Hot Cocoa Charcuterie Boards Are The Holiday Treat You Didn't Know You Needed

It's difficult to imagine anyone ever serving up a bad cup of hot chocolate. But if you are looking to make sure your guests get their hot cocoa just right, you're probably thinking it would be better if you got people to just DIY their own drinks. Enter: the hot cocoa charcuterie board.

Before you say "EEEEEWWWW cold meat and cheese don't belong in hot chocolate," we would agree with you, but hear us out. The word "charcuterie," which, according to Merriam-Webster, technically refers to dressed meats and meat dishes, we'd like to invite you to think about the term "charcuterie board" the way some hosts think of it today: as a quick and easy way to offer up a wide variety of delicious snacks, nibbles, and apps. Except in the case of the hot cocoa board, you'd be looking to offer different ways to make and dress up the hot cocoa of your dreams. 

Unlike the fancy architectural design work that goes into building a gingerbread house or a charcuterie board (which, in this case actually means building up an edible, savory, cheese-cracker-and-meat home) there are no rules for building a hot cocoa board. But if you're someone who absolutely needs to have rules, Eating Well suggests presenting ingredients that anyone would need to upgrade their cup, from cocoa powder, whipped cream, and marshmallows, to candy, chocolate chips, cookies, sprinkles — and maybe flavored liqueurs like Baileys, Kahlúa, or Frangelico to turn your drink-for-all-ages into something the grownups can enjoy after a night of dealing with the children.

And because presentation is everything and we tend to eat with our eyes first, you'll want to set out the ingredients in jars that are both festive and decorative (via Best Products). With all of us likely to be stuck at home this Christmas season, a hot cocoa board could become the holiday drink upgrade we didn't know we needed.