Snow Cone Heaven!

AA received a birthday gift of a snow cone maker, the kind with the hand crank (from Nicole, Jordan and Mila!). Since her Daddy treats her to an ice cream or slushee or something frozen every Friday after school, this will be a fun treat to make at home. AA's favorite flavor is cherry, so I found three recipes to make homemade cherry syrup. Can't wait to have her try them out! Who's up for a snow cone?

1. From Deep South Dish: Ingredients: 2 cups of granulated sugar 1 cup of water 1 package of unsweetened powdered drink mix (like Kool-aid), any flavor
Instructions: Mix the sugar and water together in a saucepan and boil until all the sugar is dissolved and mixture is clear. Stir in the drink mix until completely dissolved and set aside to cool completely. Transfer to a squirt bottle and drizzle over very finely crushed ice. Refrigerate until needed.

2. The next recipe uses fresh cherry juice, from Good Food Stories:
Cook time: 30 minutes. Makes 1 cup
Ingredients: 2 cups fresh sour cherry juice (or sweet cherry juice, if sour cherries are out of season) and 1/4 cup granulated sugar
Bring the cherry juice to a simmer in a small saucepan and cook until reduced by half, about 30 minutes. Add the sugar and stir until fully dissolved. Transfer to a squeeze bottle or other pourable container and refrigerate until fully chilled.

3. The third recipe uses fresh cherries, from Earthbound Farm Organic:

Snow cones flavored with homemade fresh fruit syrups are fun to make (and eat) for kids and adults alike. An inexpensive hand-operated ice shaver makes shaving ice for snow cones quick and easy.
This cherry syrup can be made up to a week in advance and stored in the refrigerator. It's also a delicious addition to sparkling water, champagne or martinis.
Ingredients

4 cups	fresh organic sweet cherries (stemmed and pitted)
1/2 cup	Sugar
2 cups	water
1/3 cup	corn syrup, preferably organic or without added high fructose corn syrup
2 tablespoons	fresh lemon juice
6 cups	lightly packed shaved ice

For Parents: Combine the cherries, sugar, water, and corn syrup in a medium saucepan and bring to a rapid boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, covered, until the cherries are very soft and tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from the heat, uncover, and let cool. Purée the mixture in a blender and strain through a fine mesh sieve, pressing firmly on the solids. Add the lemon juice and refrigerate the syrup, covered, until cold.
For Kids: To make the snow cones, scoop a cup of shaved ice into each of 6 cups or glasses. Spoon 2 or 3 tablespoons of the chilled cherry syrup over each serving and serve immediately.