Yesterday’s Homemade: Chocolate Sauce

Disclaimer: This is not my picture.  I will add pictures
of my actual chocolate sauce ASAP.

My kid slurps down chocolate milk like there is no tomorrow.  And if I allow the chocolate milk train to run dry, he might just decide my tomorrows are all done.  For that reason, I keep us flowing in fresh, local milk and homemade chocolate sauce.

I’ve tried a bunch of different recipes and the one in this post is my favorite.  Some of them are grainy, some are clumpy.  Some thicken unevenly, so you’ve got watery liquid on top and thick goopy syrup at the bottom.  

This one is smooth and rich.  It’s not as sweet as store-bought sauce, but you can always adjust the sugar accordingly.  I actually like the fact that it’s less sweet because he drinks so much of it…I realize I could say no to chocolate milk, but on a day when the only other thing he will eat is crackers and like one raisin, I feel like the chocolate milk at least provides some protein and calories.

And I know…refined sugar…gasp! I don’t care.  This is the world we live in folks, the kid is going to eat sugar.  At least the homemade version contains no HFCS and the sugar is organic and fair-trade.  Deal with it.  If you feel the need, you can substitute maple syrup, honey or agave nectar, but that might make your sauce gloopy or grainy.  Experiment as needed.

Cooling chocolate sauce...yum!

The recipe is really simple:

1 ½ cups water
1 ½ cups sugar
1 cup cocoa powder
1 dash of salt
1 tsp vanilla

Throw everything except the vanilla into a medium sized saucepan on low heat.  Stir constantly until the sugar and cocoa have dissolved.  When I say constantly, I mean as much as you can.  I sure as hell can’t stand there stirring all flipping day long while my two kids are screaming at me like maniacs.  So stir as much as possible, knowing the world won’t end if you put the whisk down for a second.

Anyhoo, let it simmer gently for a moment or two.  It will thicken slightly, but it’s not going to be as thick as purchased chocolate sauce.  Take it off the heat and add the vanilla.  Stir that in.  I like to let it cool completely in the pan.  My favorite part of cooking…walk away and ignore.  When you remember, pour the sauce into a glass jar and store it into the fridge. 

Don't mind the tea-kettle with the partially melted exterior in the background.

Mix a couple teaspoons with milk for delicious chocolate milk.  You could pour it over vanilla ice cream too, and I’m sure you could also make hot cocoa with it.  I’d say heat a cup of milk, stir the sauce in, and top with whipped cream…yum.