There is nothing quite like a delicious Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce to up your ice cream game but be careful; it's so good you could finish it off with a spoon!
I think one of the best things in this entire world is good vanilla ice cream served with a Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce. So simple and yet so perfect. Add some salty nuts to the mix and I'm ecstatic.
As a kid my parents walked all of us to Bergens Dairy in Florissant, MO (my hometown, a suburb of St. Louis) about once a week for an ice cream cone, and a birthday meant we could order something special beyond the standard 2 scoop cone. My male siblings always went for the banana split because it was the biggest thing on the menu but I just wanted a hot fudge sundae with nuts.
If they would have added just banana? OK, that I like too but long term, it's the vanilla ice cream and hot fudge sauce that have always done me in. Of more importance than anything was that sauce and I think that after a fair amount of trial and error that I've finally come up with something that rivals that memory from long ago.
I promise you, this is simply the Best Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce EVER!
Over the years I've bought my fair share of hot fudge sauce from the market and yet none ever seemed to compare to those childhood memories of a sauce just rich enough and just sweet enough that dreams were built on knowing one was coming.
It took me a bit but I finally recognized the truth. It wasn't just a memory that was elevated because of the beauty of childhood rituals; the fact is that you will never find a packaged product in the grocery store that can compare to something like this Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce.
When the ingredients start with 'High Fructose Corn Syrup' and end with 'Artificial Vanillin Flavor' I'm sort of nonplussed. Besides...this hot fudge sauce is SO easy; easier to whip up at home than to spend the time even remembering to write it on your grocery list...perfect right?
I've tried several different concoctions to get to what I would call the best too. I've used cocoa and corn syrup and different kinds of chocolate but none compared to this one that combines all I think is necessary to make it the BEST!
The key to the success of this Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce? Well, everything. I started with a base of half and half with butter so there is that. Then I add both semi-sweet and milk chocolate, it finds a sweet spot in the middle. Super fan of either one? Then use all semi-sweet or all milk chocolate but please give this a try first?
Brown sugar and vanilla add a richness and a smidgeon of espresso elevates the chocolate just enough. Finished with a touch of sea salt and this is seriously good, and nothing else matches up in my book.
One big change I have made was for a Mexican themed party. I used this recipe and made a Mexican Hot Fudge Sauce version with tequila, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper. I love that flavor combination; my favorite pie is this Mexican Hot Chocolate Pie! I've included the information for that version in the notes of the recipe.
When I made this sauce, I used it to make what I call 'Deconstructed Drumsticks.' I just spoon some hot fudge over the ice cream, sprinkle with toasted walnuts or pecans and then top with a sugar cone. The kids love them but don't take my word for how good they are; just trust my neighbor Casey who ate two of them!
Whether you eat this over ice cream, on waffles or even straight from the jar with a spoon (yes, I might have...so??) I know you'll love it too. I don't call it the best without good reason!
PIN IT! 'Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce'
