not to cave with all the non-vegan foods in my fridge. It would be easier for me to say no to animal products if my choice to eat vegan was due to moral reasons, but it isn’t, as I find nothing wrong with eating animal products. My choice is purely health-based. I find myself caving more often lately, and then I wake up in the morning feeling sick. It helps me to watch how the animals in mass production are being treated as I’m a huge animal lover, and those videos just make me bawl my eyes out…but lately I feel like I need to watch those every waking minute to help fight the temptation, and that’s not realistic. I feel like we need separate kitchens, but I doubt that would be healthy for our marriage relationship ;-P
I used to have extremely high resolve and self-discipline when I was single, but have now been getting weaker in that area as I’m allowing myself to be influenced by Hubby (he’s an amazing guy and I love him to bits- just self-control/self-discipline are not his personal strengths where health is concerned).
Any tips or ideas?
Angela, would you ever make a weekly meal plan along with a grocery list? Spend too much, waste too much, and there never seems to anything appealing in the frog so eat junk instead. Help please
This looks yummy! I love your Snapchat stories by the way!
I’m excited you’re on snapchat! You seem like you’d be fun to follow with creating new recipes and all. My sc is catjess1 if you want to see what a psych doctoral student does all day lol. Also perfect timing with this recipe as it is just beginning to get cold here in Los Angeles :) Thanks!