Hot Chocolate Cocoa Bombs (or hot chocolate marshmallow bombs, your choice!) are my copycat recipe after discovering the awesome cocoa bombs were sold out at all the stores!
Recreate your own at home and enjoy the truly chocolate mocha coffee or see the delight on your kid’s faces as the marshmallows pop out of their hot cocoa.
Recently, these hot chocolate cocoa bombs also went viral on TikTok, but they were here long before that. If you came from TikTok, welcome!
This is a MUST WATCH VIDEO IN THIS POST to see how they work!
You simply make the chocolate balls, fill them with cocoa or powdered coffee plus some marshmallows, and drop them in your milk or coffee. AMAZING, and more than that, this is a FUN recipe!
Chocolate Cocoa Bombs
A few weeks ago, I was in the store and found these chocolate cocoa bombs. I have seen many products like this before, where you drop the chocolate in the hot milk, and it turns it into cocoa, but this was the first time I had seen the chocolate bomb idea with a hollow center and added powdered cocoa inside with the marshmallows.
It wasn’t long before half of Instagram was showing people popping little marshmallows in their cups, which also meant it wasn’t long before you couldn’t find them anywhere in the store at all! So a friend and I got together and decided to make our own hot chocolate bomb recipe.
Just like when you learn how to make fudge, there are a few tricks to these hot chocolate bombs, so make sure you read through the article before you attempt to create a hollowed-out chocolate ball.
I learned a lot about testing different chocolates and working with the seams.
One thing I will say is that our first few attempts (shown here in the film) are not flawless in seams, but the hot chocolate bomb recipe DOES work and works well. I tested about 12 of them, so you can be sure you will get a super fun marshmallow pop!
Chocolate bombs can be used in a variety of ways. In this case, I left out the powdered cocoa and instead made some Starbucks cocoa in a cup to drop my bomb into.
The chocolate from the ball made it extra chocolaty, and the marshmallow poof-up was super fun. You can also create a hot chocolate cocoa ball (bomb) with extra powdered cocoa and one side covered with marshmallows.
DIY Hot Chocolate Bomb Ingredients
To get started on chocolate bombs, you need to pre-plan.
I recommend a silicone semi-circle baking mold, but there are a variety of baking molds that combine into a perfect circle (like the kind you use in a bath bomb) that get the job done.
- Chocomaker melting chocolate
- circle baking mold
- marshmallows
Remember, especially if you go locally to a craft store to buy a mold, that the larger your chocolate ball, the harder it is to put into a coffee cup.
Make sure you are using a ball large enough to fill with contents like marshmallows but small enough that you can drop it into a cup. I bought mine at Michael’s in the baking department. The semi-circle baking mold I shared above has a variety of sizes that work great for a hot cocoa bomb.
How to make Cocoa Bombs
Melt your Chocolate
Melting chocolate can be really tricky to work with. You first want to melt your chocolate. The melting chocolate I have had the best results with is Walmart’s “Chocomaker.”
I know there are a variety of melts and bars when it comes to melting chocolate, but after trying many kinds, this brand always produces smooth chocolate for recipes, so I stick with it. In theory, any melting chocolate should work, so if you have a favorite, feel free to use it.
Remember that melting chocolate should only be heated for 30 seconds at a time, stirred, and then reheated until melted. If you overheat your chocolate, there is a point where it begins to re-harden and ruin the chocolate.
Typically, your chocolate will take 1.5–2 minutes to fully melt. You can also use a Wilton Chocolate candy melting machine.
If your chocolate is too thick, add a bit of shortening to the mixture and stir to thin—your melting chocolate bag should explain how much on the back.
Once your Chocolate is melted and ready
Fill out your chocolate mold.
Make the chocolate thick enough that you cannot see the sides of the mold. In my own house, I just used our (clean) fingers because it was quicker to do before the chocolate hardened.
You can, of course, use a pastry painting brush if you prefer or plan on selling chocolate bombs.
Once your mold has chocolate in all the semicircles, put it in the freezer to firm up quickly.
This takes approximately 5 minutes, but I give it 10 minutes to be sure everything is cold.
Remove Semi-Circles to Fill
Carefully pop the chocolate half circles out of the mold.
Add marshmallows to half of your semicircles.
Note: I tried this by filling BOTH sides with marshmallows, and it honestly worked better with just one side filled, but I will leave that up to you.
Additionally, you can add premade cocoa powder, peppermint, or sprinkles – filling it is entirely up to you!
Sealing the Chocolate Circles
There are several ways to seal up the seams of your chocolate balls.
- You can slightly heat a pan and melt your chocolate circle edges (bottoms) for a few seconds, making the chocolate melt again and seal. Put it back in the freezer ASAP to firm up. You can see this technique below. Working WITH HOT Melted Chocolate Tip: One thing you need to remember is that melting chocolate is hot, and that melts the chocolate, so if your melting chocolate is TOO hot, it will MELT your chocolate ball! Ensure it’s cooled down enough to secure the seam without melting the chocolate.
- This is how I like to do it, as shown here. Hold your pieces of chocolate together and put melting chocolate around the seam. Before it hardens, roll it in holiday sprinkles! Put them in the freezer to firm and secure the chocolate bombs.
