Life is just a bowl of cherries

I love it when I can easily make something at home and it turns out to be just as good or better than the more expensive shop bought kind, and especially in the absence of the shop bought variety anyway. Back in March when I was making Brownies the recipe called for chocolate syrup, so not being able to source it I tried making my own with great success.

½ cup cocoa powder

1 cup water
2 cups sugar
⅛ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon vanilla

Mix the cocoa powder and the water in a saucepan. Heat and stir to dissolve the cocoa. Add the sugar, and stir to dissolve. Boil for 3 minutes over medium heat. Be careful not to let it get too hot and boil over! Add the salt and the vanilla. Let cool. Pour into a clean glass jar, and store in the refrigerator. Keeps for several months, but trust me it will be gone before then. Yields two cups.

The result is extremely rich.

I poured the chocolate into a flip-top glass bottle and added a label.

I’ve been gradually learning how to replace some of the foods we used to buy.Its far more rewarding than shopping and not a bad way to spend a Sunday afternoon.Now is the time to tap into my reserves that are still in the door of the fridge.With a glut of cheap cherries in season at the moment, a cherry chocolate combo seemed the order of the day.

Cherries with home made chocolate syrup
Chocolate sauce poured over fresh cherries.Incredibly healthy, low in fat and high in pleasure.The amount in the recipe above will make a large quantity that keeps well in the refrigerator, where it can tantalize and torture you every time you open the door. Just before you want to eat them put a handful of cherries on each serving plate and pour the sauce over the top.Alternatively pour the sauce into a bowl and dip the cherries in the chocolate as you would a fondue. Smile and sigh.