Add Leftover Hot Chocolate To Pancake Batter Instead Of Pouring It Out

Whether you've made a batch of hot chocolate to share at a holiday gathering or just bought one too many packets for your family to use up in a reasonable time, it's all too easy to toss out the leftovers. However, while you're certainly free to toss the hot chocolate, there's a far better solution at hand — adding it to your pancake batter.

Adding hot chocolate to your pancake batter can give it a sweet, chocolatey flavor that pairs perfectly with your favorite pancake toppings. Plus, it helps you avoid waste and recycle leftovers that have been sitting in the fridge.

Of course, there are a couple of caveats to adding leftover hot chocolate to your next batch of Saturday morning pancakes. Here's how to add hot chocolate to your pancakes for a tasty twist on a breakfast classic. Plus, here are a couple of other ways to use up leftover hot chocolate if the pancake idea doesn't get your attention.

Adding hot chocolate to your pancake batter is surprisingly easy. All you need to do is whip up your favorite classic pancake recipe and toss the hot chocolate into the batter. Then, stir everything together and cook the pancakes as you normally would. Once the pancakes are ready, you can top them with whipped cream, syrup, or even melted chocolate for a tasty, chocolatey breakfast.

One thing to note is that if you're using hot chocolate mixes with powdered dairy, you can wind up throwing off your pancakes. The reason for this is that dairy affects your pancakes' texture, so it's best to steer clear of these types of mixes.

Alternatively, you can always just use cocoa powder to get the same effect. Just note that this could make your batter drier than you want, which means you may need to adjust your liquid ratio or tone down a bit on the flour. A good rule of thumb is to replace ⅓ of the flour in the recipe with cocoa powder. That way, you avoid a clumpy, stodgy pancake.

If you've got extra hot chocolate powder on your hands, adding it to pancake batter isn't the only way to get rid of it. You can also add it to other recipes. One such recipe is to make hot chocolate brownies. To make this recipe, add four to five packets of hot cocoa mix to your brownie recipe. Better yet — for this sweet treat, you can use milk-based hot chocolate powders, so while you can't use them for pancakes, you still have a way to use these drink mixes!

Another way to use leftover hot chocolate is to add it to whipped cream. For this recipe, you only need three packets of hot cocoa mix and a cup of heavy whipping cream. Mix the ingredients together on low with an electric beater until they're incorporated, then switch the machine to high to get the cream to fluff up. Use it atop a cup of hot cocoa, coffee, or anything else you like.

However you choose to use up leftover hot cocoa powder, don't do what everyone else does and chuck it out. Instead, use it in various recipes for a fun cocoa twist and enjoy the flavors of the season!