5 Creative Toppings For Hot Chocolate Beyond Marshmallows

When temperatures drop, it's time for hot chocolate. Whether you're grabbing one of the popular brands of hot chocolate mix or serving enough to sate a crowd, you'll want to make the most out of your cocoa-imbued endeavors. You probably know some of the common points of discussion concerning a better mug of hot chocolate: Whether it's best to use milk or water, or how to take a page out of the French tradition and use butter, but too often, less attention goes to the very last thing you do to your cup.

You might not have thought much of hot chocolate toppings, having perhaps typecast marshmallows, cinnamon, and whipped cream to that category, but believe us when we say that your hot chocolate deserves so much more. You owe it to yourself to switch up those toppings and try some new and interesting combinations.

You're likely already in on the excellent combo that is salt, caramel, and chocolate. Heck, you might've already made your own chocolate-covered salted caramels. Salt can take the rich and deliciously-sweet flavors of caramel and amp them up to 11, and it's just as much of a decadent marriage when you add it to your favorite warm chocolatey beverage.

You could argue that the best part of your salted caramel hot chocolate is the amazing palette of flavors that grace your tastebuds (and we won't argue with you there), but you could also make the case that the best part is actually the fact that you can prepare this drink in a few different ways. You can use a caramel sauce and mix that in with your cocoa, adding some salt to get more of an seamless  mixture. Or you could even add some coarse salt and caramel sauce atop a bed of whipped cream for an aesthetically pleasing cup. However, you shouldn't undersell the textural impact that solid pieces of caramel can add. Break up some pieces of caramel and top your hot chocolate with those and some coarse salt, and take your tastebuds on a ride as the candy melts.

It's a breakfast table staple, it's an effortless meal to make, and it's a food with a mythical origin story. And now, cereal is your newest addition to your list of hot chocolate toppings. Cereal is already the de facto partner to milk, and pairing it with some rich, velvety hot chocolate can end up being a move that benefits both sides of that equation. When it comes to your hot chocolate, crunchy cereal adds a great contrast in texture while adding some sweetness and perhaps also some maltiness.

As far as exactly which cereal works best, the choice is ultimately whichever kind of cereal you normally jibe with. Cocoa puffs are a natural candidate, and will fit in seamlessly with hot chocolate's flavors; so will Reese's puffs. Lucky Charms is a cheeky addition (being half marshmallows), and Cinnamon Toast Crunch gives you that satisfying crunchy texture while providing the cinnamon note that works so well in hot chocolate. You could even have a look at some less-sugary cereal options if you're looking to limit the sweetness of your hot chocolate toppings — there really isn't a limit to which cereals you can add to your cocoa.

Ginger has, for a good while now, served as an undersung but invaluable ingredient in some top-tier cocktails, and has long been a go-to ingredient for tea. The spicy, earthy golden root can also be turned into "candy" with a sugary coating, giving you a delicious sweet and spicy combo. This version of ginger can even be used to level up cranberry sauce. And, just like another similar spice in cinnamon, it works stupendously as a hot chocolate topping.

Candied ginger not only adds some sweetness to your hot chocolate by virtue of its sugary exterior but its earthiness and spice lend a unique robustness to your hot chocolate that's hard to replicate with other ingredients. And if you want to look at the textural aspect that it brings to the table (or rather, to your cup), the rhizome pieces will bring a somewhat chewy feature that's quite unique to hot chocolate. For extra gingery goodness, you might even consider steeping a ginger tea teabag in your hot chocolate before you top it. And hey, ginger is potentially beneficial for your health, too – not like you need an excuse to try this out.

If you really want to amp up the dessert-like sweet quality of your hot chocolate, then this might be the toppings of choice for you. Toffee bits (not to be confused with caramel) have a crunchy and somewhat toasty quality that add a beautiful burnt-sugar note to your hot chocolate. Alone, these broken-up bits of sugary delight would be a worthy addition to your hot chocolate, but when you add maple to the mix, your enjoyment is sure to dramatically increase.

If you choose a good maple syrup, then you're guaranteed to have an excellent cup on (and in) your hands. But you can step up your maple game even more if you instead choose to use maple as a rim on the mug itself. Simply use your maple syrup (or other kind of sticky maple condiment) to coat the rim of your mug, and let it be a sweet adhesive for some of those great little toffee bits. You could also add some light maple sugar flakes to your toffee pieces here for an even more complex blend.

If you'd rather dial back the sugary sweetness and instead opt for something a little more subtle and sophisticated, then this might be the topping for you. Orange is already well-known as an invaluable complement to chocolatey creations, mixing its citrusy and aromatic notes wonderfully with cocoa, and it's no different with your hot chocolate. Some grated orange zest can bring a brightness and fragrant quality that your hot chocolate has been missing.

As far as chiles are concerned, they're already a spicy staple in Mexican hot chocolate, and you can integrate that piquant quality into your other hot chocolates, too. You can use chile powder, chile flakes, or even whole small chiles to bring the heat to your hot chocolate. Spice is already an understated way to make your hot chocolate restaurant quality, and whichever spicy component you choose from these, it'll blend expertly with your orange component to bring a decadent combination that's certain to provide a sensory experience while you're drinking it. You could even add a stimulating shot of espresso (which works well with chiles and orange) for a mocha-esque concoction. So, while marshmallows are great in hot chocolate, there's no need to limit your options to them when you've got so many fantastic toppings to choose from.