"The first time I made this it was gross...it turned out my powdered milk's best by date was more than a year ago. Pfft. ;) Bought more powdered milk, made it again, and its amazing. I did use Dutch cocoa, as I buy it by the bucket now because of Alton Brown (I'm not kidding. It comes in buckets. Check cake supply stores). I omitted the cayenne fro""

"The flavor is good but the cherries turn out wrinkled, shriveled and mushy. I would prefer the firmer cherries you get when you buy these in a jar. I don't know what one should do differently to avoid shriveling. Also fair warning to anyone about to make maraschino cherries: be prepared for every pot, bowl, and implement you use to be permanently s..."