Add a Christmas hot chocolate bomb to a cup of hot milk to make silky smooth peppermint hot cocoa. Not only do these white chocolate starlight mint hot cocoa bombs make a delicious hot beverage, but they look great too.
Christmas means cold temperatures in the northern hemisphere and there's no better way to warm up than with a mug of hot cocoa.
Why not make that hot cocoa festive and fun for the holiday? These bright white and red swirled chocolate bombs look and taste like starlight mints.
They will make a wonderful mug of hot cocoa, but when packaged they'll make great stocking stuffers, bake sale items, or Christmas gifts too.
You can make round Christmas Hot Chocolate Bombs if you prefer. They are pretty amazing too.
You can find the tutorial to make these pretty chocolate balls on my How To Make Hot Chocolate Bombs recipe post.
That post is a great place to find tips on:
- how to make your hot chocolate bombs really shiny
- how to make bombs using pure chocolate or compound chocolate (candy melts)
- how to make hot chocolate bombs using polycarbonate, silicone, and plastic molds
- how to fill hot chocolate bombs with hot cocoa or chocolate ganache
So, be sure to check it out.
Now, let's talk about making these festive white chocolate peppermint hot chocolate bombs.
To start, you will need to get a Spinning Leaf Peppermint Candy OREO Cookie Mold.
I've used Spinning Leaf OREO Cookie molds to make Conversation Heart Hot Chocolate Bombs, Football Hot Chocolate Bombs, and Hot Chocolate Bomb Turkeys.
I love the size of these candy molds for making hot cocoa bombs. The peppermint candy molds are the smallest of all the molds I have used so I skipped adding marshmallows to leave plenty of room for the hot cocoa mix.
Video
I did not make a video for this recipe, but you can watch the Conversation Heart Hot Chocolate Bomb video to see how to paint a mold and make a hot chocolate bomb. You will use the exact same technique to make these starlight mints.
How to make Peppermint Hot Chocolate Bombs
You'll need:
red candy melts - These candy melts are vibrantly colored red. You can color white candy melts using oil-based red food coloring, but you'll need to use a lot of coloring to get a vibrant red.
white candy melts - You can use regular white candy melts which have an off-white tone or you can use bright white candy melts. Either will work fine. I used the off-white candy melts.
food-use-only paintbrushes - Buy new paintbrushes and keep them in your kitchen. You do not want to use a paintbrush that has ever been used with paint.
Spinning Leaf Peppermint Candy OREO Cookie Mold - I highly recommend you cut the mold into individual molds (as I did when making my Conversation Heart Hot Chocolate Bombs). You can work more quickly if you do this!
white chocolate peppermint hot cocoa mix - I'll share a recipe to make this below.
step 1 - Melt your candy melts.
Check out my Chocolate Making Tips page for instructions for melting candy melts using the microwave, a double boiler, a melting pot, or a skillet.
If you use a water bath in a skillet, you can keep candy melts melted all day so you can make lots of these peppermint bombs.
step 2 - Paint the red swirls into the mold.
- Dip your paintbrush into the melted red candy melts.
- Dab the color into the triangle-shaped swirls. You want this red coating to be thick. You do not want to see through it.
For more tips on painting into candy molds, check out my How to Paint Candy Molds post.
PRO TIPS:
- Red candy melts will get spotty if they dry at room temperature, so you'll want to paint one mint, then place the mold in the freezer for 2-3 minutes until the chocolate hardens.
- When you remove the mold from the freezer, it will be cold. You need to wait about 5 minutes for it to come to room temperature before painting in more red candy melts.
- This is where it will be helpful to cut the mold into individual molds.
- You won't have to wait!
- I wish I would have done it. It took me an hour to fill just one mold because of all the waiting.
- I used kitchen shears to cut apart my conversation heart mold. You'll need some good sturdy scissors to cut the mold. Be sure to curve the cut edges so you don't cut yourself on the sharp plastic.
step 3 - Make the white chocolate shells.
- Spoon about 1 tablespoon of white candy melts into the mold.
- Use a larger food-use-only paintbrush to brush the chocolate over the bottom and up the sides of the mold.
- As the white chocolate slides down the sides of the mold, brush it up again. As it cools, it will stay in place.
- Freeze the mold for about 5 minutes just until hardened. The chocolate can crack if it gets too cold, so don't forget them in the freezer.
PRO TIP:
- Make sure your white candy melts are not too hot or they will melt the red candy melts.
- I like to melt them, then let them cool for about 5 minutes or so before using them. As they cool, they will thicken, making it easier to paint up the sides of the mold.
step 4 - Make homemade white chocolate peppermint hot cocoa mix.
- Grate 2 ounces of white chocolate using a Microplane grater or the small holes in a cheese grater.
- Pour the white chocolate into a mixing bowl.
- Sift ⅔ cup powdered sugar over the chocolate.
- Then, sift ¾ cup powdered milk over the top.
- Optionally, add ½ teaspoon powdered vanilla.
- Whisk all those ingredients together.
- Then, crush 24 starlight mints into fine crumbs using a food processor. Or you can place them in a zip-top bag and smash them using a meat mallet, hammer, or the back of a heavy pan.
- Mix the crushed peppermint candies into the hot cocoa mix.
- When used by itself to make white chocolate peppermint hot cocoa, you'll want to add 2-3 tablespoons to one cup of simmering milk. Start with 2 tablespoons, then add more to taste.
