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How to Create a Cozy Hot Cocoa Bar

November 27
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The moment cool temperatures set in…it’s time for hot cocoa!  Even on a chilly summer evening my family has indulged on the toasty drink to warm our bones!  But now hot cocoa season is in full swing and it can be so easy to serve this sweet, warm treat to family and friends on a blustery day!  I often keep a tray filled with the fixins’ for the chocolatey sip in my kitchen at all times during the fall and winter, making it easy to serve up a quick cup…and it looks festive too!  Today I’d like to share some fun ways to create a pretty cocoa station with the help of my friends at Oriental Trading!  The holiday season and hot cocoa go hand in hand…you can have so much fun adding some festivity to a simple cup of cheer to make spirits bright!  So get ready for some easy DIY projects from the craft room and the kitchen to create a winter treat that won’t disappoint! Get warm & cozy…

toast the season with a hot cocoa bar!

Cocoa and Cookies for Christmas!

November 17
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Cocoa and cookies are a delicious treat…and especially wonderful during the Christmas season!  Always welcome at celebrations, but equally festive for just family to indulge on.  And the best thing is you can make this simple holiday snack look extra special with little effort!  If you’ve got some cocoa mix, mallows, a few mugs, and a tray…you have what you need to serve up the fun!  Let me share some simple ways to make it even merrier!

ho ho ho hot cocoa…and cookies!

Christmas Eggnog Bar!

December 4
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December is upon us…why not celebrate with a Christmas eggnog bar?  A little twist on the cocoa bar, eggnog is another traditional sip that’s perfect for the holiday!  My family loves eggnog…and you can serve up family-friendly or spiked version to suit everyone’s tastes!  The wonderful thing about eggnog is that you can easily find both varieties in the stores now so there’s no stovetop cooking unless you want to! (and the easier the better in my book!)  I recently took the opportunity to share some holiday sips in the back of our old truck before we store it away for the winter.  But you don’t have to have a tailgate to serve up this cheerful drink…any table will do!  And if you have an outdoor space, try bundling up and toasting the season outside…it’s a fun way to ring in December!  Let me share some ideas & inspiration with you!

serve up Christmas…eggnog style!

Coffee Bar Styling for Fall!

September 19
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A coffee bar is a wonderful addition to any breakfast or brunch gathering!  If you’re hosting any kind of event during the wee morning hours, coffee is a drink most guests will appreciate!  You can include other beverage alternatives too…but the basic idea is to set up a self-serve station that’s easy!  Today I’m sharing how I used my patio buffet to create an outdoor coffee bar to celebrate fall!  The great thing about this kind of treat table is that you can honestly set one up anywhere…a countertop or any piece of furniture that will hold the goods will do.  Add in some simple pastries for guests to indulge on and maybe a seasonal decoration or two and you have a morning treat that will start the day on a sweet note (and a kick of caffeine)!  So let’s raise a cup of joe to fall AND styling a simple coffee bar!

hello coffee bar…hello fall!

Style a Festive Hot Cocoa Stand!

December 19
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Setting up a hot cocoa stand is something that I try to do as soon as the weather turns chilly!  But there’s something about Christmastime that makes serving up the toasty drink even more special and festive! Even though we’re in the northern part of the country, we still get a day or two in December where we can light up the fire pit and serve up treats outdoors! There’s something fun about bundling up and braving the chill with a hot cocoa in hand and good company around!  See how easy it can be to set up a simple treat to celebrate the season with family & friends!   Baby it’s cold outside…so serve up something chocolatey AND warm!

 heat it up with a hot cocoa celebration!

Simple Hot Cocoa Setup!

