Have you ever wanted to taste a dessert that will make you feel like you’re living the life of Blake Lively, Kim Kardashian or Selena Gomez?
Well, now you can. Thanks to the arrival of the famous ‘iced hot chocolate’ at a Knightsbridge hotspot. And it will only cost you £18….
Or you can do what I did and make it at home, saving yourself a trip to London and costing you about 30p.
The famous “dessert”, if we can call it that, began at Serendipity 3 in New York.
It opened in 1954 and has apparently been a favorite among celebrities ever since, counting Marilyn Monroe, Cher and Joan Rivers among its fans, while today they have been replaced by the likes of Blake Lively and Kim Kardashian, along with Selena Gomez, who She is a co-owner.
Apparently it’s also on Oprah’s list of things to drink before she dies. Go figure.
The famous ‘dessert’ was a favorite among celebrities when it first opened with Marilyn Monroe, Cher and Joan Rivers among its fans.
They have all drunk the so-called Frrrozen hot chocolate, which is basically a kind of chocolate slush, served with a mountain of whipped cream, and sometimes with various toppings. Think McDonald’s shake without the paper cup and with a little more bouji.
Until now, if you wanted to get your hands on this strangely simple but somehow coveted creation, you would have had to head to the Big Apple, but it is now being served for a limited time at Serendipity 3’s sister restaurant, Sette in Knightsbridge.
As much as I’d love to pretend I can live with the best and embrace the celebrity lifestyle on occasion, I can’t bring myself to travel from the Midlands to central London just for some frozen chocolate, no matter how famous whatever, so I decide to recreate it myself without leaving home. After all, how difficult can it be?
The recipe is apparently “tightly guarded,” but from what I can see, it’s basically ice cold hot chocolate. And as with everything, there are enough videos online and helpful covers from influencers that I think I can make a pretty close copy in my own kitchen, without needing to part with most of my hard-earned money as if it were and I tried to grab the real thing.
Like many of these trendy dishes that are big on the Internet, it seems pretty simple, including the list of ingredients I have at home, aside from an easy-to-grab can of squirted cream.
I think I can make a pretty close copy in my own kitchen, without needing to part with as much of my hard-earned money as if I went and tried to get the real thing.
The original recipe is “closely guarded”, but it practically only consists of chocolate and ice.
While women seem to be the biggest fans of the original Frrrozen hot chocolate, my chocoholic husband is eager to get involved and is quickly pouring scoops of cocoa powder into the blender, along with ice cubes, milk and powdered milk. .
I point out that it must be crushed ice, but he responds with the fact that it doesn’t really matter since it’s about to be blended. An excellent point, frustratingly.
We debated how to sweeten it and decided that powdered sweetener is preferable to sugar purely for texture. We also realize that using powdered hot chocolate might have been even easier since it’s sweetened, but we’re already down the cocoa route and sticking to tradition, so we’re moving on.
The first genius produces a promising result. We test it impatiently and try to check if we have done it right.
Influencer Pawitra Theabrat is seen trying the drink in New York
John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale try the drink in the 2001 film Serendipity.
Serendipity 3, which opened in 1954, has long been a celebrity hangout. Nowadays, people like Blake Lively and Kim Kardashian frequent the restaurant (pictured with friend Jonathan Cheban).
It’s less rich and creamy than a milkshake, which perhaps explains why Serendipity 3 doesn’t call it that, and we can only summarize it as a frozen chocolate flavor.
We decided it has to be sweeter. And chocolatey. And thicker. Then more cocoa, more sweetener and more ice enter. The blender stops and opening the lid reveals that yes, we’ve gone too far.
Then more milk goes in to dilute it, which quickly means we’ve overfilled the blender and have to decant some to make room.
Genius number three succeeds. We open the lid and find a thick, rich, icy mixture that seems to resemble creations we’ve seen online.
Ice cream dishes don’t exist in our house, but margaritas do, so I use one of those as a receptacle and pour half, half a spoonful, our chocolate mixture into it.
This hybrid dessert drink can be served to friends at the end of a meal or sipped with your partner snuggled up on the couch.
The homemade version of the frozen hot chocolate will only cost around 30p compared to £18 at the popular Knightsbridge spot.
There’s a fight over the squirted cream can, because who doesn’t want to be the one to do the glorious flourish-topped decoration, but I win.
It’s a glorious moment, and we finish it with chocolate sprinkles on top and the obligatory straws.
Sette apparently makes a few different versions, including a S’mores offering, complete with toasted marshmallows, digestives, and chocolate, but we’re keeping it simple here with the classic.
It’s pretty impressive, to be fair. The stuff of Instagram dreams and a nice mix of sweet and refreshing. A dessert-drink hybrid that you can serve to your friends at the end of a meal or sip with your partner snuggled up on the couch.
That is, of course, unless you’d rather rush to the capital to spend £18 on Sette’s real deal. Where you’ll even receive a ’10 Things You Didn’t Know About Iced Hot Chocolate’ card along with your drink.
But… as boring as it may seem, I think I’d rather save time and money and go for the version that costs pennies, not pounds, and takes a few minutes. I’ll leave the hard work to the celebrities.
