Frozen Hot Chocolate

I have been eating really healthy lately, but every once and a while I just need a treat.

For example, I need a treat after a day of taking care of a baby who is teething and utterly miserable. I also like watching chick flicks after days like this.

Speaking of girly movies, have you ever seen Serendipity?

I have not seen it for years, and the other night when I discovered that it's not on Netflix, I knew that somehow I had to experience the movie without actually watching it. 

In the movie there is a little restaurant called Serendipity 3. It's actually a real restaurant too, located in New York City. They are famous for their frrrrozen hot chocolate which has been described as outrageously divine.

I would much rather have watched Serendipity, but making my own frozen hot chocolate turned out to be just what I needed at the end of a really stressful day.

It is made healthier because--- it is a smaller portion size, it does not contain butter (because yes, the original Serendipity frozen hot chocolate does), and it contains cottage cheese which is an excellent source of protein.

It also has some stevia in it (a zero calorie sweetener). I am usually reaaaaaaaaaaaaaally hesitant when it comes to zero calorie sweeteners. They give me really bad migraines. But I hardly ever ever ever use stevia, and I have not had any problems with it yet.

If you want you could replace the stevia with real sugar, honey, agave-- whatever you prefer for sweetening things. FYI, I don't think this recipe needs a lot of added sweetness in the first place.

I realize that cottage cheese might sound like a strange ingredient, but I promise it is not. You can't even taste it. It just makes the frozen hot chocolate creamy and protein packed. It's made in a blender so there won't be any cottage cheese curds in this when all is said and done.

If you have never had frozen hot chocolate before, it is basically like a chocolate slushie. We like to top ours with whipped cream and shaved chocolate. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Frozen Hot Chocolate

Ingredients

• 1 packet Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate (you can use diet, but I used regular)
• 1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese
• 3-4 packets stevia powder
• 1 heaping tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• ice
• water
• whipping cream (optional)
• shaved chocolate (optional)

Cooking Directions

1. Fill your blender 1/3 full with ice. Add 1/2-3/4 cup cold water.
2. Add in remaining ingredients.
3. Blend until smooth.
4. Spoon into glasses and top with whipping cream and shaved chocolate. Eat with a straw or a spoon.

Recipe by Dashing Dish

5 out of 5 stars

Yield: 2 servings

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