Take Me Out // Make White Chocolate Rose Hot Cocoa

For this week's edition of Take Me Out I decided to do something a little bit different, mostly because I'm completely unable to face the bleak winter cold that has taken over the city. That's right, I stayed home, which in all honestly makes this more like a "Take Me In", but that doesn't quite have the same ring does it?

This time of year can be hard for so many reasons: the temperature changes, the flowers wither and die, work gets crazy busy, and  everyone just wants to hide inside and hibernate until Spring. It's hard to keep your spirits high, and sometimes the best thing you can do for yourself is cozy up in a cute outfit and make a new recipe in the comfort of your kitchen. This week I've been particularly inspired by all things pink, so I decided to channel that into my take me out recipe, and eventually I came up with a new twist on a wintertime classic: white chocolate rose hot cocoa.

This recipe idea was first introduced to me in the form of Cafe Medina's Pistachio Rose White Hot Chocolate, one of the many famous items on their incredible brunch menu in Vancouver. Every time I visit home I order at least one of these creamy floral beverages, and I've always been interested in making my own (more colourful) version. This week with the cold setting in I decided it was finally time to test out my skills and make the prettiest, floweriest, cutest hot cocoa I could!

Before I got my cocoa on I played a bit of dress up with some of my current favourite pieces from Bicyclette (as I often do). First I slipped into a super soft black crushed velvet t-shirt dress, then piled on a warm fuzzy cream vest with just the right amount of sparkle for lounging around the house. To top it off, I added a blush Ban.do hair twist with a little gold triangle pattern. I felt comfy and cute, the perfect combo for some cocoa making magic!

 Ingredients //

2 cups milk or almond milk

5 tablespoons of white chocolate chips

4 red chocolate baking chips (or a hint of red food colouring)

A few drops of Rosewater

Directions //

Pour the milk and all of the chocolate chips into a small saucepan and turn the heat on low. Stir constantly until all of the chocolate is melted, adding more if you prefer more pink colour or more white chocolate flavour. When the hot cocoa is warm, creamy, and pink, remove the pot from the stove and add a drop or two of rosewater. Stir and serve immediately, preferably with a big dollop of whip cream, sprinkles, and the prettiest sweets you've got!