Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Hot Chocolate with Agave Nectar

When I go for a run in the mornings these days, I'm wearing a stocking cap and gloves. The mornings and evenings are chilly! Midday still brings temps near the 60s. I love this weather, especially since I have a nifty new space heater in my office! The kind that looks like an old radiator. I'm cold natured and the DH is warm natured. So we heat up my little work nest and I'm as happy as a fluffed up bird and he's as cool as a cucumber!

In cool weather, I find myself longing for hot chocolate in the evenings about once per week. I'm also trying to reduce my sugar intake. To marry these two desires, I tried a hot chocolate recipe that used agave nectar instead of sugar. I was very pleased with the result! Here is the recipe that I modified a bit. Instead of using fresh milk, I used powdered and it worked fine.

1 cup (8 oz) milk - if using the powdered version, combine 1 cup water with 1/3 cup milk powder
1 Tbsp cocoa
1 Tbsp agave nectar - I used a wee bit less
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cinnamon


More info on agave nectar benefits. And, to be fair, concerns about agave. The bottom line - all things (especially sweeteners) in moderation.

Has anyone tried agave nectar as a sweetener in tea?

7 comments:

Philigry said...

oh, yes hot chocolate. i love this chilly air too! you are so good to go running!
I love the new look of your blog!

Lady Katherine said...

What great info for agave nectar. I will take hot chocolate with marshmellows, please just a few.

Steph said...

BTW - Has anyone tried agave nectar in their tea?

MikKnits said...

I quite like my agave nectar in my tea. It has almost a honey taste so I prefer it in my green and white teas. One good thing about agave nectar is that, unlike honey, you can put it into iced drinks and it will dissolve quickly, rather than falling to the bottom of the glass in a lump.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the link! I'm glad you liked my recipe!

Maggie said...

Your two links on agave benefits and concerns are the same.

I also like agave b/c of the dissolving factor, but, like other sugars, it makes me more irritable, so I use stevia now. :)

Brian said...

Hi! I wanted to let you know that my blog has moved, and the links have changed. The recipe is now at http://feedingthefamily.net/2007/12/23/hot_cocoa_with_agave_nectar/