Artificial Food Coloring Free Peppermint Cocoa Agua Fresca
Cool, refreshing, and surprisingly sophisticated, this drink lands somewhere between a chocolate mint mocktail and a spa-worthy agua fresca. Real peppermint leaves steeped directly into a warm cocoa base give it a clean, herbal brightness that no extract or flavored syrup could replicate. Every ingredient here is exactly what it says it is — unsweetened cocoa powder, maple syrup, fresh mint, salt, and water — so there's no guesswork about what's actually in your glass. That matters more than you'd think, since many store-bought flavored drinks and cocoa mixes sneak in synthetic dyes to deepen their color or make them look more appealing on the shelf. Here, the rich brown hue comes entirely from real cocoa, and the pale, minty finish is all natural. It's an elegant, fuss-free drink that comes together with minimal effort and looks genuinely beautiful poured over ice with a fresh sprig on top.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
- 4 cups cold water, divided
- 8 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4 tbsp maple syrup
- ½ cup fresh peppermint leaves, loosely packed
- ⅛ tsp fine sea salt
For serving
- ice cubes, for serving
- 4 fresh peppermint sprigs, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Combine 1 cup of the cold water with the cocoa powder and maple syrup in a small saucepan. Whisk over medium heat until the cocoa is fully dissolved and the mixture is smooth and just beginning to steam, about 3–4 minutes — do not let it boil.
- 2
Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add the peppermint leaves and fine sea salt, stir once to submerge the leaves, and let steep for 10 minutes.
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