Homemade Chocolate Syrup ~ Is it worth it?

There was a time, not so long ago, that I would buy everything from the grocery store, blindly.  If it is sold there, it can't be harmful for me right?

I am learning, bit by bit, that just because the FDA says something is okay to consume, does not mean your or my body knows how to handle it or digest it.  There are many additives, stabilizers, food colorings, artificial sweeteners, etc that reek havoc on our bodies.  Making the switch to single ingredient foods or making from scratch is difficult and can be time consuming, at first.  However, I am finding it is worth the effort and the taste of the food is so much better.

This brings me to today's post ~ Homemade Chocolate Syrup, is it worth it?  In one simple word ~  YES!  A brief history here.  I have often been disappointed in the taste of Hershey Syrup!  It never tasted as good as I would have hoped, there was a lingering after taste that was not chocolate.
I've seen on Pinterest a couple different Homemade Chocolate Syrups and decided to make one this morning.  After it had cooled, ever so slightly, Thing One and I had chocolate milk.  I was so excited to actually taste chocolate, to have a chocolate aftertaste.  If we weren't in major need of more milk, I would have gone back for seconds!

The recipe I followed, from here, called for the following items:

•  1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup water
• dash of salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

That is it folks!  5 items and you can easily pronounce each word.  Here are the directions:

•  in a small saucepan, add sugar, cocoa, and salt.  
• whisk together gently.  
• add water.  
• bring mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally.  
• reduce heat and cook 1 minute.  
• remove from heat and add vanilla.  
• cool.  
• store in the refrigerator.

The taste is so worth the minimal time and effort.  Another fun aspect, I get to use a mason jar!

Quick quiz - How many ingredients in the homemade version?  Did you remember five?  Awesome, that is correct.  Now for the list of ingredients for Hershey Syrup:

1. high fructose corn syrup
2. corn syrup
3. water
4. cocoa
5. sugar
6. potassium sorbate
7. salt
8. mono and diglycerides
9. xanthan gum
10. polysorbate 60
11. vanillin, artifical flavor

Most of the items (6 of them, just over half), I recognize and know basically what they are.  If there is a link, I wasn't sure and had to look up.  Other than the vanillin, all seem to be used to help keep the items mixed well; oil and water were a common example of what needed to stay mixed.  Potassium Sorbate is used to preserve the food or give it a long shelf life.  It is also chemically made, not a naturally occurring item.  Does that make you wonder what it is doing to your body?

Keeping the homemade version in a mason jar, will allow for a quick shake to keep things mixed just nicely.  We also don't need items in this to allow for a long shelf life since it will most likely be consumed quickly.  Also, the individual items, when separate, have a decent shelf life.

Will you allow yourself about 5 minutes to make something homemade?  You might just like this version better!