Protein Hot Chocolate

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5 from 67 votes
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This healthy DIY High Protein Hot Chocolate Mix uses just three ingredients and takes seconds to whip up! It’s warm, comforting and uses either water or milk of choice to create a delicious hot cocoa! It’s suitable for those following a vegan, gluten free, paleo, low carb, sugar free, dairy free and grain free lifestyle! 

Healthy Homemade High Protein Hot Chocolate Mix (V, GF, Paleo)- An easy, 3 ingredient hot cocoa mix completely sugar free, low carb, and dairy free- Just add water for a cozy, comforting and guilt-free drink! Perfect for gifts, DIY and holidays! {vegan, gluten free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

I sometimes feel like taking back some of my intentions stated on this blog…namely creating bodybuilder/fitness competitor recipes for my mate, Luke. 

What I thought would be a fun little project has turned into something a little more complicated. 

Because Luke is based in Australia, the way macronutrients are calculated (kilojoules) are different to what the majority of other countries use (calories). Over the last couple of weeks, I’ll be peppering my good pal and epic RD, Alexis, with a plethora of questions regarding this. A big reason for this is that the majority of my readers follow the ‘calorie’ format over the kilojoule format. Myself, even though I grew up in Australia, I never used the kilojoule method of calculation.

…because the kilojoule method was too confusing. 

Healthy Homemade High Protein Hot Chocolate Mix (V, GF, Paleo)- An easy, 3 ingredient hot cocoa mix completely sugar free, low carb, and dairy free- Just add water for a cozy, comforting and guilt-free drink! Perfect for gifts, DIY and holidays! {vegan, gluten free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

ANYWAY.

Something interesting we’ve found in the process is how things are calculated, based on macronutrients. Without going into too much detail (mainly because I’m still confused by it all), some things, like fiber, are counted differently in foods/recipes. For example, a snack bar that Luke eats regularly here is around 210 calories,but the exact same bar in America is labeled as 155 calories.

Same ingredients, same packaging, same size….just differing macros. 

Not only that but the carbohydrate counts are different on both packages too (which explains the caloric differences…I guess?) but I’ll let Luke explain that in an upcoming post. I seriously have a headache just thinking about it.

So fat, so sorry.

Healthy Homemade High Protein Hot Chocolate Mix (V, GF, Paleo)- An easy, 3 ingredient hot cocoa mix completely sugar free, low carb, and dairy free- Just add water for a cozy, comforting and guilt-free drink! Perfect for gifts, DIY and holidays! {vegan, gluten free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

ANYWAY.

For the second recipe in the ‘let’s make Luke’s road to competition glory diet easier’ initiative, we’re giving his favorite hot beverage a cheeky healthy makeover…with a bonus protein-packed hack to it. 

Luke is one of the few people who doesn’t enjoy drinking coffee, which is a shame seeing as his girlfriend’s favorite brunch spot is Seven Seeds, a cafe infamous for their superior coffee (just an FYI, his girlfriend, Kat, is the best dining companion ever. She literally eats ANYTHING). In the last post, I mentioned how we’d get coffees and muffins before our lecture, but the coffee was on my part. He went the hot chocolate route. 

There is something comforting about enjoying a classic hot chocolate, filled with creamy milk, marshmallows and the sugary cocoa powder on top. However, when you’re prepping for a fitness competition, these may take up a few precious macros, especially coming up to the final weeks. In this instance, I’ve made an easy, simple healthy hot chocolate mix packed with protein!

Healthy Homemade High Protein Hot Chocolate Mix (V, GF, Paleo)- An easy, 3 ingredient hot cocoa mix completely sugar free, low carb, and dairy free- Just add water for a cozy, comforting and guilt-free drink! Perfect for gifts, DIY and holidays! {vegan, gluten free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

This healthy homemade hot chocolate mix is packed with protein and needs just three simple ingredients! It’s your answer for a daily chocolate-y, warming and comforting drink which is sugar free. A traditional hot chocolate is based on heavy milk, cream and a ton of sugar, but this version contains none of those. Granted, if you are after a classic hot chocolate, this wouldn’t fit the bill, but for a warm, cozy and comforting beverage you can enjoy every single day (or even as a post workout drink!), it’s your answer! Depending on which protein powder you choose, it’s completely gluten free, vegan, sugar free, paleo, dairy free and grain free! 

