Easy Chocolate Sauce

I found this recipe online about a year ago, when I was looking for a substitute for Hershey's syrup. I found many variations of it- they all used the same 5 ingredients, just in slightly different amounts.

I like this version a lot. I use it to make chocolate milk, as a topping for desserts (like this Peanut Butter Pie), or... shh... I just eat some when I need a chocolate fix! :) It keeps a while in the fridge, too- at least a month, probably more.

If you're curious about the ingredients of Hershey's chocolate syrup (as I was while writing this post), here you go- it's not the easiest thing to find online! High fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, sugar, water, cocoa, contains 2% or less of: potassium sorbate (a preservative), salt, mono and diglycerides , polysorbate 60 (an emulsifier), xanthan gum, and vanillan, an artificial flavoring.

Oh my! Here's a person's blog post on this topic, as well: Hershey's Chocolate Syrup- What is it? So, ready for the homemade version? :)

Easy Chocolate Sauce
Printable version here

1/2 cup cocoa powder
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup hot water
Dash of salt
1 tsp. vanilla

In a small saucepan, combine cocoa, sugar, hot water, and a dash of salt. Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat. Boil for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Can be used immediately, or cool to room temperature before storing in refrigerator.

Why I love it? I love that it's super easy, inexpensive, and you can make exactly the amount you want. You could increase (or decrease) the amounts listed here. I also love that it has a short & simple ingredient list!