Are you a chocolate lover that wants to learn how to make your own homemade chocolate? Perhaps you know someone who is obsessed with chocolate and want to make them a sweet treat to melt their heart! Making chocolate at home is easy with these simple steps. When making your own chocolate, you know exactly what ingredients go in, there are no artificial preservatives or added chemicals, and its much more affordable! The best part is you can tweak it to suit your specific chocolatey desires.

You will need:

• 2 cups of cocoa powder (natural cocoa for a more rich, bitter chocolate, or dutch-process cocoa for a more palatable chocolate. Interested to know the difference between natural cocoa and dutched cocoa?
• 3/4 cup of butter, softened at room temperature (you can choose salted or unsalted, it depends on your personal preference!)
• 1/2 cup of sugar (granulated or brown)
• 2/3 cup of milk, room temperature (homogenized for a more creamy chocolate, skin for a darker, richer chocolate)
• 1/4 cup of powdered sugar
• 1 cup of water

Follow these simple steps to handmade chocolate bliss…

Step 1: Choose a medium saucepan and boil the water.

Step 2: In a medium bowl combine the cocoa powder and softened butter. Cream together with a fork until you have a smooth, chocolaty paste.

Step 3: Add the cocoa powder butter mixture into the boiling water. Bring it up to a simmering temperature but do not let it boil. Pour the hot mixture into a bowl.

Step 4: Sift the powdered sugar into a separate bowl. Try to get it as smooth and lump-free as possible. Then stir the sugar into the hot cocoa mixture. Next, add the milk and whisk it until it is smooth.

Step 5: Pour the mixture into the bottom of a container or chocolate molds. The chocolate will take the shape of whatever you pour it into!

Step 6: Let the chocolate harden overnight in the fridge or freezer.

Voila! Now you can impress your friends and family with homemade chocolate gifts! If you wish you can add dried fruit, nuts, marshmallows or cereal after step 5 by stirring it in with a wooden spoon before pouring it into the container. Alternatively, you can dip strawberries, pretzels, marshmallows, or candies into the warm chocolate before chilling to create decadent chocolate-dipped desserts.