Friends, you know how this goes. It’s 11pm, you have an undeniable craving for chocolate milk, and there’s no chocolate syrup in the house. What do you do?!?
You ransack your recipe books for a solution, that’s what. Desperate times result in delicious measures!
This homemade chocolate syrup comes together in minutes and is delicious in chocolate milk, on ice cream…you name it.
Adapted from the recipe in The Tightwad Gazette II.
Perfect Homemade Chocolate Syrup
Ingredients:
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup water
2 cups sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon vanilla (extra credit if it’s homemade)
1 teaspoon cornstarch dissolved in 1 teaspoon water
Combine the cocoa powder and the water; stir over low heat until the cocoa dissolves.
Add the sugar and stir until it dissolves. Boil gently for 3 minutes, then add the salt and vanilla. Finally, stir in cornstarch mixture to thicken.
Break your husband’s heart when he finds out you aren’t making brownies. Promise to make brownies tomorrow for dessert.
Pour into a clean jar, and store in the fridge. Chocolate craving satisfied!
Gerb says
THANK YOU for this! I am totally making a batch once I’m back in the kitchen. We run out of chocolate syrup all the time!
Anonymous says
I’ll definitely be trying this. Chocolate milk is my recovery drink after running each morning, so I go through a lot of syrup.
seagrrlz says
how long is the syrup good for? i can’t imagine it would last long bc it looks so good.
Amber says
I’ve made a similar recipe (minus the cornstarch) multiple times. It keeps for about six months without an odd taste, but sugars do start to crystallize by the end of month one. The crystals make a crust on the bottom of the container and they don’t really mix back in well.
Anonymous says
You could try placing the container, as long as it is heat resistant into slow boiling water to melt the crystallized sugars and reincorporate them into the syrup with some stirring.
Anonymous says
I was wondering the same thing- how long is this good for?
Brown Thumb Mama says
I haven’t had a batch last long enough to spoil, but I’d guess it would keep in the fridge for about a month.
Anonymous says
Thank you! Thank you! We’ve been trying to make chocolate syrup because the store-bought stuff all contains HFCS – and who knows what else?
Laura @ Frugal Follies says
Looks great and easy! I’ve pinned this recipe so I can make it soon!
Redneck Soccer Mom says
This looks so good! I wonder if you could can it?
Brown Thumb Mama says
Good question! I’m still learning about canning, so I’d say you should freeze it if you end up with too much. Although is there really such a thing as too much chocolate syrup? Hee hee hee.
Anonymous says
Thanks for this great recipe. I haven’t had the Hershey’s syrup in a long time because of the HFCS. You’ve made my day!
homegrownconnects says
Awesome!!! My kids are going to love this!
Anonymous says
Looks yummy! Is there a variation without using the cornstarch? Most corn is GMO.
Brown Thumb Mama says
Arrowroot powder might work, but I haven’t tried it. If you do, please let us know how it works!
Rae Smith Evans says
arrowroot powder and dairy milk equals something the consistency of snot. I don’t know if that would happen with this small amount or after the cooking process, but I would be a little wary. It would probably work fine if you are using a milk alternative to stir it into.
Rae Smith Evans says
I would imagine that if you cooked it a little longer (in the spirit of candy making) that you could just leave out the cornstarch. It would thicken by itself. Just be very careful not to burn it. Sugar burns very easily.
Christiane Schröll (@BrnzMstngGrl13) says
Most crops are genetically engineered to resist drought and disease. It won’t hurt you. Besides w/the amount of pollution we suck in breathing on a daily basis some genetic mutated corn is the least of our worries loo
Anonymous says
i would think u could can it if u can can milk ect.. but usda might say no lol but out granparents or parents are fine and didnt even have those kind of regulations um but if canning i would do it in pressure canner
Linda Wagar says
I’m going to make this tomorrow! My honey and I are both lactose intolerant and we have a hard time finding choc milk. No more buying choc in plastic bottles! Thanks so much for sharing!!!
Tammy Leckbee says
I make this at home and keep it on hand for my granddaughters. They both prefer chocolate milk over white and will not even take a bottle unless it is chocolate. My daughter is not happy with me because now they want Grandma’s chocolate milk not the store bought she has so she has started making it at home as well.
Hippie Chick says
I’m sure you could even cut the sugar in half and sub some stevia to make it a *little* better for diabetics! 🙂
Deb Hemphill says
If you add 1/4th of a teaspoon of baking soda to the chocolate mixture, you will avoid the sugar crystals. It will foam up for a minute, but stir back down after a while.
Nora.K. says
Awesome! Any Ideas For a Substitute For Sugar That Would Suit The Recipe?
Pam Farley says
Nora, Katie at KitchenStewardship.com has a chocolate syrup recipe with honey in her ebook, Smart Sweets. You can purchase it here http://bit.ly/11pBuGm or you can subscribe to her newsletter for a free excerpt from Smart Sweets.
S. Lewis says
Hi, I was wondering why the cornstarch? I have been making my chocolate syrup similar recipe but without the cornstarch. Is there a particular reason, I mean I know cornstarch is used to thicken.
S. Lewis says
I made this and it was delicious except for I accidentally added baking powder instead of cornstarch. I wasn’t paying attention to what container I was reaching into since I was preparing several things at once. I actually made this mistake twice into two separate recipes. However it does taste likes the bottled stuff and the baking soda didn’t give it a weird taste whatsoever. Will be using the recipe again just without the baking soda. 🙂
Tammy says
Yumm….GREAT Christmas gifts! Thank you!!!
JB Ferris says
There is organic cornstarch NON GMO at your healthfood store.
Nicole says
Wow thats a ton of sugar. I bet it would be great with just half that. Milk is already delicious as it is.
Jenny says
Thank you for posting this! My daughter is very allergic to MSG, which in turn has me label reading constantly. So nice to be able to make my own syrup for chocolate milk without having to stress about what is in it.
Wanda says
My husband’s grandmother use to make a chocolate syrup when he was a child, and they ate it like regular cane syrup w/biscuits. Is this the same? She cooked in cast iron skillet. Thanks