vanilla extract | The Smart Cookie Cook

Ice cream sundaes are a happy food. They make you feel like a kid (no matter what your age), they’re customizable, and they’re just so fun. Ice cream on it’s own is a whimsical icy treat. Then we’re talking about piling said ice cream sky-high with all kinds of good stuff: whipped cream, fudge sauce, maybe some sprinkles for color, and that essential cherry. Whether or not you pluck that maraschino cherry from its pillowy peak and pop it into your mouth is up to you. More important than the consumption of the cherry is the finishing touch in presentation that it provides.

This isn’t what you think.

You see, we’re not going to talk about making homemade ice cream today. Don’t get me wrong; that stuff is delicious, but ice cream isn’t the star in a sundae; the toppings are. And, much like everything else, the store-bought stuff doesn’t hold a candle to homemade. I know; you probably never thought about making your own ice cream toppings. Well, you’re going to be blown away by how simple it is. It requires little time & little effort. All you need is a few ingredients that you probably already have on hand and some homemade love.

Let’s talk fudge.

Hot fudge to be exact. It’s the pinnacle of all sundae toppings. When you envision the ideal ice cream sundae in your head, it’s more than likely that there’s a river of molten chocolate flooding over mountains of whipped cream. I don’t know about you, but hot fudge is my favorite part of any sundae. I could eat that stuff by the spoonful. And even if you aren’t one of those people too, you will be by the time you make this Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce.

You’re going to recognize that familiar gooey texture found in any fudge sauce, but you’re also going to find something new. This sauce possesses a deep, decadent, chocolate flavor unlike anything you’ve tasted in hot fudge before. This is like fudge to the tenth power, a refined version of the chocolatey topping you’ve come to know and love. Chocolate is the feature flavor here. This fudge is not sickeningly sweet but just sweet enough. It exhibits a beautifully smooth and glossy texture. You will think you’re being so spoiled, so self-indulgent.

And you will love every spoonful.

But fudge has got to have some support, a pillow to rest its head on, if you will. That’s where the whipped cream comes in. If you’ve never had homemade whipped cream, then you’ve never lived. That fluff-in-a-can has got nothing on this. Moreover, you really don’t have a reason to have never tried homemade whipped cream because it is so simple to make. There’s only three ingredients and it takes all of a couple minutes to throw together. People are so impressed when you tell them you made your own whipped cream, when in reality, a monkey could do it.

Both these topping recipes are easy, foolproof, and fast. They require minimal ingredients. Who knew something so impressive and delicious could be so simplistic?

What are you waiting for? Go spoil yourself.

A few tips (for the fudge) before you get cooking:

This hot fudge recipe makes A WHOLE QUART of sauce. Four. Cups. Of fudge. Unless you’ve got an army to feed, you might want to cut it in half. Or, put half in a jar and give it to a friend to indulge in!
Have all pots, spoons, ingredients, and such ready to rock beforehand.
There is more than one way to enjoy this fudge sauce. It’s so wonderfully chocolately that you could:

Dip fruit in it
Better yet, dip marshmallows in it
Spread it on pound cake when it’s cool and thick like ganache or heat it up and drizzle it like a glaze
Drizzle it over brownies
Eat it by the spoonful, hot or cold (I may or may not have done this)

Hot Fudge Sauce

Adapted from Paula Deen

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, cut into small pieces
2 3/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

In a heavy bottomed saucepan over low heat, bring the cream just to a boil then add the brown sugar and stir just until it dissolves. Add small pieces of butter until mix until completely melted, then stir in the chocolate chips. Wait 3 to 5 minutes so that chocolate is very soft before folding it in with a spatula. Stir in the salt and vanilla extract and blend until well incorporated.

Transfer to a new bowl and let cool for 15 minutes; it will thicken as it cools.

*Can be stored up to 1 week in the refrigerator in a glass jar. Heat in microwave for 20 sec. or until warm and stir before serving.

Now, a few tips before you get cooking (the whipped cream):

This is so easy. Just do it.
Do not over whip! It will turn into butter.
Whipped cream is versatile. Use it for cakes, pies, fruit, and anything else that could use some whipped cream.
Chill your mixing bowl and beaters in the freezer beforehand. This will make the whipping go quicker.
Those who have never made WC might wonder what the heck a “stiff peak” is. This is when you stick the beaters into the cream and, when you pull them back out, they leave little peaks standing straight up. The cream will be fluffy and impressionable (see picture below in “directions”).