New calves are exciting…
But that’s only half of the excitement when you have a milk cow.
A new calf means a cow bursting with fresh milk. (OK… not literally bursting. That’s probably a bad choice of words.) FINALLY, after several months of either being milk-less, or having to buy it at the store, we are celebrating!
In another week or so, once the calf and Oakley get fully settled in with each other, I’ll start milking once again. (I follow a milk once per day routine that minimizes my labor a bit.) That means we’ll have fresh, raw milk for our morning smoothies, and for homemade milk shakes, and for baking, and homemade ice cream, and DIY yogurt, and tangy buttermilk, and the list goes on and on and on.
The Prairie Kids aren’t very well acquainted with chocolate milk (poor, poor children), so I was excited to make this for them as a treat. I never buy chocolate syrup because the ingredients in the stuff at the store are pretty disappointing.
For example, this is the ingredient list from one of the most popular store-bought syrups. See what I mean about the ingredient list?
HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP; CORN SYRUP; WATER; COCOA; SUGAR; CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF: POTASSIUM SORBATE (PRESERVATIVE); SALT; MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES; XANTHAN GUM; POLYSORBATE 60; VANILLIN, ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR
Contrast that with my homemade chocolate milk syrup which is just:
COCOA, MAPLE SYRUP, WATER, VANILLA EXTRACT
Much better, eh? It’s still a treat, but I feel much better about it. And chances are, you already have these ingredients hanging out in your pantry. So let’s drink up!
Homemade Chocolate Milk Syrup
Ingredients:
- 1 cup cocoa powder (where to buy)
- 1/2 cup real maple syrup (try this wood-fired syrup–it’s so good!)
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 tablespoon real vanilla extract (how to make vanilla extract)
Directions:
- On low, in a medium saucepan, mix together the maple syrup and water. Bring to a simmer.
- Whisk in the cocoa powder. Remove from heat.
- Add vanilla extract and let cool (syrup will thicken).
- Simply add your desired amount to a glass of milk and enjoy. Keep in the fridge for up to three weeks.
Homemade Chocolate Milk Syrup Notes
- Once completely set, if you feel as though your syrup is too thick, throw it back on the stovetop. Warm your syrup and add a tbsp more water and mix. Remove from heat and let set.
- I haven’t tried substituting honey for the maple syrup in this recipe, but it would be worth a try.
- This homemade chocolate syrup would be awesome on homemade ice cream, too. Just sayin’.
- If you’re more a caramel-type of person, check out my homemade caramel sauce. You’re welcome.
Other Homemade Stuff for Your Sweet Tooth…
- Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream
- Double Chocolate Cream Pie
- Homemade Hot Chocolate Recipe with Whipped Cream Cutouts
- Homemade Frozen Yogurt Recipe (3 variations)
- Whipped Cream Frosting Recipe
Homemade Chocolate Milk Syrup
Ingredients
- 1 cup cocoa powder (where to buy)
- 1/2 cup real maple syrup (where to buy)
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 tablespoon real vanilla extract
Instructions
- On low, in a medium saucepan, mix together the maple syrup and water. Bring to a simmer.
- Whisk in the cocoa powder. Remove from heat.
- Add vanilla extract and let cool (syrup will thicken).
- Simply add your desired amount to a glass of milk and enjoy. Keep in the fridge for up to three weeks.
Hi Jill,
Thanks for this chocolate milk syrup recipe!
My parents bought a lot of store-bought ones when I was a kid. I still remember squeezing them onto everything when my parents weren’t looking. Ha!
But homemade sounds amazing just comparing the ingredients. Love how easy it is to make too, and I do have all those ingredients already. No excuse not to make it ourselves. 😉
Pinning this right now!! 😀
Amy
Let me know what you think after you try it Amy! Hope you love it!
Well it’s been 3 years? Just wondering how you like it Dog Diggity country bumpkin happy Halloween with your pumpkin!
This is brilliant! Can’t wait to try it.
Let me know what you think when you try it! 🙂
This is making me crave chocolate milk! Sounds delicious!
Hope you love it!
Darling cow.
Thanks Carla!
Your cow is well looked after and so clean. She’s not Friesian. Is she Jersey?H
She’s a Brown Swiss!
This looks awesome and I don’t know why but sometimes a cold glass of chocolate milk hits the spot. Love the cow picture – my favorite memory of raising cows is the scent of a new baby calf. It’s simply the best. Anyways I just bought some organic chocolate milk but I’m going to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing and I bet those prairie kiddos enjoyed this treat.
