Unitasker Wednesday: Hot chocolate pot
All Unitasker Wednesday posts are jokes — we don’t want you to buy these items, we want you to laugh at their ridiculousness. Enjoy!
The other day, I ventured out into the cold and snow with my daughter. We had a great time playing outdoors until she removed her gloves and started to stick her hands into the snow. I knew my daughter would be very cold, so I poked my head in the door and asked my wife if she could please make us some hot chocolate. Five minutes later, we were inside enjoying a nice cup of hot chocolate and my daughter was happy that her hands were no longer freezing.
Is my wife some sort of hot chocolate-making magician? How did she prepare two cups of hot chocolate without the help of Williams-Sonoma’s Hot Chocolate Pot? From the product description:
For the most extraordinary hot chocolate you’ve ever tasted, whip up the wintertime favorite in our ingenious electric pot. We worked with the Italian company Bialetti (designers of the original stovetop espresso maker) to create a pot that produces incredibly rich, frothy hot chocolate crowned with creamy foam. Just fill the clear upper chamber with milk and shaved chocolate or cocoa, then watch as the mixture is heated, blended and frothed to perfection.
My wife’s homemade hot chocolate concoction made in a POT on the stove passed my taste test. My daughter also seemed to approve (and she also seemed to approve of the marshmallows my wife added to her cup). But, if a pot is out of your league, then you might consider dropping $100 for this unitasker and sacrifice the cupboard space. Oh, and it looks like a nightmare to clean, too. Enjoy that added bonus, as well.
Posted by Matt on Dec 17, 2008 |
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38 comments posted
Posted by CJ - 12/17/2008
Frothy AND crowned with creamy foam? Sign me up!
Posted by Peter (a different one) - 12/17/2008
All you need for Hot Chocolate
1 Mug
1 packet of Nestle or Swiss Miss
water from the tap
microwave oven
3 minutes
as many mini marshmallow as you can fit in the cup
repeat as needed
Posted by Emily - 12/17/2008
I have to agree that $100 for a hot chocolate pot is over the top, but we were given a Back to Basics Cocoa~Latte machine a couple years ago (about $20-30 at Target) for Christmas and we have loved it. The kids love watching the mix whir and spin and have a great time dispensing it into their mugs. Granted, we don’t always get it out and often do the microwave thing, but once in a while it’s fun to “mix it up” a bit!
Posted by DJ - 12/17/2008
My favorite Williams-Sonoma Unitasker is their absolutely huge linen press. Just the thing for taking up oodles of space in a house, not to mention adding a truly bizarre chore into the mix.
I think this company should put out a separate Unitasker catalog.
Posted by Michael - 12/17/2008
What’s next week? A coffee pot? Because that only has one use as well. How about a tea bag?
Posted by mcarp - 12/17/2008
I had not heard of a “hot chocolate maker” (like Peter, I just put hot water and mix into a mug) until last Saturday when I was visiting friends and their son brought home his friends and brought out the hot chocolate maker.
So, it is kind of spooky that today Unclutterer highlights the hot chocolate maker!!
Posted by Peter Schultz - 12/17/2008
A coffee pot can be used to heat up water for just about anything.
Posted by Christina @ Northern Cheapskate - 12/17/2008
This goes well with the Chocolate Milk Mixer I saw at Target for $19.95… Ridiculous! It’s called a SPOON, people!
Thanks for the chuckle.
Posted by Erin Doland - 12/17/2008
@Michael — A definition of a unitasker on our site is that it serves virtually no utility. A coffee pot, for most people, is used on a daily basis so it has utility and is not a unitasker. A toilet, a fire extinguisher, and a lawn mower are all single-purpose items, but they all have high utility and are not unitaskers.
Posted by Ben - 12/17/2008
While I agree that the hot chocolate maker is completely unneccessary, I don’t agree at all with Peter and Mcarp. Making hot chocolate from water and hot chocolate mix in the microwave is a perfectly reasonable approach, and one I use fairly often, but it’s like making a cake from cake mix and using the microwave. Hot chocolate made by melting real chocolate (even a Hershey’s bar) into real milk is so much better than the quick-n-easy version that it’s barely even the same drink.
Posted by Sue - 12/17/2008
The secret to good hot chocolate is not some fancy uni-tasker, but quality chocolate mix. Packets of Nestle and Swiss Miss no longer make the cut in my house. We use Lake Champlain or Ghiardhelli, along with milk. Yum…
Posted by scott - 12/17/2008
I have to say, I saw that hot chocolate maker, and I was very tempted.
I don’t drink coffee, but have, in the past, been known to buy three to four hot chocolates a week at various establishments. I have tried the stove-top, the microwave, and various packets, different types of chocolates, and I just don’t seem to have the best method of getting the milk froth the best. It does not compare to the cafe styles. So, in some households, maybe mine, I’d save money if I bought the hot chocolate maker.
