Hot Chocolate Bombs (or balls) are a fun way to enjoy a cup of hot chocolate! These chocolate balls filled with hot chocolate powder, marshmallows, and sprinkles are popular around holidays but can be enjoyed anytime. They also make great gifts during the wintertime! This recipe explains how to put them together and then decorate them. The Recipe Notes section has instructions for making several different flavors of hot chocolate bombs.
How Did They Get Their Name?
Hot chocolate bombs get their name because the hot milk causes them to burst open and the marshmallows “explode” or pop out. If you aren’t a big fan of marshmallows in your hot chocolate, you can leave them out and still enjoy making a cup of hot chocolate using hot chocolate bombs.
Use a Silicone Mold
You will need a silicone mold to make these hot chocolate balls. Silicon molds are usually sold in sets of two, and each mold has six cavities. This recipe uses eight mold cavities to make four bombs. To see a supply list, photos, and instructions, click here to go to my Grinch Hot Chocolate Bombs recipe. However, if you are familiar with making them, go straight to the recipe below.
Use a Large Mug
These chocolate bombs are made with a 2 1/2-inch mold, so you will need to use a large wide mug when you make the hot chocolate. It also takes 1 1/2 cups of milk (12 ounces) when mixing the hot chocolate.
Use Larger Molds
Place the hot chocolate, flavorings, and marshmallows into half of the ball. It fills up quickly when using marshmallows! But if the balls were much larger, they would not fit into a mug!
Spread Chocolate Thickly on the Mold
You can use silicone molds in shapes other than balls. The one key to making hot chocolate bombs in any mold shape is to spread the chocolate thick enough on the silicon. Balls are the easiest shape to make and remove from a mold, but others will work when the chocolate is thick enough to withstand the pulling and tugging of removal.
Make Your Own Recipe
You can create your own recipes for hot chocolate bombs. Add the things you like, use high-quality chocolate, and experiment with the ingredient amounts to make a perfect cup of chocolate.
If you have never made hot chocolate bombs before, click here to go to my Grinch Hot Chocolate Bombs recipe for photos, instructions, and tips on using a mold.
| Prep Time | 20 minutes |
| Cook Time | 1-2 minutes |
| Passive Time | 5-10 minutes |
| Servings |
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- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 8 tablespoons hot chocolate mix
- 8 tablespoons mini marshmallows
- 2 1/2 inch (cavities) half-sphere silicon molds (This recipe will make 8 half spheres or 4 finished balls)
- 1/4 cup white chocolate chips
- Pink gel food coloring
- vegetable oil
Ingredients
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- In a microwave-safe dish, heat 1 cup of chocolate for 30-second intervals until melted, stirring after each interval.
- Use a spoon to paint the inside of the spheres with the melted chocolate. Take care to paint chocolate all the way to the edge of the mold. Gravity will sometimes pull the chocolate from the top edges of the mold, so check after coating all the half-spheres to make sure the chocolate is all the way up to the edge. If there are thin spots of chocolate, recoat them because thin spots can easily break. You do not have to grease the mold.
- When all of the half-spheres are "painted" with chocolate, place the mold in the refrigerator to harden the chocolate. This will take 5-10 minutes or longer.
- When the chocolate hardens, remove it by peeling the mold away from the chocolate. Then press the bottom of the mold to release the chocolate half sphere, being careful not to break the chocolate.
- Add 2 tablespoons of hot chocolate powder and 2 tablespoons of marshmallows to half the spheres.
- Heat a non-stick frying pan until it is warm enough to melt chocolate but not hot. Place an empty half-sphere in the pan, rim side down until the chocolate edge starts to melt. This will only take a couple of seconds. Remove the half-sphere from the pan and place it on a half-sphere already filled with hot chocolate. The melted edge will act as chocolate glue and seal the sphere. Add leftover melted chocolate from the pan to seal holes around the edge. Wipe off any extra chocolate.
- Melt the white chocolate in the microwave for 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval. Add pink gel food coloring to the chocolate until the desired color is achieved. Add a few drops of vegetable oil to the chocolate to thin it for piping. Place the chocolate in a plastic sandwich zipper bag and snip off a small corner for piping.
- Using a back and forth motion, pipe stripes onto 1 ball one at a time. Repeat for all the balls.
- To serve, place a ball in a large mug. Slowly pour 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups of hot milk on top of the ball, melting it with the milk. If the sphere doesn't fully melt and the marshmallows pop out, use a spoon to rotate the ball to melt it further, allowing the marshmallows to pop out of the ball.
Supple List
Click here for a list of supplies, instructions, and photos for making hot chocolate bombs.
Gel Coloring
- I used pink Wilton gel food coloring.
- Do not use liquid food coloring, or it can cause the chocolate to seize or become hard and unworkable.
How to Adjust the Sweetness
- Use more or less milk to adjust the sweetness to your taste.
- Reduce the amount of hot chocolate in the sphere. Then adjust the milk to taste.
Heart-Shaped Hot Chocolate Bombs
To make heart-shaped bombs:
- Use 2 to 2 1/2-inch heart-shaped silicone molds.
- Make the top of the heart by painting chocolate in one of the molds.
- Then paint just the bottom of a heart-shaped mold to form a flat surface. Chill.
- After the chocolate pieces are chilled to harden, remove them from the molds and fill the heart with hot chocolate ingredients. Heat a small amount of dark chocolate and paint it around the edge of the heart shape.
- Place the (flat) heart-shaped chocolate onto the melted chocolate to glue the bottom of the heart in place.
- Use extra melted chocolate to seal any holes in the seam.
White Chocolate Bombs
- The directions for white chocolate bombs are the same as dark chocolate.
- Measure out 1 1/4 cups of white chocolate.
- Set aside 1/4 cup for decorating the tops of the bombs.
- Use the same color of pink gel coloring for both the balls and decorative stripes. Add more pink gel to the chocolate you plan to use for the decorative stripe decoration.
- Use either white hot chocolate mix or regular hot chocolate mix in these chocolate bombs.
Optional Flavors
Make the hot chocolate shells as described above. Then add any of the following flavors:
Spicy Mexican Hot Chocolate
Add a pinch of cayenne powder and chili powder and 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon to each ball. Add extra spices to taste after mixing up the hot chocolate.
Peppermint Hot Chocolate
Add 1 tablespoon of finely crushed peppermint hard candy to each ball.
Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate
Add 1 or 2 sliced caramel cubes and a pinch of coarse grain salt to each ball. Slicing the caramel helps it to melt easier.
Orange Hot Chocolate
Add 2 or 3 drops of food-grade orange essential oil to the melted chocolate, and stir before painting the chocolate in the molds. Always taste test to determine if the flavor is right for you.
DO NOT use an orange extract in the melted chocolate because it contains water that can seize the chocolate and make it unusable.