September 14
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Hot cocoa is a favorite drink at my house…and when the first cool breezes blow I break out the fixin’s for a do-it-yourself cocoa station to take the chill off and satisfy tummies!  Whether you’re hosting an autumn party or just want to create a sweet surprise for your family, a hot cocoa buffet can be really easy to set up in a pinch!  I often keep the basic cocoa supplies in my kitchen all year long…it’s a chocolaty sip that’s even a favored drink on a cool summer evening!  But now that the unofficial end to summer has come and gone, it’s almost that time for sipping on warm drinks and snuggling around a fire!  I hope you can find some inspiration for your hot cocoa stations…no matter where you put them!

it’s hot cocoa time!

Cocoa & Cookies!

December 21
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Well, the big day is almost here and I FINALLY feel fairly prepared for all the celebrations!  Since the last day of school is today, we can soon start baking cookies and getting ready for all the holiday callers!  And it’s a fact that we will be loaded with plenty of gingerbread, sugar, and other varieties of Christmas cookies, so we NEED to have a warm and toasty drink to go with them!  One of my favorite sips during the holidays (and actually all winter long) would have to be hot cocoa!  We serve it up often when the cool winds begin to blow, but there’s something about Christmastime that give us the opportunity to doctor them up in holiday style!  At our annual Christmas Eve Gumbo I usually prepare the hot drink…but this year I thought a Cocoa and Cookies bar was in order!  It’s a perfect opportunity to make it special with plenty of friends stopping by all evening for a cup of soup…AND some sweets and hot chocolate to wash it all down!  If you caught the Holiday Hop last week, you got a good dose of inspiration…including some festive cocoa displays!  Lucky for me, I also soaked in the wonderful ideas that inspired my own cocoa station for my family and holiday guests!  Hot cocoa is easy to make and you really don’t need much to go with it to create a treat table that will delight kids and adults alike!  So with a few days left before Santa arrives, you still have plenty of time to create a holiday treat for whoever may come calling!  Have a peek at what I’ll be serving up on Christmas Eve…

hot, hot, hot chocolate!

Hot Chocolate Time!

November 28
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On a day that gave us a record temperature for November, what was I doing?  Setting up a hot chocolate bar of course!  Even though it was a little on the warm side, the weather couldn’t have been more perfect in the evening for enjoying some cocoa and goodies with friends on the patio!  Honestly, I just couldn’t wait any longer to start setting up some Christmas cheer in my home!  And being blessed with such wonderful weather, on a weekend no less, gave us the opportunity to have the best of both worlds!  And then the very next day…it snowed!  I don’t know about you but I have to admit I loved both days!  But the reality is that hot cocoa weather is now here to stay and it’s easy to warm up with some…

cookies and cocoa!

Cocoa Cart

December 10
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With cold weather upon us it seems fitting to break out the hot cocoa to warm hearts, tummies, and frozen fingers as they hug the toasty mugs filled with fudgy goodness!  (is “fudgy” a word?)  So many varieties of the chocolate treat are available in stores and coffee shops…and you can simply melt the real stuff in hot milk for a decadent indulgence!  A deserved reward for shoveling the walk, building the best-ever snowman, or a hard day of chilly play…whatever the reason hot cocoa is a winter tradition and delight–an easy way to bring smiles to the faces of those you love!  Grab some favorite containers and fill them with the makings for this sweet, warm treat…have a cocoa station at the ready for anytime guests arrive or kids come in from the cold!  This year a bar cart holds all the mugs & fixins…but a space on the counter will always do and looks so festive during the holiday season!  A treat that will be well received all winter long–so celebrate hot cocoa…

a simple pleasure!

Hot Cocoa Anyone?

October 8
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This morning when I woke up it felt more like mid December than early October!  The first frost always gets us ready to snuggle by the fire and hunker down for the winter–why not start with a toasty cup of cocoa!  Most of us associate hot chocolate with tailgating and Christmas but how about dressing it up for Halloween?  A simple treat can always be spruced up with seasonal toppings that you may already have in your cupboard or in a candy jar.  How about this idea for an after school treat that is just a fun to create as it is to consume!

Cocoa Bar

CocoaStrawsCocoa DisplayMarshmallowsSprinkles