Homemade Chocolate Syrup

Do you crave chocolate milk? How about a sundae with chocolate syrup drizzled over the top? As for me, I love chocolate syrup in my morning peanut-butter-and-banana smoothie. What I don't love are all of the scary ingredients in a bottle of the store-bought stuff. Fortunately, whipping up homemade chocolate syrup is not only doable, it's ridiculously easy and tastes just as wonderful as anything you can buy. Here's how!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED
» 1 ½ cup organic sugar (You can use white, raw, brown, or a mix, although brown makes for the richest flavor.)
» 1 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
» 1 tsp salt
» 1 cup water
» 2 tsp vanilla extract (Make your own using the Homemade Extract 101!)
» Whisk
» Pot, large enough to leave 2 inches of headspace for expansion
» Storage container (mason jar, old syrup bottle, empty vodka bottle, etc.)
» Funnel

WHAT TO DO
Sift together the sugar, baking cocoa, and salt, breaking up any clumps.

Put those dry ingredients in a medium pot then whisk in the water until the consistency is uniform. Heat the pot over medium low heat, stirring frequently to keep from burning and occasionally scraping the sides.

Boil until the syrup reduces by a quarter or so—about half an hour. You want the syrup to be thick, but don't worry if it still seems a little runny. It will thicken considerably as it cools.

Remove the pot from heat and let cool 10 minutes before stirring in the vanilla extract. Pour the results into your storage container, using the funnel to avoid a hot, sticky mess. Allow the syrup to cool completely before putting a lid on your container. Your syrup will keep in the fridge for several months.

I don't like wasting a single bit, so after I have scraped as much syrup from the pan as I can, I add some milk and heat the reamainder for a wonderful hot chocolate.

This recipe is flexible, and after you've made it a time or two, you might want to experiment. You can try using honey or agave nectar instead of granulated sugar; just be sure to decrease the amount of water. You can mix half white sugar with half brown sugar. You can add orange extract for a chocolate-citrus syrup or mint for a HOMEGROWN peppermint patty effect. Make it your own!

I originally published this on Homegrown.

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