Chicken Free Peppermint Cocoa Agua Fresca
Cool, minty, and deeply chocolatey, this agua fresca is the kind of drink that surprises you on the first sip and has you reaching for a second glass before you've even finished the first. A warm cocoa base is steeped with fresh peppermint leaves, then strained and chilled into something that tastes far more sophisticated than its short ingredient list suggests. Maple syrup brings a gentle, rounded sweetness that plays beautifully against the brightness of the mint and the earthiness of the cocoa. Everything here is naturally plant-based and completely free of any animal proteins, so there's no label-checking or substitution stress involved — just straightforward, wholesome ingredients doing exactly what they're supposed to do. It's refreshing enough to serve at a summer gathering but cozy enough to sip on a cool evening, which makes it genuinely versatile. Serve it over plenty of ice with a fresh peppermint sprig for a presentation that looks like it came from a fancy café.
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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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