Perfect Vegan Hot Chocolate or Vegan Peppermint Hot Chocolate

Yield: one decadent tasting, but light, serving

We've had an exceptionally cold, wet and snowy winter this year and my antidote has been vegan hot chocolate. I make mine with cocoa powder to keep the fat content almost non-existent, but I am always left with a slurry--and sometimes lumps of undissolved cocoa--in the bottom of the mug. That is, until today. I woke up needing a fix and determined to "fix" my slurry problem now that winter is almost over. It occurred to me that I could probably dissolve the cocoa powder by heating it in a little water first. It worked! Here's all you need do for a deluxe mug of steaming vegan hot cocoa with or without peppermint, but I'll have mine with, thank you very much:

2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon sugar (when the amount is this small, I prefer it to an artificial sweetener)
tiny pinch salt ( just a few grains)
2 tablespoons water
1 1/2 cups plain soy milk (you may use unsweetened, but you might want to add more sugar)
optional: 1 peppermint stick (I use the soft "chalky" kind--a childhood favorite)
optional garnish: 1 additional peppermint stick

Place first four ingredients in a microwave safe cup, whisk very well and heat for 30 seconds in mic. (It will look like it's not going to come together, but the combination of heat and whisking does the trick.) Add soy milk and optional peppermint stick, whisk again, and heat for an additional 2 minutes. Whisk one more time and pour into a mug. Serve steaming with an additional peppermint stick if desired.