The three ingredients are protein powder, cocoa powder and a granulated sweetener of choice. Let’s jump into a little bit of detail for each aspect, as it’s imperative for a successful (and delicious!) hot chocolate.

Healthy Homemade High Protein Hot Chocolate Mix (V, GF, Paleo)- An easy, 3 ingredient hot cocoa mix completely sugar free, low carb, and dairy free- Just add water for a cozy, comforting and guilt-free drink! Perfect for gifts, DIY and holidays! {vegan, gluten free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

The protein powder– This makes up the recipe (hello, high protein part?) and the type of protein powder is ridiculously important. Use the wrong one, and you’ll be left with clumpy milk, and then you’ll choke on the clumps and cry a river like Justin Timberlake.

ANYWAY.

Firstly, I DO NOT recommend whey protein powder. I don’t recommend it in any of my food recipes, and I do not recommend it in this homemade hot cocoa mix. Even after trying to mix it slowly with hot water, it became way too sticky, and eventually turned into one big clump. I recommend using a brown rice protein powder (it’s vegan and gluten free!), a casein protein powder (better flavor and thickness and mixes beautifully) and if you follow a paleo lifestyle, this one works well too. These are the protein powders I’ve personally tried and have tried several other casein/vegan blends which also worked will. If you use a different brand, please test it out first using a small portion of hot water and protein powder and see if it mixes well. This is your best indication!

Now, the granulated sweetener of choice! If you checked out yesterday’s recipe, I lamented about the monk fruit sweetener, a natural stevia blend which mimics white table sugar really well. If you have a preferred sweetener of choice, feel free to use that, but make sure it’s suitable to be mixed with hot drinks- Some zero calorie sweeteners are strictly for cold beverages.

Finally, the cocoa powder! As the protein powders are chocolate flavored, this portion is completely up to you. I LOVE a dark chocolate taste, so use dark cocoa powder liberally. For a classic chocolate flavor, I’d stick to a good quality cocoa powder or even a mix of both. The best part is that you can always add more once you’ve made your hot beverage!

Healthy Homemade High Protein Hot Chocolate Mix (V, GF, Paleo)- An easy, 3 ingredient hot cocoa mix completely sugar free, low carb, and dairy free- Just add water for a cozy, comforting and guilt-free drink! Perfect for gifts, DIY and holidays! {vegan, gluten free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

HACK! This healthy homemade high protein hot chocolate mix is perfect to give as gifts to those fitness friends or family members too! All you need to do is set up as many mason jars (cleaned our jelly jars work perfectly for this), label it with the type of protein powder used (vegan, casein or paleo- This is important- See the recipe card!), the granulated sweetener used and maybe a cheeky little message like Arman is amazing

Make this healthy homemade high protein hot chocolate mix and get your slippers on and put on some Netflix.

Just kidding, go lift weight then chug this down after.

HOLLA!

Protein Hot Chocolate

5 from 67 votes
An easy, 3 ingredient hot cocoa mix completely sugar free, low carb, and dairy free- Just add water for a cozy, comforting and guilt-free drink! Perfect for gifts, DIY and holidays! {vegan, gluten free, paleo recipe}
Servings: 4

Ingredients  

Instructions 

To make the hot chocolate mix

  • In a large mixing bowl, sift your cocoa powder to avoid any clumps.
  • In a separate bowl, add all the ingredients and mix very well, until combined.

To make one serving

  • Add 7 tablespoons of hot chocolate mixture into a large mug.
  • Add 1/4 cup of boiling water and mix very well until everything is combined and no clumps remain. Add 1/2-1 cup of either hot water or warmed up milk of choice, mix again and enjoy!