Yes indeed– calves are the best!
Love the new calf, I just want to kiss that sweet little nose.
Intrigued by your recipe for chocolate syrup. Can you use Cacao powder? If you used honey instead or in combination with maple syrup, would it increase the shelf life?
Thanks, love your newsletters.
Not sure about using Cacao instead– give it a try and let me know how it goes. I don’t think the honey would increase the shelf life significantly, but it sure wouldn’t hurt to sub it in this recipe.
I am confused. Your recipe calls for cocoa powder, but the link is for raw cacao.
There may still be a law in Vermont about using the phrase ‘chocolate milk’. We were supposed
to say ‘chocolate flavored milk’, lest someone thought brown cows were the source.
Vermont is once again the number one source in America for genuine maple syrup. In 2016 we made more than any other year, so feel free to help reduce our supply.
This looks like a good recipe, especially for folks with Holsteins as opposed to Brown Swiss cows.
Jill, see if you can find some ‘go away’ buttons for those pop-up ads that block the page.
Oh wow– I didn’t know that about the chocolate-milk title! Can you take a screenshot of the popup ads for me? They should NOT be on my blog, and I would like to figure out why they are there. Thanks!
I get pop ups too. Scrolling back up makes your title cover pop up too. So top and bottom cover your page. But I still manage to read. Love your site.
It is your own title The Prairie Homestead ” banner that pops up on my screen. I agree quite annoying, large, compared to phone screen, all in brown.
What type of device are you using? The brown banner should disappear upon scrolling.
Amazing recepie so simple. I love the pic of your cow. Those poor poor prairie kids are so so lucky to live this life style theyay not know how lucky they are but some day they will be so greatful.
I hope so! 😉
ha ha ha, love the calf!! Does her mommy give caramel milk? lol
I wish! 🙂
We do use the honey, mainly because it’s what we have access to at a resonable price ( maple syrup is expensive in Australia plus honey is free when our own when the bees produce in summer) plus using local honey has been shown to help with allergies. it’s perfect and the bonus is that I can have it on my no processed sugar eating. The recipe is
3/4 cup honey,
1 cup cocoa powder
1 cup water
1 tsp (or to taste) vanilla essence
Sometimes we put a tsp of cinamon in just to change things up a bit
Same method to make it up.
We have get a dairy cow on our 5 year plan and I can’t wait so in the mean time I will drool over yours.
Love the blog thanks for sharing
Thanks for sharing your version Delldgm!
I have an awesome powdered one I love. 1/3rd Carob Powder, 1/3rd Powdered milk, 1/3rd Stevia Powder. You can mix in a small amount of hot water and then fill the rest of the cup with milk for a chocolaty, creamy drink or mix in hot water with a splash of milk for a hot chocolate type drink, or sprinkle on home made ice cream! SOOOOOO yummy. People who don’t like carob powder often don’t realize how fantastic it is when made right, after all cocoa powder is revolting on its own too!
Oooh, sounds great!
I thought maple syrup had a very long shelf, like years? Why is the shelf life so short?
It will likely last longer– the 3 week time frame is erring on the side of caution. I get a lot of folks who are greatly concerned with expiration dates, so I try to always give a ball-park figure.
Jill,
Vermont maple syrup will last for years … in theory. If you open a container and there is a bit of stuff floating (mold) skim it off. Heat the syrup up to 180 degrees F. and it is as good as new. If you don’t use up a container of syrup in say a couple of years … you need more recipes!
Wondering if I could water can this… Was considering it to make up for gifts as part of Christmas hampers, but I always have good intentions in the Summer but become too time crunched in the run up to Christmas as I am a wife and Mum and full time University student. I have the Ball able book of canning which has lots of “syrups” in and thought I may follow the timings in there… Any thoughts would be much appreciated.
I have never tried canning it, so I’m not much help there, unfortunately.
Love this recipe, thank you. I might add some salt to tweak that delightful sweet. It’s a secret, though.
oooooh…. good idea!
Hi Jill,
Thanks so much for all the info you give! Can you taste the maple syrup in the chocolate syrup? We have a wonderful maple syrup that is tapped 2 miles away!
I don’t think the maple taste is too obvious in it.
I am totally going to make this. My kids will be thrilled! They are always asking to buy chocolate milk, and I always say no. Thanks!!
