Hot Fudge Sundae

By the peak of summer, I am in full ice cream sundae mode. It never ceases to delight me how simple ingredients like ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream, sprinkles, peanuts, and that iconic cherry on top can combine into such a delicacy. Though you can buy all the ingredients you’ll need to make one at the store, I must insist you make your own hot fudge. Not to be confused with chocolate sauce, homemade hot fudge is chewy and thick, the perfect foil to cold, sweet ice cream. Read on for my top tips to get yours just right, and you’ll be on your way to creating a sundae shop right in your own kitchen. Best part? When you build it at home, you can add as many toppings as you like.

How To Make A Hot Fudge Sundae

INGREDIENTS

• Heavy Cream: This is one of the most important ingredients, since it’s used in both the fudge and the whipped cream. You can either use heavy cream or heavy whipping cream for this recipe.
• Unsweetened Chocolate: For the best hot fudge, make sure the chocolate you use is the best quality. I consider Ghirardelli, Scharffen Berger, and Guittard as some of the better brands you can purchase at the market, but feel free to sub your favorite.
• Granulated Sugar: Since I use unsweetened chocolate, I opted to add some granulated sugar too. I like to control the level of sweetness.
• Corn Syrup/Honey: If you're afraid of corn syrup, don't be! It does wonders to hot fudge. It avoids crusty, crystallization of sugar, keeps the sauce smooth, and if you add enough it will prevent your sauce from getting too hard against the cold ice cream. You can also use honey, though the flavor profile will be different.
• Unsalted Butter: Butter helps round out the super-sweet or astringent chocolate notes, and gives the end product a soft, velvety finish.
• Confectioners' Sugar: I use confectioners' sugar in the whipped cream so that you have balanced sweetness throughout the sundae. If you prefer, because the ice cream and fudge are sweet enough on their own, you can omit sugar in the cream layer.
• Vanilla Ice Cream: This is the most exciting part! Choose to make your own or have an excuse to buy your favorite brand—either will work. Want some guidance on which to buy? My fellow Delish food editor Taylor Ann put all the top brands to the test, finding that Häagen-Dazs, Adirondack Creamery, and Blue Marble were among the best.
• Rainbow Sprinkles: No sundae is complete without crunchy, chalky (in a good way!) rainbow sprinkles or jimmies. Nonpareils could work, but fair warning—their color will bleed a bit. If you'd rather have a chocolate sprinkle, feel free to substitute those instead. Any sprinkle is welcome to the sundae party.
• Crushed Peanuts: Peanuts are a classic on a sundae but it can be enjoyed just as much without them. Best to buy unsalted, roasted and crush yourself. Almonds or other nuts would be lovely as well.
• Maraschino Cherries: These red-dyed, almost transparent, crunchy, and cloyingly sweet cherries are literally “the cherry on top," so don't skip it. You can opt for a higher-end cherry like a decadent and syrupy dark Luxardo cherry, but the traditional is a straight up maraschino.

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

When making the fudge sauce, you’ll want to combine the heavy cream, sugar, chocolate, and corn syrup in a medium sauce pot. You’ll place the pot over medium-low heat and continue to whisk just until melted.

Some recipes may call for bringing the sauce to a bubble, but I prefer to remove it from heat before that point. The mixture should be hot and thick. The longer it stays off heat the thicker it will become. You can make this up to 3 to 5 days in advance and reheat slowly on the stove or in the microwave until melted when you're ready to serve.

Whipped cream can be made up to a day in advance or right before serving. Make sure your bowl is clean and cold or at least room temperature! In a large metal bowl, using handheld beaters or in the stand mixer with a whisk attachment, whip the heavy cream and confectioners' sugar until medium peaks form. The whipped cream shouldn't be too soft where it’s falling off the beaters, or too thick to where it’s nearly curdled into butter. At this point you can use a spoon and scoop from the bowl or transfer the whipped cream to a piping bag with a star tip.

Use an ice cream scoop to scoop the ice cream from the container. You can dunk the scoop in warm water to help loosen the ice cream if needed. Divide ice cream between 6 sundae bowls. Drizzle the hot fudge over top of the ice cream, allowing it to gather and fall organically. It’s okay if there is leftover fudge! Dollop or pipe whipped cream on top of the fudge, sprinkle the rainbow sprinkles and peanuts on top. Place a cherry on top of the whipped cream and serve right away.

The full list of ingredients and instructions can be found in the recipe below.

Variations

• Try swapping your ice cream for a different flavor, like our red velvet ice cream, our peppermint ice cream, our cannoli ice cream, our chocolate ice cream; the sky is the limit.
• I went with simple toppings, but you've got plenty of options! Some ideas:
  • Crushed chocolate chip cookies
  • Cubed brownies
  • Caramel sauce
  • Crushed candies
  • Banana slices
  • Crushed waffle cones
  • Kettle corn

Storage

Store the hot fudge in an airtight container for up to 1 week in the refrigerator. The whipped cream can be made 1 day ahead, but if it appears deflated, give it a light whisk. Assemble your sundae with the various components when ready to eat.