- When you fill the starlight mint hot chocolate bombs (which contain just over 1 ounce of white chocolate), you'll melt one bomb in ¾ cup of simmering milk.
step 5 - Fill the hot chocolate bomb with hot cocoa mix.
- Spoon 1 level tablespoon of the peppermint hot cocoa mix into the white chocolate shell. I used a funnel which helped to keep the cocoa mix from spilling over the edge of the chocolate shell.
- Flatten the hot cocoa mix leaving ⅛ inch of space over the top.
- Use a food-use-only paintbrush to brush away any powder that has gotten around the top edge of the chocolate.
PRO TIP:
I like to create a well around the edge to fill in with white chocolate. This ensures the white chocolate that is placed on top seals well with the white chocolate shell.
If your powdered hot cocoa mix is too close to the top edge, the white chocolate won't seal properly, and your hot chocolate bombs will crack apart around the seam.
step 6 - Add the top layer of white chocolate.
- Carefully spoon (or pipe) white candy melts over the hot cocoa mix, making sure you don't push the hot cocoa mix to the edge of the mold.
- Spread the white chocolate into an even layer, then scrape off any excess using an offset spatula.
- Tap the mold gently on the countertop to allow any air bubbles to escape.
- Pop the air bubbles and cover with more white chocolate.
- Wipe off any excess white chocolate around the edge.
- Freeze for about 5 minutes just until the candy hardens.
- To un-mold, set a cutting board or cookie sheet over the candies, then flip the mold and board upside down and allow the hot chocolate bombs to fall out.
step 7 - Package your starlight mint hot chocolate bombs.
- Let your hot chocolate bombs come to room temperature before packaging in small treat bags.
- Tie with a ribbon.
- Print out the printable starlight mint hot chocolate bomb tags.
- Attach the printable tags to the bags using double-stick tape.
step 8 - Serve your hot chocolate bombs in milk.
- Place a hot chocolate bomb in a small coffee mug.
- Bring ¾ cup (6 ounces) of milk to a boil.
- Pour the milk into the mug.
- Let the white chocolate bomb melt for 1-2 minutes, then stir until well blended.
- Let the hot cocoa cool until it's ready to drink.
- Enjoy!
Just so you know, I put glass beads in the bottom of the coffee mug so my melting hot chocolate bomb would be visible in this picture! I don't recommend adding the hot chocolate bomb to the mug of hot milk as the milk may splash onto your hand and burn you.
You can find the items needed to make these Christmas Hot Chocolate Bombs from Amazon. I earn a small commission when you use the links below at NO extra cost to you. I included links to Spinning Leaf molds you can use to make Santa Hot Chocolate Bombs, or Gingerbread Hot Chocolate Bombs too.
Printable Recipe
I highly recommend you read the step-by-step tutorial before making these. I give tons of tips that will be helpful!
Red and white swirled starlight mint hot chocolate bombs filled with peppermint white hot cocoa mix make great Christmas gifts or stocking stuffers.
- 2 ounces red candy melts, melted
- 16 ounces white candy melts, melted
- 12 tablespoons white chocolate peppermint hot cocoa mix
-
Paint red candy melts into the swirl indentations on the starlight mint candy molds.
-
Freeze for 2-3 minutes until the candy hardens.
-
Remove from the freezer and allow the mold to come to room temperature.
-
Spoon 1 tablespoon of white candy melts into a starlight mint cavity.
-
Brush the white chocolate up the sides of the mold making a thick layer around the edge.
-
Freeze for about 5 minutes just until hardened.
-
Then, spoon 1 level tablespoon of peppermint white hot cocoa mix into each chocolate shell.
-
Press the cocoa mix down into an even layer that is ⅛ inch from the top edge of the chocolate and brush any excess off the edge of the chocolate.
-
Pipe more melted white chocolate over top.
-
Spread it into an even layer making sure to seal the edges.
-
Tap the mold gently on the counter to allow any air bubbles to pop and smooth out the holes.
-
Freeze for about 5 minutes until hardened.
-
Remove and unmold.
- Store your hot chocolate bombs at room temperature for up to 2 months.
- Serve each Christmas hot chocolate bomb with ¾ cup (6 ounces) of simmering milk.
- White Chocolate Peppermint Hot Cocoa Recipe
- Sift together 2 ounces of grated white chocolate, ⅔ cup powdered sugar, ¾ cup powdered milk, and optionally, ½ teaspoon vanilla powder.
- Crush 24 starlight mints into a fine powder, then mix the powder into the white chocolate hot cocoa mix.
- You can also use candy canes. You'll need a heaping ½ cup of powdered mints to flavor the peppermint hot cocoa mix.
- Packaging
- Let your hot chocolate bombs come to room temperature before packaging in clear treat bags.
- Tie with a ribbon then, attach a printable tag.
- Get the printable tags here - https://hungryhappenings.com/christmas-hot-chocolate-bombs-starlight-mints/
If you enjoy making these Christmas hot chocolate bombs you might also enjoy making these fun holiday desserts.
Candy Cane Chocolate Cups filled with Peppermint Mousse
- Mini Basketball Cheeseburgers - February 15, 2023
- Snowman Popcorn Bucket - December 24, 2022
- Peanut Butter Popcorn - December 20, 2022
The Partiologist
Such a fun idea, love the look of the peppermint swirling around in the milk!
Beth
Thanks! They do look pretty cool melting in the mug of hot milk.