Hot Fudge Sauce

How do you make ice cream better? Answer: hot fudge sauce. Whipped cream, sprinkles, and a cherry also help. Hot fudge sundaes bring me right back to my childhood. We spent countless evenings (and afternoons) at local ice cream shops, consuming mass quantities of these. I never knew that homemade hot fudge sauce would be so easy to make!

The original SK recipe called for all unsweetened chocolate. While I loved the intense, chocolate flavor of that sauce, I found it a touch bitter. Next, I tried using all semi-sweet chocolate (and eliminating the sugar) and found the sauce to be too sweet. (Yes, I made and ate multiple batches of this within a few days.) Feeling a little like Goldilocks at this point, I tried a combination of the two chocolates, and came up with a sauce that was just right.

Hot Fudge Sauce
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Originally from Silver Palate Cookbook


3 oz unsweetened chocolate
1 oz semi-sweet chocolate
2 Tbs butter, unsalted
2/3 c water
¼ c sugar
6 Tbs corn syrup
Pinch of salt
1 Tbs vanilla extract


Melt all the chocolate and butter very slowly in a double boiler or in the microwave, stirring frequently until combined. Meanwhile, heat the water to boiling in the small, heavy saucepan. When the butter and chocolate have melted, stir the mixture into the boiling water. Add the sugar, corn syrup and salt and mix until smooth. Turn the heat up and stir until mixture starts to boil; adjust heat so that sauce is just maintained at the boiling point, stirring occasionally. Allow sauce to boil for nine minutes.

Remove from heat and cool for 15 minutes. Stir in the vanilla extract and serve warm over ice cream.

Sauce can be easily and quickly reheated in the microwave for 15 to 30 seconds. Stir and it will be shiny and even again.

Yields 2 1/2 cups