Love the idea of homemade chocolate syrup–my son has been asking me to buy chocolate milk for a year!
Made this today with success, but definitely had to increase the sugar content to make it palatable for my family. I just stirred in a tablespoon at a time until I was satisfied with the taste. Thanks!
That’s what I like about this recipe– easy to adjust as needed. Enjoy!
I just found your website today and I love it! I have been living in Budapest for 6 months now and it is very challenging and usually very pricey to get American staples such as chocolate syrup. I do have all the ingredients to make this on hand and can’t wait to try it! Thanks for the back to basics recipes!
Yay! Enjoy Bethany!
Thanks! Made this yesterday and the crew was in love! Used simple syrup instead of maple because it’s so expensive here in Budapest and was told it’s perfect so thanks!
Yay! So glad you liked it!
I’m looking forward to mixing this up once my cow calves in a couple of months! I’ve got a question related to milking rather than the recipe! I noticed you said you’d give that sweet little calf and momma another week before beginning milking again…About how old was your calf when saying that? So the total amount of time before beginning milking? When I got my cow, her calf had been weaned and only had a couple of months before we dried her up. I don’t want to be selfish and not give this baby enough time on it’s own! Thanks!
We have a local sirup producer and they spell it sirup, Funk”s Grove in Illinois and we buy vanilla paste rather than extract, more vanilla for the money.
We’ve opted out of Amazon.com altogether. Do you have favorite places to buy the cocoa powder, maple syrup and vanilla extract other than Amazon?
I would check your local grocery store if you don’t use amazon. And you can make the extract yourself. 🙂
“Keep in the fridge for up to three weeks.” You don’t know my kids … it wouldn’t last 3 days. LOL Love your recipes!!
I totally get it! 🙂
Just had to come locate this recipe again… we used to make it for my daughter all the time, some years ago. Now she’s older and isn’t really a milk-drinker anymore, but I thought she’d enjoy it in her iced coffee!
A question about “canning” syrup was posted. Here in Vermont, America’s number one producer of maple syrup, heat the syrup up to 180 degrees F., NO MORE or it will crystallize. Pack in hot, sterilized canning jars. That’s it. You are done. Preserved. No water bath needed.
Jill, I have so many allergies-I have to make my own syrup. Would that be ok to use to make your chocolate milk syrup? (My recipe for my syrup is 2 cups of brown sugar and 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil over a medium heat, then a slow boil on low for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally) Tastes delicious, but not sure if it would make a difference. Thank you for your time
Sara
Thanks for the great recipe Jill, we love it! However, it rarely actually sees a glass of milk…..It doesn’t seem to make it past the ice cream bowls. Yummy wherever it lands!
Also, you can substitute all or part of the maple syrup with agave. It works great too. One way or another, it’s now a staple in our fridge.
Thanks again!
Oh yes– it’s awesome on ice cream too! 🙂
This has been an AWESOME game-changer for our family. My daughter is hooked on chocolate milk and it’s one of the only ways we can get her to eat enough protein. We used ovaltine for awhile because it was lower sugar than other brands. Then, because it was so expensive and we went through it too quickly, we started with “homemade ovaltine,” which called for malt (discouraged for many kids,) and which was still pretty time-consuming. This version is quick, easy to store in a squeeze bottle in the fridge, and a little goes a long way. I haven’t done a side-by-side comparison, but it tastes very similar to my recollection of Hershey’s. We use organic brands of all the ingredients, so I feel really good giving it to her–and most importantly she loves it. Thank you a million. Just wish we’d found it sooner. Best!
Hello! I really love this recipe. So healthy and so easy. I am a runner and this is the syrup that I make my pre-run chocolate milk fuel with 🙂 Thank you!
Hi Jill,
Thank you for this recipe! I can’t wait to try it for the grandkids. One question I had was the Amazon link for the Cocoa Powder actually takes you to Cacao Powder. I wanted to make sure which one you meant to use?
I came across this recipe after having the brainstorm that the key to making a chocolate mink taste like a milkshake without using ice cream is simple: vanilla. I think you are on to a great thing here. I can’t wait to try it out.
This looks like a great recipe. May I suggest going the extra mile and seeking out fair trade coco along with organic as coco farmers do not get paid a fair wage. Also helps with child labor laws and such. If you look into it the coco industry is very dark indeed.
This turned out pretty bitter for us. Anyone else? I love the natural ingredients so I’ll try honey instead of maple syrup next time.
So simple and absolutely perfect!