Once all your balls are set, you are ready to enjoy!
Add Chocolate Bombs to a hot cup of coffee, hot milk, or cocoa
Now the real fun begins! Watch the video to see how the marshmallows pop out in your coffee or cocoa!
As the chocolate heats up and melts, your marshmallows will be released and pop up.
Then simply stir and enjoy!
- Drop your marshmallow in Hot coffee for an instant mocha
- Drop your marshmallow ball into hot cocoa for a fun surprise and burst of marshmallows
- Fill your ball with cocoa powder and marshmallows and Drop in hot milk for instant cocoa.
Hot Chocolate Bomb Variations
It’s so easy to create this concept for other drink ideas as well.
- Christmas hot chocolate bombs
- Tiny, crunchy peppermints
- Dehydrated marshmallows
- Mini Chocolate Chips (in a ton of flavors!)
- Pre-made Coffee powders
Common DIY Hot Chocolate Bomb Questions
When making hot chocolate bombs or these super creamy white chocolate cocoa bombs, I get many questions. I published this awesome DIY hot chocolate cocoa bomb over a year ago, and it’s making the rounds again. I am so happy that all of you are making this awesome food recipe and getting some enjoyment in your home.
Chocolate can be hard to work with for some, and it takes patience. It’s easy to warm up chocolate too fast or too little and be left with gunk.
I hope answering these cocoa bomb questions in one place is an easy and helpful summary for those searching.
How to Store Chocolate Bombs
Because these are made with chocolate, they must be stored in the fridge after being set, or they risk melting.
Dust with powdered sugar if storing more than one in an airtight container.
This was my first attempt at trying to recreate this Target Hot Chocolate Cocoa Ball, so I’ll be sure to update as I do this again and find new and better ways to make it!
I have tried to link to all of the molds and product recommendations to make your DIY super easy, but as more and more people discover these, occasionally, Amazon has to restock. I will do my best to keep current and in-stock items linked if possible.
What mold do you need for Hot Chocolate Bombs?
The best mold I have found for sizing is a silicone mold with 15 semi-circles. This makes 7 hot chocolate cocoa bombs, with one extra side you can discard or use as a backup.
These molds are not HUGE enough to stuff hoards of large marshmallows or peppermint pieces into them, but they fit in most common mugs.
I recommend that you get semi-circle silicon molds that are a variety of sizes so you can make your chocolate bombs in several ways and for all cups. Once you start making them, you will love the results, and I typically drop all mine in a few days.
Here is the silicone mold I recommend:
- 5 Pack of Silicon Semi-Circles
- I got mine at Hobby Lobby in the baking section if you prefer to purchase it in person.
What kind of Marshmallows are Used?
The most common marshmallows used for hot chocolate bombs are mini marshmallows or dehydrated marshmallows.
How to Seal a Hot Chocolate Bomb
There are two ways to seal half-chocolate spears.
- Heat a low pan on the stove and put down your sphere for a second or two, lightly melting the edges. Then press into the other side after filling.
- Use melted and warm chocolate around the two sides to seal and then place in the freezer to set. Using this method, you can add sprinkles or gold dust around the middle edges.
Where to Buy Hot Chocolate Bombs
If you prefer to purchase your hot chocolate bomb, last year, we found the Wondershop brand at Target! As they have become popular again, they are harder to find.
You can also try Amazon.
Hot Chocolate Cocoa Bombs
Ingredients
- melting chocolate
- semi-circle baking mold
- marshmallows
- powdered cocoa optional
Instructions
- Melting chocolate can be really tricky to work with. You first want to melt down your chocolate. Remember that melting chocolate should only be heated 30 seconds at a time, stirred, and then reheated until melted. If you over heat your chocolate, there is a point where it begins to re-harden and ruins the chocolate.
- Typically your chocolate will take 1.5-2 minutes to fully melt. You can also use a Wilton Chocolate melting machine. If your chocolate is too thick, add a tiny bit of shortening to the mixture and stir to thin.
- Fill out your chocolate mold. Make the chocolate thick enough that you cannot see the sides of the mold. In my own house, we just used our (clean) fingers because it was quicker to do before the chocolate hardened. You can, of course, use a pastry painting brush if you prefer.
- Once your mold has chocolate in all the semi-circles, put in freezer to firm up. This takes approximately 5 minutes, but I give it 10 to be sure everything is solid.
- Carefully pop chocolate half circles out of the mold.
- Now add marshmallows to your half circles. You can choose to add to one side or BOTH sides before sealing.
Sealing the Chocolate Circles
- There are several ways to seal up your balls of chocolate.
- You can slightly heat up a pan and melt your chocolate circle edges (bottoms) for just a few seconds, making the chocolate melted again and seal.
- Put back in freezer ASAP to firm.
- Hold your pieces of chocolate together and put melting chocolate around the seam.
- Before it hardens, roll in holiday sprinkles!
- Put in freezer to firm and secure chocolate bombs.
- Storage of Chocolate Cocoa Bombs
- Store in fridge
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer: The nutritional data provided here is auto-calculated and intended for your convenience only. As it’s generated via automation, its accuracy may be compromised. For precise nutritional insight, please compute the values utilizing the actual ingredients in your recipe through your chosen nutrition calculator or application.
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