I’ll show you how to make Almond Joy hot chocolate bombs with easy step-by-step instructions and photos, and give you lots of ideas for how to customize these with different flavors and fillings!
Place chocolate candy melts in a microwave-safe bowl and melt in the microwave per the directions on the package – typically in 30 second intervals, for a total of ~2-3 minutes.
Place 1 tablespoon of melted candy melt into one half of a bomb mold. Use the bottom of your tablespoon measuring spoon to spread the chocolate up the sides of the mold, keeping it thick but even. Do make sure the shell is nice and thick – add a bit more of the melted chocolate if needed. Otherwise the shells will crack easily.
Repeat with 12 mold halves. Place the chocolate filled molds into the freezer for 5 minutes. This is important!!
Remove molds from the freezer and gently tap the sides of the mold (or press up from the bottom, if using a silicone mold), pressing on one side of the chocolate to make the chocolate slide out of the mold. They slide out easier if they’re cold, so if you’re having trouble, re-freeze them and try again.
Fill half of the molds with about 2 tablespoons hot chocolate mix, 1 tablespoon shredded coconut, a few almond slivers, and 6-8 mini marshmallows.
Close the hot chocolate bombs. You’ve got two options here: Option 1: Dip an empty chocolate shell into your bowl of melted chocolate and press it on top of a filled chocolate shell… OR... Use a piping bag filled with melted chocolate to pipe around the edges of the filled hot cocoa bomb halves – as if you were adding glue – and then close with an empty chocolate shell and gently press down to seal.
Place the remaining melted chocolate into a piping bag and drizzle the remaining melted chocolate over the assembled hot cocoa bombs. Then immediately add a few almond slivers, some shredded coconut, or a sprinkle of granulated sugar on top for decoration. Alternatively, you can dip a fork into the melted chocolate and drizzle the chocolate that way.
Place the hot chocolate bombs into the freezer for 5 minutes, then remove and store in an airtight container until you’re ready to use.
To use the hot chocolate bombs, place them in a mug, and pour 2 cups of hot milk over the top. Stir until the hot cocoa bombs are completely melted and enjoy!
Notes
Tips for making hot chocolate bombs:
Allow the hot chocolate bombs the full 5 minutes in the freezer every time you need them to set (steps 3 and 6). Otherwise they will fall apart easier!
If in doubt, make the chocolate shells thicker and use more chocolate “glue” to glue the molds together. This will make sure the chocolate doesn’t break or fall apart… and besides, more chocolate is never a bad thing!!
If you accidentally burn the chocolate or it doesn’t turn into a smooth chocolate when it melts, start over with a new clean, dry bowl. Typically it never works trying to salvage chocolate that melted badly
If you use exactly 2 tablespoons of hot chocolate mix per piece, you will only need ¾ cups hot chocolate mix. But if you know you like extra large mugs of hot chocolate or extra chocolate mix, then feel free to add a bit more hot chocolate mix to each mold!
Optional flavors or add-ins:
White chocolate candy melts for the drizzle
A sprinkle of granulated sugar on top in addition to coconut
Sprinkles for a fun color surprise
Add some fudge in the middle for a gooey treat
Chocolate chips for even more chocolate flavor
White chocolate chips
Butterscotch chips
A peppermint chocolate candy kiss
A piece of an Andes mint
A piece of a peanut butter cup
Crushed candy cane
Crushed Oreos
Pinch of cinnamon
Pinch of pumpkin spice
Pinch of sea salt
Caramel candy
Pinch of cayenne pepper (if you like the whole spicy Mexican hot chocolate trend!)