Best Ever Chocolate Sauce

Note to self:

Do not attempt an ice cream photo shoot on the hottest day of the year so far. In your kitchen. While the oven is slow cooking a chicken.

Sincerely, 

Me

Even though the air is on in my house, this was a tricky shoot. Things were melting and sliding (quickly, at that) and not making for pretty pictures. 

The whipped cream refused to cooperate even a little so I scrapped it. The ice cream itself, a key part in the whole gig, almost didn't make it through. I felt like a director whose actors kept walking off the set.

This, my friends, is the BEST CHOCOLATE SAUCE IN THE WORLD. For real. It will knock your socks off. And it's so super simple. The hardest part is the waiting. (Tom Petty couldn't have been more right about that one.) 

This amazing recipe came from my mom and though she has made this many times in my life, I was reintroduced to it a few weeks ago. It's a dangerous recipe to have in your arsenal when your favorite sweet treat is ice cream. 

Trust me on this: Take a bowl of simple vanilla or chocolate ice cream, top it with a bit of this heavenly delight and the result is pure magic. No other toppings needed. 

Best Ever Chocolate Sauce

2 cups granulated sugar

3/4 cup cocoa

1 1/4 cups water

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

-In a sauce pan, whisk together sugar, cocoa, water and salt. Stirring occasionally, bring to a rolling boil then immediately remove from heat. (This mixture tends to boil over very quickly so stay with it. Once it reaches the rolling boil, get it off the heat to avoid a mess.)

-Allow to cool about an hour or two, then put back on stove top and bring to a rolling boil once more. Remove from heat, stir in the vanilla and then allow it to cool about an hour in order to thicken a bit.  (It will thicken even more once you store it in the refrigerator.) 

I hope you have a relaxing Memorial Day!
Don't forget to remember those who made all our freedoms possible.