Old-Time Hot Fudge Sauce

This is the real deal, a satiny and thick hot fudge sauce made with real ingredients just like mom and pop ice cream parlors used to make.

When I was a little girl in the 60s and early 70s, we had an ice cream parlor that had been run by a sweet couple for many years. They made all of their own toppings. The whipping cream was real whipped cream, made fresh each day. The butterscotch topping was made with heavy cream, and the hot fudge was made with real butter. There were black and white photos of teens enjoying double dates in the 1950s on the walls of the seating area. I was just a little girl, but this formed my idea of what it would be like when I was a teenager. Little did I know that the world would change dramatically by the time my teen dating years rolled around.

Thick, rich hot fudge sauce was the topping I chose when my parents treated me to a birthday sundae. When my sundae was placed before me, I scooped up that first delicious bite. The sauce was warm and melted the surface of the vanilla ice cream beneath. I savored every spoonful of that delicious goodness. In the bottom of the small dish, I swirled together the very last of the melted vanilla with remnants of the fudge sauce on the edge of the glass, making a tiny spoonful of creamy chocolate milk for my last taste.

This recipe makes a hot fudge sauce that takes me back to that childhood memory. It's made with real ingredients -- butter, cocoa powder, sugar, corn syrup, salt, vanilla extract. And it's economical. A 10 oz jar of my homemade fudge sauce cost me 60 cents (or 6 cents per ounce). Compare that to Smucker's Hot Fudge Topping at $1.98 for 11.75 ounces (0r 17 cents per ounce). The homemade is almost 1/3 the cost of the commercial product.

This must take a lot of time and work, right? Nope. It takes me about 10 minutes to make a batch and requires no special tools, just a spoon and saucepan.

Old-Time Hot Fudge Ice Cream Topping (yields 10 ounces, or about 6-8 servings)

3 tablespoons butter, cut into 6 or so pieces

6 tablespoons cocoa powder

1/3 cup hot water

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons corn syrup

1/16 to scant 1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan over Low heat, place the butter dices and cocoa powder. Stir constantly until the butter has melted. Pour in about half of the hot water and stir vigorously. Add remaining water and stir again until well-combined. The mixture will resemble a thick pudding. 

Keeping the pan over Low heat, stir in the sugar and corn syrup. Continue stirring until the sugar has mostly dissolved, about 1 minute. Add the salt. If you used unsalted butter, use the greater amount of salt (scant 1/8 teaspoon). If you used salted butter, just a dash of salt will be enough, no more than 1/16 teaspoon.

Bring to a boil over Medium heat. Once boiling, reduce to Low and allow to boil gently without stirring for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Cool to just warm for immediate use or store in the refrigerator for up to 3 or 4 weeks. 

This sauce thickens as it cools. When using at a later date, reheat briefly in the microwave until pouring consistency.

This Father's Day, we're planning a barbecue followed up with a sundae bar. I bought a bucket of vanilla ice cream at WinCo last week and will add homemade caramel sauce, homemade hot fudge topping, homemade strawberry topping, chopped nuts, whipped cream, and sprinkles. I'm making the sauces/toppings during the week this week, so I can enjoy the weekend with everyone else.

In addition to ice cream sundaes, I also like warmed up fudge sauce on sliced fresh bananas. The taste is decadent without affecting my waistline.