Hot Fudge

When I was a little girl, one of my favorite treats was a hot fudge sundae from Read's. Read's was a local drugstore chain, and the one in my neighborhood had a full-service soda fountain/restaurant. If I went shopping with my grandma, I could almost guarantee a sundae was in my future - because she also enjoyed them. Although in those days my favorite ice cream was chocolate, I preferred my sundaes with vanilla because it didn't affect the flavor of the hot fudge. And a maraschino cherry on top, along with aerosol whipped cream, were de rigeur.

The other day, I was craving some hot fudge. I had just received two bags of sweetener with which to experiment, and I chose to use one of them, Xylitol, in the sauce. Xylitol, widely used as a sweetener in chewing gum, is a sugar alcohol sweetener that is roughly as sweet as sugar, but has only about 60% of the calories and a very low glycemic score, making it good for diabetics. I found that when tasted raw, on a damp finger, Xylitol tastes remarkably like sugar - more than artificial sweetners - with only a vague aftertaste. I found that when I cooked with the product, it tasted pretty much like the real thing, and worked like a charm in a basic hot fudge recipe.

Not that hot fudge sauce will ever be a diet recipe, or particularly safe for diabetics! I just wanted to play with the Xylitol and see if I noticed any difference in flavor. You may use 1/2 cup of regular sugar in the recipe, instead.

New-Fashioned Hot Fudge Sauce
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
6 tablespoons boiling water
1 tablespoon salted butter
1/2 cup Xylitol
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix cocoa powder and water in a sauce pan, stirring until it forms a paste. Turn heat on to medium; add butter, Xylitol, corn syrup, and heavy cream, stirring to combine. Bring mixture up to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla.

Yields about 3/4 cup sauce.

Posted by theminx on Minxeats.com.