For your commitment to eating healthful organic food and living an organic lifestyle, we offer an enthusiastic “high five.” But every once in a while (emphasis on “a while”), it’s OK to splurge on a treat that makes your eyes roll back into your head. The good news? You can prepare such epicurean luxuries with organic ingredients.

The key, of course, is moderation. Enjoy this recipe for Frozen Hot Chocolate every day, and your pants will start to squeeze you like a python. Sip a single serving during a special holiday barbecue, and you won’t pay a heavy (pun intended) price.

This recipe creates a dessert beverage that’s rich, frothy and thick enough to eat with a spoon or enjoy through a straw.

Frozen Hot Chocolate
Makes 4 servings

• 3 tablespoons superfine granulated sugar (or baking sugar)
• 2 to 3 tablespoons double-chocolate, rich-chocolate or milk-chocolate flavored hot cocoa mix
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
• 1/3 cup milk chocolate morsels
• 12 fluid ounces milk, divided
• 4 cups ice cubes
• Whipped cream

1. Place sugar, cocoa mix and butter in top of a double boiler set over gently boiling water. Stir frequently until melted and a smooth paste forms. Add morsels; stir. When morsels begin to melt, slowly stir in 1/2 cup milk. Stir until smooth and velvety. Cool to room temperature.
2. Place chocolate mixture, remaining milk and ice in a blender (in batches, if necessary); cover. Blend until smooth. Pour into individual glasses or bowls. Top each serving with a dollop of whipped cream. Sprinkle with additional chopped morsels, if desired. Serve with straw and/or spoon.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Jenny Harper, senior culinary specialist for the Nestlé Test Kitchens and VeryBestBaking.com

“I love cardamom!” says Deborah Racicot, pastry chef at the famed Gotham Bar and Grill in New York City.

The spice adds a subtle eucalyptus/mint flavor, she tells Organic Authority, cautioning that “it can be overwhelming if too much is used. It’s nice because it’s not super-strong like cloves and cinnamon.”

Chef Racicot enjoys combining unusual ingredients that set her desserts apart from other chefs’ creations. In her crowd-pleasing recipe for White Hot Chocolate, she uses green cardamom (not black cardamom, which is peppery) to impart that mint flavor. You can serve this beverage hot during the winter or on ice during the summer.

White Hot Chocolate

Makes 6 to 8 cups

2 cups milk
1 cup coconut milk
1/4 stalk lemongrass
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cardamom pods
Pinch of nutmeg
Pinch of salt
8 oz. white chocolate, chopped

1. Place all ingredients, except the chocolate, into a saucepan. Let the mixture come to a simmer.
2. Drop the chocolate into the pan. Allow all of the ingredients to steep for 15 minutes.
3. Stir well and strain.
4. Pour into mugs and serve.

Read More About Cardamom

A Passage to India
Masala Chai
Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Apples with Pecan Streusel Topping
Cardamom Flan

The weather outside has occasionally been frightful—and the skies are far from delightful in some areas of the country. It’s the perfect time to curl up by the fireplace and enjoy a mug of steaming hot chocolate.

Sure, you can buy a presweetened organic cocoa mix. (Check out mixes from Ah!Laska, Green & Black’s and Whole Foods Market.) But there’s nothing like making your own grown-up version of hot chocolate with organic milk and organic cocoa powder. The following recipe from the Dairy Farmers of Washington is all the richer with the addition of an organic egg.

Holiday Eggnog Hot Chocolate

1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender.
2. Blend until smooth and well-mixed.
3. Transfer mixture to a double boiler.
4. Without boiling, heat until steaming hot, stirring constantly.

Note: If you find this to be too bitter for your taste, add the organic sweetener of your choice.

The Super-Easy Version

• For a simpler version, combine equal parts of organic chocolate milk and organic eggnog.
• Heat on the stove until steaming hot. Do not boil.

Note: We recommend two brands of organic eggnog: Horizon Organic and Clover Organic (available only in California).

Sources for Organic Cocoa Powder

Ah!Laska
Dagoba
Green & Black’s
Tropical Traditions
Cocoa Camino