• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
MOMables® Healthy Lunches for Kids
  • MEAL PLANS
    • Weekly Family Meal Plan
    • Teaching Your Kids to Cook
    • 7-Day Family Reset
    • Meatless Meal Plan
    • Pantry Staples Meal Plan
    • Free Picky Eaters eCourse
  • Cookbooks
    • 101 Packed Lunches
    • Chicken. It’s What’s for Dinner
    • Intermittent Fasting eBook
    • Meal Prep’d
    • More Cookbooks
  • Recipe Index
  • Healthy Lunches
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Lunch Ideas
  • 101 Lunches
  • About
  • Start Here
  • Lunch Boxes
  • Cookbooks
  • Dinner Meal Plan
  • Contact
search icon
Homepage link
  • Lunch Ideas
  • 101 Lunches
  • About
  • Start Here
  • Lunch Boxes
  • Cookbooks
  • Dinner Meal Plan
  • Contact
×

Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate

by Laura Fuentes

December 26, 2020
updated Jul 11, 2023
5 from 8 votes
This rich and delicious salted caramel hot chocolate has the perfect blend of savory-sweet flavor, and it's super easy to whip up!
Jump to Recipe

All the articles & recipes on this website have been created through real-life testing and experience (no ai) since 2010. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

This salted caramel hot chocolate is easy to whip up and has that delicious salty-sweet flavor of dark chocolate, caramel, salt, and frothy milk.

Top it with whipped cream and extra caramel drizzle to make this the ultimate cold-weather treat.

two mugs of salted caramel hot chocolate, one topped with whipped cream and caramel candy

How to Make Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate

Who’s ready for a cup of creamy, caramelly hot chocolate? Here’s how to make it: 

  1. Combine
    In a medium saucepan, gently heat up the milk over medium heat. Once the milk is warm, add the chopped chocolate, caramel sauce, and salt. Stir to combine.
  2. Simmer
    Once the chocolate has melted, remove the saucepan from heat and serve in mugs.
  3. Serve
    Top with whipped cream and a drizzle of caramel, if desired.

If you want to take this hot beverage up a notch, try making it with dairy-free Caramel Sauce. No candy thermometer or constant whisking involved, just coconut milk, coconut oil, and maple syrup simmered into a velvety, gold caramel. 

Best Chocolate to Use for Caramel Hot Chocolate

To make this silky-rich hot chocolate, you can use good quality chocolate chunks, pieces, or semi-sweet chocolate chips, if you do not keep dark chocolate on hand. 

You’ll want to make sure it’s baking chocolate, which melts into a smooth and even consistency compared to candy bars. Varieties of chocolate that are quality in taste and easily found at local grocery stores include: 

  • Guittard
  • Ghirardelli
  • Nestle Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Can You Use Cocoa Powder?

Swapping the chopped chocolate for cocoa powder wouldn’t be a good idea unless you change the ratio of ingredients and add sugar. If you only have unsweetened cocoa powder on hand, make my Caramel Hot Cocoa instead. 

Yes, this means that hot chocolate and hot cocoa aren’t the same things. While both beverages are entirely delicious, hot chocolate gets its rich flavor from melting chocolate with milk. Hot cocoa uses cocoa powder and sugar, mixed milk, and vanilla extract for a light, sweet beverage.   

How to Serve Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate

Serve this winter treat like you would any hot chocolate or hot cocoa recipe! A few of my favorite hot chocolate toppings are: 

  • whipped cream
  • marshmallows
  • extra Caramel Drizzle
  • coarse sea salt
  • shaved chocolate
  • cinnamon

Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate

Laura Fuentes
5 from 8 votes
This rich and delicious salted caramel hot chocolate has the perfect blend of savory-sweet flavor, and it’s super easy to whip up!
Servings: 4 servings
Cook Time 10 minutes mins
Total Time 10 minutes mins

Ingredients

  • 4 cups milk, any
  • 1 cup chopped dark chocolate*
  • 3 tablespoons caramel sauce
  • ¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions
 

  • In a medium saucepan over medium heat, gently heat up the milk. Once the milk is warm, but not boiling, add in the chopped dark chocolate, caramel sauce, and salt. Stir to combine.
  • Once the chocolate has melted, turn off the heat and serve. Top with whipped cream and a drizzle of caramel, if desired.

Notes

  • You can use chocolate chunks, pieces, or semi-sweet chocolate if you do not have dark chocolate.
  • Alternatively, if you want a recipe that uses unsweetened cocoa powder, use my Hot Cocoa Recipe and add the caramel sauce and salt amounts shown above.
  • Nutritional information was calculated using 1% dairy milk and semisweet chocolate chips.

Equipment

Clean Treats Cookbook
purple yeti mug
Hot cocoa for hours!

Nutrition

Serving: 1 mugCalories: 269kcalCarbohydrates: 45.3gProtein: 11.5gFat: 12.4gSaturated Fat: 7.7gCholesterol: 4.9mgSodium: 300.7mgFiber: 15.2gSugar: 21.2g
Like this recipe?Rate and leave a comment below

More Hot Cocoa

  • Strawberry Hot Chocolate Recipe
  • Dairy-Free Hot Cocoa Mix
  • green stanley thermos
    How to Keep Hot Chocolate Warm
  • Pumpkin Spice Hot Chocolate

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Laura Fuentes, founder of MOMables wearing a yellow shirt and looking at the camera smiling

Hi, I'm Laura! I help you make healthy lunches and meals your kids will love, with simple and tasty recipes.

I need lunch ideas! →

Fresh Favorites

  • collage o f four bento boxes
    Bento Boxes for Kids’ Lunches 101
  • Protein & Fruit Bento Box For Kids
  • Guacamole and Protein Bento
  • a collage of healthy school lunch ideas for teens
    Healthy School Lunch Ideas for Teens

Popular Now

  • a collage of sandwiches in lunchboxes
    How to Pack a Sandwich for Lunch
  • Peanut Butter Sandwich Ideas
  • Healthy Alternatives to Lunchables
  • 8 Healthy Wraps for School Lunch

Footer

Lunchbox Builder

Download here!

Healthy Lunches

  • School Lunches
  • 101 Lunch Ideas eBook
  • Thermos Lunches
  • What's a Bento?

Resources

  • Contact
  • About
  • Cookbooks
  • YouTube Channel

Privacy | Permissions | Membership Terms

COPYRIGHT © 2023 LAURA FUENTES