As 2022 quickly closes, I wanted to squeeze one final blog post in! This one, in particular, because it is the last of four things I wanted to share with all my teacher friends from our 28-day journey through Europe in the fall of 2022.
If there’s one type of gift you will likely never see me give students, it’s a hand-made craft. Don’t get me wrong; there’s absolutely nothing wrong with those types of gifts – I think they’re fabulous. I am just a TERRIBLE crafter!
What my students WILL get from me is some kind of baked good or food item. My favorite is a homemade hot chocolate mix because what kid doesn’t love hot chocolate?!
Let’s pause for an important question.
Do you call it “Hot Cocoa” or “Hot Chocolate”?
I usually say, “Hot Chocolate.” I only used “Cocoa” in the title because it was shorter. Ha! LOL
Tell me what you call it in the comments! 🙂
This post will show you how to put together this fun homemade gift!
Recipe Considerations
Since I’m not exactly a recipe website, I’m not sharing the recipe directly but have recommended ones online you can use (like I do!)
My favorite recipe is from Cook’s Country, but since it’s a paid recipe service, here are some other versions you could try from Pioneer Woman and AllRecipes.
Consider recipes made with powdered milk, so students only have to add hot water. Along those same lines, I would advise you to not do the layered-type cocoa mix where you have to dump the whole container into a pot to mix.
What all these recipe mixes have in common:
Dry milk powder
Unsweetened cocoa powder
Confectioner’s sugar (dissolves better than white sugar)
(P.S. The only addition to this Cook’s Country is white chocolate chips and a bit of salt.)
Since the Cook’s Country recipe uses white chocolate chips, they have you mix the recipe in a food processor to get the chips into smaller pieces so they will dissolve better/quicker.
Unfortunately, this happens when you process dry powder stuff in a food processor. It’s a blustery mess! LOL
Are you wondering why in the world you’re seeing a food post on a piano teacher blog?
Well, first of all, if you don’t know me already, besides piano teaching, one of my life passions is cooking.
Second, we eat, right?
Third, as we can all attest, the schedule of the independent music teacher can make mealtime a struggle – especially if you have a family. After school and early evening is prime time for both music lessons AND asking the universal question, “what’s for supper?” If you’re the person in your family who’s generally in charge of mealtime, this can make for a real struggle!
Today, I want to share with you my three biggest food prep tips for keeping your meal-time work efficient and organized. Then, when you walk out the door of your studio late in the evening, you can breathe easy knowing dinner will be ready in a jiffy.
Also, stay tuned for a new post series coming up called Music Teacher Eats for meal plan ideas that are easy, healthy, and quick to prepare!
The first couple of weeks back to teaching are always a little hectic. We’re trying to enjoy the final days of Summer, holding on to every last inch of that time until we have to throw ourselves completely into the new year.
January and August have always been the months we eat at home almost exclusively. In January, it’s quiet and dark, and there are not a lot of extra activities going on, and in August, I don’t have students for half the month, so I’m home more and have time to cook dinner like normal people.
Things are about to get crazy this week, though, and will continue that way until the second week of October. I won’t bore you with my details as you have enough going on.
Since many of us are in the same boat as we get things going, I thought I would share half a dozen quick and easy recipes to make your back-to-teaching life easier.
Most of the recipes will also allow you to enjoy end-of-summer produce and will avoid turning on the oven. You’re not going to find a crockpot or soup recipe in this bunch. It’s too early for that – I’m not ready!
Are you wondering why in the world you’re seeing a food post on a piano teacher blog? 
