When I was in my early teens, my best friend Toni and I would often take the bus from New Brunswick, New Jersey, into Manhattan where we would go and visit her grandparents Mimi and Pampaw.

We'd arrive around suppertime on a Friday evening, and as soon as dinner was cleared away the ingredients were always waiting for us to make hot fudge sauce. In the freezer there was always a half-gallon of vanilla ice cream.Never in my life have I had an ice cream topping that was this delicious.It's rich and decadent and so thick, that you can almost chew it. The secret to get it to the right consistency is to cook it the right amount of time.As I was preparing the fudge sauce the other day, I kept a close watch on the time. It took over 8 minutes just for it to get to the initial boiling stage, and then another 8 minutes until it was the right thickness.OK, so it takes a little bit of time, but it's worth every second. This fudge sauce isn't only for ice cream either. It's very good drizzled on pound cake or peanut butter pie. Use your imagination.I remember Toni once telling me that her mother often said this was so good, she'd pour it on her morning cereal if she could.I never tried that, but I bet it would be delicious.

Mimi’s Hot Fudge Sauce

Makes 3 cups

5 ounces unsweetened Bakers chocolate

1/2 cup butter

3 cups unsifted confectioner’s sugar

1 14.5-ounce can evaporated milk

1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Melt chocolate and butter in a heavy sauce pan; remove from heat. Alternately add sugar and milk, stirring to incorporate. Return to heat and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. This can take a little while so be patient, and keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn. Once it boils, cook and stir approximately 8 minutes or until it is thick and creamy. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

Serve warm.