Sunday, January 16, 2011

Two in Review: Chocolate Syrup

To be perfectly honest with you, when I think of chocolate syrup, I always think of a brown bottle of Hershey's. Growing up my mom always had a bottle in the fridge (and more often than not, a couple of reserves in the pantry!). There is absolutely nothing wrong with it- as a matter of fact, I rather like it. However, a while back I decided I wanted a big bowl of ice cream, with melted peanut butter and chocolate syrup on top. Much to my horror I realized that I did not have any! I vaguely recalled seeing a recipe to make your own, which I had given little thought to.

So, like any good internet user, I searched until I found a recipe! I actually found two- I made the first one, found on Small Notebook, because it was easier and required fewer ingredients. I liked that it had a slightly thicker consistency than Hershey's. However, Rachel (the author of Small Notebook) said that she only need 1 teaspoon for a glass of chocolate milk. I must like my milk to be more chocolaty because I used about 1 tablespoon for a glass. I also think that it didn't blend as well, most likely because it was thicker.

Then I tried this recipe from Sugar Bananas. It called for some different quantities, and also for corn syrup. Not surprisingly, it was even thicker than the first recipe! I had a really hard time using it for chocolate milk, and after I had stored it in the fridge for a few days I had to microwave it to get it out-which made it even thicker the next time! I put both recipes in a bottle similar to this one, except I bought mine at Walmart and paid $1 for (and it has a little attached cap to close it with). It worked fine for the first recipe, but even after I cut the top off some to make the opening larger it was still REALLY hard to get the second one out. In the end, I actually had to unscrew the whole top to get any out. If I made the second one again, I would probably store it in a different container.

My verdict: if you are looking for something that tastes and has a closer (just a little bit thicker) consistency to the "real thing", go with the first recipe. If you are looking for something that is closer in consistency to fudge topping, try the second. They were both a teeny bit grainy- the Sugar Bananas one more so than the Small Notebook one, but I actually liked that- and will readily contribute it to a cooking error on my part more than anything else. I will probably make the first one again, I liked it's consistency and also it was more chocolate tasting and less work. So, there you have it. Now go make your own chocolate syrup-it's easy and tasty!

2 comments:

  1. I like Hershey's syrup from the can, with the yellow plastic lid...the one that needs a Church-key to open it!

    I think it tastes better...weird, I'm sure.

    Homemade is always better, so I'm sure making it is tastier. :0)

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  2. Why mess with a good thing? My vote goes for Hersheys which I now usually microwave before pouring it on my ice cream! I am not usually interested in a substitute when I can have the real thing. However, I might accept a "chocolate sauce" if I don't compare it to my old favorite!

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