Although, I saved money by just stopped having hot chocolate altogether and making homemade tea, but I am tempted by a frothy warm milky, hot chocolate. mmmm… so easy to make.
Posted by Amphritrite - 12/17/2008
I use my rice maker to make hot chocolate. A rice maker is typically a unitasker unless you’re like me and reheat leftovers and make soup and steam veggies and stir fry and make eggs and so on in it
Posted by Rob - 12/17/2008
Suddenly I want some hot chocolate.
Posted by Jacki Hollywood Brown - 12/17/2008
@Erin You stated, “A coffee pot, for most people, is used on a daily basis so it has utility and is not a unitasker.”
By that definition, a coffee pot or coffee maker would qualify for a unitasker at our house since we NEVER drink coffee.
However, if we had a hot chocolate pot, we’d use it everyday. We LOVE hot chocolate (hate coffee).
It is also less expensive than some of those espresso machines available.
A unitasker may be just that for one person but be VERY useful for someone else.
Posted by Erin Doland - 12/17/2008
@Jacki — Yes, you are correct. The items we feature on Unitasker Wednesday MAY be useful for some people. But we make decisions about their inclusion based on if they will be useful or clutter for the MAJORITY of our readership. I own a few of the unitaskers that have been featured, so does Matt. This isn’t a law and no unitasker police will show up at your door if you read our site and own any of the unitaskers.
Posted by Louisa - 12/17/2008
Oh my, it’s on sale for $79.99 . . .
Posted by Sara - 12/17/2008
We have a “cocoa-motion” machine that makes the BEST hot chocolate EVER! It certainly did not cost $100. We use it about once a year, but when we do, the delicious-ness of the hot chocolate is worth the space the cocoa-motion machine has taken up all year!
Posted by Fit Bottomed Girls - 12/17/2008
So not necessary…lol. But, it is making me crave hot cocoa!
Posted by Jenn - 12/17/2008
Actually, my boss gave me a much cheaper version of a hot chocolate maker with a pour spout that holds quite a bit of cocoa and keeps it warm and mixed properly for ages. And it has a side button if you want it to pour with the froth. (I don’t really care either way.) It’s been a really nice gift especially with the number of family parties we have (and with my husband’s large family). We use the cocoa in tins, not the watery stuff in packets. Also, we live in Utah (read: freezing ass cold a good number of months of the year). I don’t know about W&S’s cocoa maker, but mine is extremely easy to clean and store. And… isn’t everything from Williams & Sonoma sorta overpriced anyway?
Posted by Amy - 12/17/2008
Scott, you can get closer to cafe bought hot chocolate if you use an espresso machine (if you have one) to froth the milk w/ the chocolate sauce or mix that you use. At least it makes the espresso maker less of a unitasker for some).
Posted by Lizzie - 12/17/2008
I always love the comments on Unitasker Wednesday. The hot chocolate pot holds no temptation for me (I’m a milk in a pot and quality cocoa kinda gal) but DJ’s comment made my blood run cold as I would sell me soul for the big linen press. My mom had one when I was growing up and okay, I’d iron my sheets.
Posted by neonate - 12/17/2008
Re: All Unitasker Wednesday posts are jokes — we don’t want you to buy these items, we want you to laugh at their ridiculousness. Enjoy!
Crap…I thought they were recommendations. I’ve been buying everyone of them.
Posted by Johnny - 12/18/2008
Someone actually gave us a hot chocolate maker for a wedding gift. While I like hot chocolate, I’m perfectly happy with the stovetop or microwave approach. I honestly can’t figure out why we got the hot chocolate gadget.
On the other hand, I’m going to second the suggestion of using real milk and chocolate. The package stuff you mix in water isn’t in the same league as real hot chocolate.
Posted by savvy - 12/18/2008
I love good hot chocolate, but I use a pan on the stove to heat the milk, and I use my immersion blender to mix/froth it. Both pan and blender have many purposes, just one of which is to make excellent hot cocoa!
Posted by Peter (one of many ; ) - 12/18/2008
Hot Chocolate from a packet? Ugh. I avoid manufactured foods.
Dutch Cocoa on the stove-top in a pot works for me (pots and pans are multi-taskers, as savvy has pointed out).
Posted by Peony - 12/18/2008
1. Heat 8 – 12 ounces of milk in the microwave.
2. While it’s heating, stir together two Tbsp sugar, two Tbsp of unsweetened cocoa, 1/4 tsp vanilla. You can do this right in the mug.
3. When the milk is hot, add the milk one or two tablespoons at a time to the cocoa mixture, stirring thoroughly after each addition. The goal is to gradually mix in the milk so that the cocoa is nice and smooth.
