5 from 1 vote

A quick and easy homemade spin on Starbucks' peppermint mocha! Peppermint and chocolate come together to create the perfect cup of hot, creamy comfort. Try my white chocolate mocha next.

Hand holding a clear mug of peppermint mocha topped with whipped cream, chopped peppermint bark and a large drizzle of chocolate sauce

I don’t know about you, but when a seasonal item appears at my favorite restaurants or coffee shops, I can’t help but feel like I need to inhale as much of that item as possible until it disappears until the following year.

This happens most often around Christmas, when I’ve convinced myself calories don’t count and I can eat as many cookies as I want without any consequences.

As you may remember, I have a weakness for Starbucks’ Cranberry Bliss Bars and that I found a way around the seasonal limitation on those. My other holiday addiction is the Starbucks’ Peppermint Mocha, and while I might convince myself that the calories don’t count, the money spent on them surely does.

My bank account can’t survive a holiday season at Starbucks, so it was yet another opportunity to come up with a homemade version to save some moolah.

Espresso being brewed from a Breville into a white demitasse cup

Simple syrup being poured into a clear mug of cocoa mix

This is when Torani flavored sauces come in to save the day! I had purchased all their seasonal flavors recently and I was eager to use the Peppermint Bark flavored sauce.

This turned out to be the perfect addition to give the drink it's creamy peppermint flavor, without being overpowering.

You know how sometimes the flavor and/or scent of peppermint can be a bit much? That's not a problem with this Torani sauce in the least.

Ingredients for peppermint mocha

1 cup milk, or non-dairy milk
2 ounces freshly brewed espresso, can substitute 1 cup strong brewed coffee
1 packet hot cocoa
2 tablespoons Torani Peppermint Bark Sauce, or 1 tablespoon peppermint syrup

Espresso being poured into a clear mug of cocoa mix

Cocoa mix and liquids being stirred in a clear mug

How to make peppermint mocha at home

The point of this recipe was to make it quick and easy. So while I could use cocoa powder and sugar for the “mocha” additives, but since I have a couple boxes of Swiss Miss hot cocoa mixes lying around I figured this would be a great way to use them.

And by golly, I was right! It worked out perfectly.

The most time-consuming part of this recipe is frothing the milk, so as long as you have the patience for that you can whip up one of these bad boys in no time. If you usually stop for coffee in the morning, you don’t even need to wake up any earlier than you usually do.

In fact, you might be able to sleep in a little! Every minute counts when you’re hitting that snooze button, amiright?

Steamed milk being poured into a clear mug of peppermint mocha

Chocolate sauce being drizzle onto a clear mug of peppermint mocha

How to make peppermint syrup

You can use 2 Tablespoons of the Torani Peppermint Bark Sauce, or 1 tablespoon of the Torani peppermint syrup (like you see at Starbucks) – or you can make your own!

Check out this post on how to make your own peppermint syrup.

This makes about 6-7 ounces of syrup, and you can measure out the 1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) you need per drink. Now you've got more for future peppermint mochas without the extra work!

Clear mug of peppermint mocha topped with whipped cream, chopped peppermint bark and a large drizzle of chocolate sauce

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