This rich chocolate fudge sauce is deeply chocolatey and decadent! Drizzle on cheesecakes, fruit, tarts, or ice cream! It takes any dessert to the next level.
In a sauce pot that is at least 3 quarts (the deeper the better), whisk together the sugar, cocoa powder and salt.
Add the vanilla bean pod followed by the cream and water.
Whisk gently to combine. You have to have a little patience here. Cocoa powder is hydrophobic (like cats ?) and it doesn’t want to hydrate and mix with the water and cocoa powder. Just keep whisking and it will succumb to your will eventually (unlike cats!).
Heat over medium heat until it begins to boil. Reduce heat to low and allow to simmer until thickened. You can use a candy thermometer (205°) but I like to test it like jam on a frozen or refrigerated plate. Just dab a bit on the plate and hold it vertically. If the sauce runs, it isn’t done. If it holds a line, it is done.
Strain sauce if desired, or just pick out the vanilla pod. Cool sauce in an ice bath. To make an ice bath fill a larger bowl with ice and a little bit of water. Nestle the bowl with the sauce in it inside the larger bowl.
Cover the top of the sauce with plastic wrap to keep it from forming a skin and poke a few holes for steam to escape. Place the whole set up (water bath and all) in the refrigerator until it is completely cooled.
Transfer to a sealable jar. Store in the refrigerator for up to a month. (See note)
Video
Notes
Yield: 2 cups
Please note that cooling the sauce properly extends it’s shelf-life. The ice bath cools down the sauce within 2 hours, which will reduce the risk of bacteria multiplying. This means that you can store the final sauce for longer than if you did not take care to cool it properly. If you see any mold growth when you open the jar – throw it out! Sometimes this happens if the jar was not clean or if someone double dips a spoon in the jar…cough, cough. We’ve all been that person.