Hot Chocolate Board

A steamy, creamy mug of hot cocoa is a wintery treat that we look forward to as temperatures drop. We love serving it at holiday gatherings, too—especially when it’s on a hot chocolate charcuterie-style board alongside hot chocolate bombs, marshmallows, peppermint sticks and our favorite Christmas cookies.

No matter how you make it, all the options on a hot chocolate charcuterie board instantly take a cup of hot cocoa from cozy to festive. Here’s how to put together the cutest hot chocolate board that is sure to make every holiday guest jump for joy.

Ingredients for a Hot Chocolate Board

• Hot chocolate: Make homemade hot chocolate bombs the star of your hot chocolate bar so everyone can watch them melt and explode under a stream of hot milk in their mugs. Along with the hot chocolate bombs, include a jar of holiday hot chocolate mix in case some of your guests would rather stick to the tried-and-true method of making hot cocoa. You can also prepare stovetop or slow-cooker hot chocolate ahead of time, so guests can just ladle the drink into their cups. Another option is to buy your favorite brand of hot chocolate. Just make sure you also have carafes of hot milk (whole milk makes for the creamiest cocoa) or water. Or, fill carafes with the prepared hot cocoa instead.
• Candies: Chocolates and smaller candies like caramel bits, butter mints, chocolate chips and M&M’s will melt into your hot chocolate. For sweets to enjoy while you sip, add chocolate-covered pretzels and wrapped candies like chewy caramels and Hershey Kisses to the hot cocoa board.
• Cookies: A mug isn’t complete without a cookie (or three) to pair it with. Biscotti were made for dunking, especially cranberry walnut biscotti or any one of our other biscotti recipes. Consider including a few other festive cookies like chewy ginger cookies, mint twist meringues, chocolate-covered Oreos, peppermint bark or even Pirouette sticks. When it comes to cookies for your board, the sky is the limit!
• Toppings: What’s hot chocolate without whipped cream and marshmallows? Go for mini marshmallows, snowflake-shaped marshmallows or even homemade holiday marshmallows coated in jimmies. Once you’ve got a dollop of whipped cream on top, don’t forget about mini chocolate chips, cinnamon, chocolate curls and Christmas sprinkles, as well as chocolate and caramel syrup for drizzling, to top it off. Want to go the extra mile? Coat the rims of a few mugs with chocolate syrup and crushed graham cracker crumbs so each sip tastes like a s’more.
• Stir sticks: With all the mix-ins and toppings on your hot chocolate board, you’ll need spoons or stir sticks. Candy canes and cinnamon sticks are a festive choice—plus you’ll have less to wash later! Or, make these easy chocolate-dipped spoons.
• Liquor: Want a little extra holiday spirit(s)? Give your guests the option to spike their hot cocoa by putting out a selection of flavored liqueurs, like Bailey’s Irish Cream or Kahlua. Or, go for spiced rum and peppermint or butterscotch schnapps.

How to Make a Hot Chocolate Board

Step 1: Start with the hot chocolate bombs

First, place your hot chocolate bombs (or hot chocolate mix or packets) on the board. After all, hot chocolate is the main event! Leave room to put the carafe of hot milk near the hot chocolate bombs so people don’t need to reach across the board to get started on their mugs.

Step 2: Place the small bowls next

Find spots for small bowls holding homemade candies and any other items that could otherwise roll around, like the caramels, butter mints and chocolate chips. Mini Mason jars, glass bowls or even small mugs will do the trick.

Step 3: Arrange the cookies in groups

Working around the bowls, arrange the different kinds of cookies in groups in various spots on the board.

Step 4: Fill in the gaps with candies

In the extra space on your hot chocolate board, add wrapped candies, peppermint sticks and chocolate-dipped spoons. Find a spot or two for spoons or small tongs that guests can use to scoop up marshmallows and other toppings.

Step 5: Serve

Don’t forget to enjoy a mug of hot cocoa with all the fixings yourself!

Tips for Making a Hot Chocolate Board

Do you need to make homemade recipes for a hot chocolate charcuterie board?

Store-bought ingredients can be as festive as homemade on a hot cocoa board. If you have time to make hot chocolate bombs from scratch, great—but if you don’t, buy some! Taste of Home food stylist Josh Rink says one of his favorite things about any kind of charcuterie board is that it can be as simple or extravagant as you want (here’s another extravagant holiday cheese board Josh designed!).

How much of each ingredient should you put on the board?

Of course, the number of items you put on a hot chocolate board depends on the number of people you’re serving. If you’re worried you won’t have enough, pick up some hot cocoa packets—they’ll keep for a while if you don’t use them for the board. Make sure you have extras of popular ingredients, including mini marshmallows, whipped cream and peppermint sticks for stirring.

How can you accommodate different dietary needs when serving hot chocolate?

One easy way to make sure people who avoid dairy can enjoy elements of your hot cocoa board is by having some dairy-free milks like oat milk on hand.

What can you do with leftovers from a hot chocolate board?

Your guests may have touched leftover candies and toppings on the board, so you probably won’t want to put them back in the bag or jar unless they’re wrapped. The perfect solution? Use candy leftovers on a gingerbread house!

Toss any leftover whipped cream that was sitting out on your board.

What are some other hot chocolate board ideas?

Holiday dessert board ideas aren’t just for end-of-year gatherings. Make a fall hot chocolate board with autumnal colors and flavors, like caramel apple candies and candy corn. Or, try a Valentine’s Day board with heart-shaped cookies and red and pink candies.