Notes

Keep hot chocolate mix in an airtight container.
For a richer hot chocolate, use all milk of choice.
Author: Arman Liew
Tried this recipe?Give us a shout at @thebigmansworld or tag #thebigmansworld!
Healthy Homemade High Protein Hot Chocolate Mix (V, GF, Paleo)- An easy, 3 ingredient hot cocoa mix completely sugar free, low carb, and dairy free- Just add water for a cozy, comforting and guilt-free drink! Perfect for gifts, DIY and holidays! {vegan, gluten free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

Arman Liew

I’m a two time cookbook author, photographer, and writer, and passionate about creating easy and healthier recipes. I believe you don’t need to be experienced in the kitchen to make good food using simple ingredients that most importantly, taste delicious.

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Comments

  1. …85 hojillion years later, I find this.

    PRO-TIP! If you’re a lush like me, you looooooove the velvety, super-thicccc [yes, four-cs-thick] texture of a hot chocolate with too-much-powder-and-not-enough-liquid. Yes, I was the kid who would have two tablespoons of milk in a glass of Milo, not the other way around. 😉

    ANYWAY! PRO-TIP!

    A) If you have a blender [or you want a bonkers arm workout with your whisk], pour a little of COLD milk into the cup, and add this mix. BLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEENDDDDDDD until you think the thing is going to lift up and fly off into the sunset. Then, add your hot milk, and stir! BOOM. CREAMY, VELVETY, LUXURIOUS, HIGH-PROTEIN MAGIC. This actually makes Whey Protein work for this recipe, too!

    B) Use one of those handy-dandy milk frothers! I have a little hand-held one, and while it’s about as useful as an ashtray on a motorbike for ANYTHING except adding cute little bubbles to the top of my milk, it actually does a surprisingly decent job of blending protein powder into liquid! It’s better with water than something more viscous like almond milk, but if you start with a little water then add milk once it’s combined, you’re golden!

    Anyway, stellar recipe! Thank you! Now, brb, off to make a hot chocolate. At 2pm on a Monday. Hopefully my pre-recorded Zoom background of myself just sitting there holds up, and no one asks me any questions…

  2. Thanks for the yummy recipe! I use whey protein but have found if i mix in a small amount of the liquid cold, it gets creamy and then I can add hot slowly while stirring, giving a nice texture. It also adds a nice flavor for “hot cocoa” style drinks.

    Looking forward to trying other recipes
    Thanks,
    Lisa

  3. What a lucky duck – dude ;)? – Luke is to have you helping him out with competition prep diet-approved recipes. I couldn’t imagine doing that myself. Though I sadly -do- know the calorie counts of many foods. Kilojoule? Not. Because that ish really is confusing. The carbohydrate difference makes sense, though, as fibre technically is a carb and apparently US labels don’t have to count these in as calories?
    How many weeks out/until the competition your friend is preparing for?

  4. I seriously can’t believe that you made this with protein powder. It looks amazing!! I used to be a hot chocolate girl myself, and then I discovered coffee about five years ago and am now a certified addict. I’m back in the land of confusing kilojoules, too!

  5. It got real cold here overnight, so hot chocolate sounds good right about now. And some protein would be great too, since my quads are crazy sore after last night’s workout. Damn Orangetheory fitness making me think I could beat the guy next to me at jump squats…….

  6. Well THAT right there is easy enough to make! 😉 I’ve totally thought about this before – but since I am more of a vanilla girl, as you know, he he… I have yet to make it!
    Oh and I actually love going over seas and seeing the KJs in foods… Because they actually list ALL of the KJs/Calories in a damn food. In the states, if it has less than 5 calories per serving, they just list it as ZERO. Lazy America.

  7. Woah, I think you just blew my mind with all that kilojoule talk. I’ve been really trying to count calories the past couple of weeks…and it’s hard! How the heck do I know how many calories are in a slice of bread that I baked? I just give it my best estimate and go with it. And now you tell me I need to step up my game? I’m going back to bed…haha. Love the hot chocolate mix here, mate. I’m going back to bed…with a hot chocolate next to me!

    1. Oh geebuz… I can’t imagine calculating homemade stuff, it would take forever! I have a good one- Anything delicious is calorie free 😀

  8. I use protein powder to make hot chocolate too! It’s an easy way to get an extra protein boost without much effort!