Hot Fudge for Cold Nights (or any nights... days... whenever, really)

Last week's Pound Cake recipe/experiment was all about serious measurements - and serious amounts of time. Yes, it was fun - and really tasty - but it was also one of those kitchen projects that you have to devote some effort and time to. 

This week's recipe... well... if I'm being honest (and I usually am), I actually made this while the Pound Cake was cooling. 

It's also not quite as glamorous when you're done. Personally, though, I think that glamorous foods are frequently over-rated.

Check it out! This week's special guest star is last week's Pound Cake!

Let's look at how this blog post came to be. 

So, there you go. It was kind of a "Mother Necessity" situation - I needed something that could go on the Pound Cake - and that wouldn't turn away any members of Book Club. (And the fact that it's a quick and easy recipe for a food I really really like doesn't hurt.)

Just how quick and easy is it? Well, here's my copy of the recipe: 

I'm not the only one who took a spiral-bound set of recipe notecards when I moved away from home, am I? 

Quick assembling of ingredients:

The only thing in this photo that I can't always guarantee I'll have on hand is the evaporated milk. But I try to keep a can on hand, just in case of baking or confectionary emergencies. 

One of the great things about this recipe is that there's no dealing with extra bowls or pans or anything. It all goes straight into a pan on the stove. (I use a two-quart stainless steel pan. That gives it room to boil, while also keeping a fairly even heat.)

You may have noticed that the recipe also doesn't have any extra steps. This is pretty much dump-heat-stir-go. (Well, and measure...)

First up - BEFORE you turn on the heat: 3/4 c of white sugar 

Next: 1/2 c of cocoa

I really prefer Hershey's Cocoa for this. I've tried other brands, and they just don't turn out the same. Maybe it's because it's what I grew up with - but why would I mess with a good thing? 

On to the wet ingredients. 2/3 c of evaporated milk.

Gee... what will we ever do with the other half of the can? 

 I have no idea why I took the next photo:

And then the 1/3 c of light corn syrup:

No, I didn't clean it out after the evaporated milk. They're going to get mixed together anyway, so why bother?

I know it doesn't look like much, yet.

Maybe if I put the 1/4 c of margarine in, it will look better?

Still not really all that exciting, is it? 

Well, let's add some heat (I go for medium heat) - and stir pretty much the entire time as it gradually blends together. 

It will, believe it or not, start to take on a much fudgier look.

But the boil is actually the important thing. So you have to slowly coax it to the boil as you stir. 

I tend to stir all the way to the edges and even clear them down. This isn't a really particular recipe, so you don't have to worry too much about that causing it to crystallize. 

Once it's boiled for a full minute, it's time to turn off the heat and add in the vanilla (I always vote for the full teaspoon).

I didn't catch a good photo of the moment the vanilla went in, but it's one my favorite moments of making this sauce. The vanilla causes it to bubble up kind of out of nowhere. 

After just a bit of cooling, I poured mine into a small pitcher. You can see how it sticks to the edges as it cools down. Even warm, this stuff has some seriously thick aspirations. 

Why is it in a small pitcher? Well...

And, since we don't want the Pound Cake to feel left out...

Of course, it would make no sense to have them side by side without putting them together, so here's one more look.

For the record, at Book Club, people quite enjoyed the combination. And, afterward, Christopher and I had Hot Fudge Sundaes at home. But not many of them, because the sauce went pretty quickly.

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Do you have a spiral-bound set of notecards of recipes you took with you when you moved out on your own? What was one of your favorite things in it? Is it still something you make?