4. Fun options: frothing with one of those wee little milk frothers, a drop or two of peppermint extract, marshmallows, etc
Posted by Oliver - 12/18/2008
I have a $3 battery-powered milk foamer from IKEA that I use every day for my morning “cappuccinos” (made with a stove-top moka pot).
It works great for mixing up hot chocolate, straight from the microwave. (as well as lots of other beverages).
My favorite recipe: 2 ts Hershey’s Dark Cocoa (100% cacao), 2 ts sugar, 6-8 ounces of microwaved milk, a splash of vanilla, and a dash of Trader Joes pumpkin spice (cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves). It’s dark, thick, rich, and decadent.
Posted by Kathryn - 12/18/2008
@Erin: “A toilet, a fire extinguisher, and a lawn mower are all single-purpose items, but they all have high utility and are not unitaskers.”
You can #1, #2, and … uh … regurgitate into a toilet, and it still serves as a handy self-filling automatic pet waterer! That to me is the very essence of a multitasker.
Posted by Erin Doland - 12/18/2008
@Peter and others … Chocolate IS processed. If it weren’t processed, it would be a cocoa bean. Just saying …
Posted by tabatha - 12/18/2008
at Amphritrite
i don’t think a rice maker is a unitasker either, we use ours to steam veggies and cook rice at the same time. i had a friend who used his to boil eggs too.
Posted by Dorothy - 12/18/2008
Glad to know I’m not the only hot cocoa lover around. I’m telling you, though, the BEST addition at this time of year is peppermint schnapps. A friend introduced me and it was love at first sip. You can add a good dollop for adults, but just a drop or two gives the flavor and scent even for the young ‘uns!
Posted by Maya - 12/18/2008
How is this any different/worse than a coffee maker?
Posted by Laura - 12/19/2008
My favorite thing is when people don’t read the comments before commenting…
Posted by mary - 12/19/2008
we are on our second coco-motion machine by Mr Coffee! we LOVE that thing, makes 4 frothy cups at a time. $15 at wal mart, well worth it. I would never spend THIS much though!
Posted by Jennifer - 12/26/2008
You’ve got the whole thing wrong. Before you post a derogatory review of something, I wonder if it makes sense to actually test the product in question. Just saying. You’ve basically posted a little collection of sarcastic quips based on no real experience.
I can make incredible hot chocolate on the stove top as well, and have for years. I have children who play in the snow, too! And I like simplicity in the kitchen as well, so when I first saw this at W-S I walked on by.
Lo and behold it was given to me for Christmas.
This machine does not make what you are referring to as hot chocolate. I could NEVER possibly make hot chocolate like the heavenly concoction that comes from this machine on the stovetop. Even made with no-fat milk the cocoa is thick and frothy, not watery at all. Every bit of chocoate is evenly mixed in, and there is absolutely no skin on the surface. It’s like meeting a new species of hot chocolate.
The machine is not a nightmare to clean, either. I guess you were speculating, but I can tell you I’m not. Very easy.
And you can use it to steam milk and sundry other hot drinks.
By the way, I have a hand-held electric frother that doesn’t come anywhere close to what this machine can do.
By the way, I never needed or wanted a machine to make hot chocolate before… nonetheless for all of my adult life I have know well that SwissMiss mixed into boiling tap water does not qualify as true hot chocolate. People who think it does have clearly never been to the other side. That’s like saying a squirt bottle of margarine is the same as real creamery butter. To each his own, though…
Posted by Catherine - 12/29/2008
I nearly peed my pants on Christmas day when I opened a similar (but less expensive) version of this product from one of my aunts.
Posted by Mel - 01/15/2009
I’m about to buy one since it’s on sale at W&S. We just spent $100 on a single serving milk frother. I’ll be returning that and getting the chocolate pot. I thought that was a bit much for a single serving maker but we do use it every day. Still the single serving (as fast as it is), requires one too many loads of that little thing.
The Hot Chocolate Pot will do the same but up to 16 oz of milk. Much better for 2, and even better for a party of people coming over for burnch. We’ve done the manual thing for over a year. Heat up milk in the microwave, and froth it via a french-press like frother. But we kept breaking the frother from its glass container to the inside plastic parts. They were $20+tax each and it wasn’t even automatic.
For us a milk frother will not be a uni-tasker. We will use it daily so the counterspace it takes up will be of good use and save us time. Being an automatic thing, it will allow me to concentrate on preparing the rest of breakfast without having to make sure the milk doesn’t scald and burn at the bottom. I always have to disassemble the Bodum Milk Frother each time I clean it, this chocolate pot will not be any different for cleaning.
It’s only useless if you don’t use it and not everyone does the same thing or wants the same thing. It’s about prespective. For example, I don’t own a kettle because a pot just works fine and dandy for me and it’s much easier to clean. I do drink tea every day too.
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