Syrups and Sauces for Espresso Drinks, Ice Cream & Desserts

If you are a fan of flavored syrups for coffee, desserts, hot chocolate, or Italian sodas, you don't have to purchase them.  Sometimes flavors are hard to come by depending on where you live and can get pricey. You may be amazed at how easily they can be made and how many of the syrups can be made with common pantry items that you already have purchased. Below you will find sauces and syrups that can be used for desserts such as crepes, coffee, hot chocolate, ice cream, or Italian sodas.  When the recipe says "Sauce/Syrup" expect it to be pretty thick. If it just says "syrup", then it will be somewhat thinner and more like the flavored syrups used for drinks rather than over ice cream.  

Homemade (ultra chocolatey)Chocolate Sauce/Syrup

 Some recipes state the necessity of the cocoa powder being "high quality".  I used Hershey's unsweetened cocoa powder, which I don't consider either low or high quality and it was great.  I personally wouldn't worry about using something more expensive like Ghirardelli for the chocolate sauce.  I love Ghirardelli chocolate for all of my desserts that I make and won't use anything else, but for this purpose I really haven't noticed a difference between the two.

Ingredients:
1 c unsweetened cocoa

1 1/4 c sugar
1 c water
2 t vanilla

This is really so very simple.  You will find that it doesn't take that long and makes a superior product to most of the chocolate syrups sold in the store.  It is exactly the same flavor as the higher quality chocolate syrups you can buy, but at a fraction of the cost.

All you need to do is combine the cocoa, sugar, and water in  a saucepan and cook on medium- low for about 10 minutes until it thickens up a bit.  You will want to stir frequently to prevent scorching.  Remove from heat and add vanilla.  Stir to blend well. The sauce will thicken a little more when you refrigerate it.

Orange Sauce / Syrup

This can easily be doubled, tripled, or quadrupled if needed.  The recipe below only yields about 1/4 cup which is plenty for the purpose I needed it for. . . for topping Orange Mochas.  It would be really good on cake, crepes, or ice cream.


Ingredients
Zest from 1 orange
Juice from 1 orange (about 1/2 c)
2 T sugar
1/2 T butter
1/2 t cornstarch

Again, this is so simple and so good. Add zest, juice, sugar, and butter,  together in a saucepan.  Simmer for  10 minutes, stirring frequently.  Strain. 

Put strained contents back in the pan and add cornstarch.  Simmer 5-10 minutes more or until desired thickness has been reached. 

Cherry Sauce/ Syrup or Berry Sauce/ Syrup

This is a great sauce for ice cream, desserts and crepes also. It can easily be used with strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, boysenberries or a combination of berries. It makes an awesome cherry sauce too. I use it in my Black Forest Mochas.   This sauce recipe is so versatile and can be used on french toast, waffles, or pancakes if you wanted something decadent for breakfast or a brunch.

The almond extract can be omitted, but I really feel that it brings out the flavor of the cherries, especially if you are using frozen. 


Ingredients: 

This recipe can easily be increased.  It makes about 1/4 c of sauce.

1 c pitted cherries (or berries), can be frozen if you don't have fresh.
2 T sugar
1/8 t lemon zest
1/2 T lemon juice


1 t cornstarch
2 drops of almond extract (if making cherry sauce)

Directions: 
Cook cherries (or berries) in sugar just until hot, smashing and mashing the cherries or berries up with a potato masher.


Add lemon juice, lemon zest, and simmer a couple of minutes longer.

Strain.

Mix strained liquid with cornstarch and cook over low heat, stirring until thickened.


Remove pan from heat and add almond extract if making cherry sauce. 

Vanilla Syrup (Like Torani Syrups)

1/2 c simple syrup
1/2 t vanilla extract

To make simple syrup, place 1/2 c sugar and 1/4 c water in a sauce pan.  Bring to a boil over medium heat until sugar is completely dissolved and it turns completely clear.  Remove from heat immediately.

Add vanilla extract to simple syrup and allow it to cool.  Syrup will thicken up once it cools. 

Caramel Sauce