Today, I drove with the windows down while blasting Z104. I know it's not quite summer, but with such glorious weather, it only causes one to hope. It made me happy. It made me forget (if just for a little while) of:
The studying I had to do for my test on the circulatory system.
The fact that my ACT is a month away.
That next year I'm friggin graduating.
That I'll be 18 in 7 months.
That I need to find a job.
The extreme suck-age of money.
Instead, it reminded me of:
The fact that I'm going to freaking Chicago on March 24 to get my freaking awesome book signed by the
freaking awesome Joy of Joy the Baker (little excited, just a little).
Painted toenails and flip flops.
The oreo cream cheese truffles I would get to make when I got home (coming soon).
The brilliant weekend ahead of me.
Homemade ice cream on hot summer days, complete with toppings. Such as this fudge sauce.
I've said before that I'm more of a caramel girl, and I still hold to that. But even if I do prefer caramel sauce on ice cream, hot fudge also holds its place in my heart (And hello, hot fudge and caramel sauce together, totally meant to be.)
What's that? Mrs. Richardson's is way too easy to pick up? Making fudge sauce sounds totally intimidating to you? Psh! This is easy-peasy, and comes together in half an hour. You probably already have all the ingredients on hand to make this, so don't make that desperate run to the store for ice cream toppings. It's all in the pantry, waiting for you.
I'm pretty pumped for this summer, it will be full of food, senior pics, friends, and general busyness. But interspersed throughout will be peaceful times of reading Harry Potter to my sister Carol while she paints, lying in the sun after a swim, reading on a blanket outside, playing badminton with my crazy siblings, tickling baby kittens, and quiet mornings to make cookies.
There will also be ice cream cones at 10 in the morning, complete with finger-licking from dribbles of hot fudge.
And looots of natural lighting to take pictures in. Amen.
Hot Fudge Sauce
Yield: about 2 1/2 cups
Ingredients:
- 4 oz. unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped (go for semisweet if you're more of a sweet tooth)
- 3 tbsp. unsalted butter
- 2/3 cup water
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 6 tbsp. corn syrup
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tbsp. rum (or vanilla extract)
Directions:
Combine the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Heat slowly, stirring occasionally, until completely melted and smooth. Meanwhile, heat the 2/3 cup of water to boiling in a small heavy saucepan. When the chocolate and butter have melted, stir the mixture into the boiling water. Add the sugar, corn syrup and salt, and mix until smooth. Increase the heat and stir until the mixture comes to a boil. Adjust the heat so that the sauce is just maintained at the boiling point (be careful, and lower the heat right away while stirring constantly as the sauce will try to boil over). Allow to boil for nine minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove the pan from the heat and let cool for 15 minutes. Stir in the rum until smooth. Serve warm over ice cream.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge. To reheat, microwave in 15 second intervals, stirring until shiny and smooth.
Sources: adapted from Annie's Eats, who found it on Smitten Kitchen, originally from Silver Palate Cookbook
