Forecast: 100% Chance of Hot Chocolate

When temperatures drop and frost warnings flood your forecast, there's one day you can always count on: National Hot Chocolate Day on January 31st. Think of it as the sweetest cold front of the year, a delicious way to fight back against winter's chill with a steaming mug of cocoa-powered comfort.

A Delicious History Worth Warming Up To

Hot chocolate has been warming hearts (and hands) for over 3,000 years. The Mayans were the original hot chocolate enthusiasts, though their version was quite different from what we sip today. They whipped up a frothy, bitter ceremonial drink they called "bitter water," believing it gave them strength. Kind of like the original energy drink, minus the sugar rush.

The Aztecs took chocolate seriously, too, treating cocoa beans as currency and reserving the beverage for priests and nobility. Talk about an exclusive drink menu! When Spanish explorers brought chocolate to Europe in the 16th century, someone had the brilliant idea to add sugar and honey. Game changer. Hot chocolate became the toast of European nobility, spreading across the continent faster than a winter storm.