There's nothing quite like cozying up with a warm mug of hot chocolate on a cold winter day. The comforting beverage goes hand in hand with Christmas cookies and candy canes — but why stop there? With our fabulously festive DIY, you can create disco ball-inspired hot chocolate bombs to celebrate New Year's Eve!
We'll show you how to make hot chocolate bombs using a faceted sphere mold, chocolate chips, and sprinkles, and we'll top it all off with edible silver dust to add a sparkly disco ball vibe that's perfect for the occasion!
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Video: New Year's Eve Hot Cocoa Bombs
Things You'll Need
2 cups chocolate chips, plus more as needed
Hot chocolate mix or cocoa powder
Festive sprinkles
Disco ball sphere mold
Wide paintbrush
Fluffy paintbrush
Silver edible pearl dust
What chocolate is best for hot chocolate bombs?
Instead of chocolate chips, you can use chopped baking chocolate bars if you prefer. Feel free to use dark chocolate, semisweet chocolate, or milk chocolate as well. Regardless of the type, go for a high-quality chocolate (such as Ghirardelli) for the best flavor. You can also use candy melts in fun colors, though keep in mind that they’re very sweet.
1. Melt the chocolate
To prevent melted chocolate from sitting at room temperature for too long, work in batches. Start by adding half of the chocolate chips to a microwave-safe bowl. Heat in the microwave in 15-second increments, mixing each time until melted.
Tip
If you don’t have access to a microwave, you can melt the chocolate on the stove top using the double boiler method. Add water to a pot until it’s about a third full. Put a heat-safe bowl on top, ensuring the bottom of the bowl is not touching the water. Place the chocolate in the bowl, bring the water to a simmer, and stir the chocolate until melted.
2. Fill and set the molds
Add a scoop of melted chocolate to each sphere cavity.
Tip
If you don’t want to buy a disco ball chocolate mold, feel free to use a plain sphere dome silicone mold.
Using a clean wide paintbrush (that's used only for food) or the back of a spoon, spread the chocolate so that it's coating the entire mold.
If your mold came with silicone inserts, place them on each layer of chocolate while it's still warm. This will help flatten the inside of the chocolate shell.
Place the hot cocoa bomb mold in the fridge for 15 to 30 minutes or until it has completely hardened. (The total time it takes for the chocolate to set will depend on several factors, including your specific fridge and the exact temperature of the chocolate.)
3. Fill the chocolate domes
Carefully remove the half-spheres from the mold.
Tip
As you handle the chocolate, it might begin to melt. Put the domes back in the fridge for 5 to 10 minutes to let them reharden after this step.
Turn over half of the domes. Fill them with sprinkles and at least 1 tablespoon of hot cocoa mix.
Customize your hot cocoa bombs
As with all homemade recipes, you can customize this tutorial to your liking. Here's a few ideas to make the recipe your own!
- Add mini marshmallows, more chocolate chips, or even crushed candy canes if you’d like.
- Try making the hot cocoa bombs with white chocolate.
- If you don’t eat dairy, go for dairy-free chocolate and hot cocoa mix and then add the treat to your favorite plant-based milk.
4. Make the hot cocoa bombs
Spread room-temperature (not hot) melted chocolate on a plate. It's essential that the chocolate is not hot; otherwise, it will melt the chocolate half-spheres. If it's still too warm to the touch, let it cool slightly.
Dip the edge of an empty half-dome in the melted chocolate.
Gently press it onto a filled half-dome to seal. If needed, brush additional melted chocolate along the seam.
Chill the bombs in the fridge for 5 to 10 minutes.
5. Brush the bombs with silver dust
Using a fluffy paintbrush, brush each bomb with silver dust to bring on the sparkly disco ball vibes!
Tip
Store leftover hot cocoa bombs in an airtight container in the fridge.
How do you use hot chocolate bombs?
When you’re ready to enjoy a hot cocoa bomb, add it to a mug and pour hot milk on top. Once the chocolate melts, stir the mixture and drink up! For a boozy twist on this recipe, add a splash of peppermint schnapps to your drink.