Dairy Free Hot Fudge Sauce that is thick, smooth. Made with cocoa powder and coconut milk, you’d never guess it is vegan!
Rodelle sent me their gourmet baking cocoa and pure vanilla extract, which I used in this recipe. As always, all opinions are entirely my own. I already use Rodelle’s products and ♥ them.
My dad’s hot fudge sauce is legendary!
I am not certain it was my dad’s recipe or my mom’s recipe that she made for my dad, but there was a recipe my mom contributed to a church cookbook when I was 8 years old. Brad’s Favorite Fudge Sauce. It was loaded with sugar, butter, LOTS of cocoa powder (I think the recipe called for 3 tablespoons and then noted that my mom always used 6 because my dad loves his chocolate,) and real cream.
It really was the hot fudge sauce of legend. So thick and creamy! This dairy free recipe is a dead ringer for my dad’s favorite. It is perfect on gluten free cookie dough brownie ice cream, topping a cake, or an ice cream cake (recipe coming on Saturday!) You can drizzle this molten chocolate over almost anything and it will be amazing. I don’t think I would try it on my gluten free dairy free mac n cheese though…😉 Stick to desserts.
My sister and I would always make a double batch so that there would be some leftover. (She caught the kitchen on fire more than once making fudge sauce. She’d start to melt the butter and then get distracted…)We’d keep it in a mason jar in the fridge and sneak into it later with a spoon. It was the kind of fudge sauce that you could scoop with a spoon. Way better than anything you’d ever buy at a store!
I’ve tried many times to make the same perfect, thick, oozy hot fudge sauce dairy free, but until now all I had managed to make was milky homemade chocolate syrup. The cream was what really gave the hot fudge sauce it’s character oozy gooey perfection. The solution…full fat coconut milk! It doesn’t taste coconutty with all of the luscious cocoa powder and it tasted just like I remember my dad’s hot fudge sauce, except it is dairy free and vegan!
If you are doing the low-carb thing, I think you’ll fall head over heals for my friend Maya from Wholesome Yum’s Sugar-Free Caramel Sauce. Not only is it sugar-free, and low-carb, it still gets the green light if you are doing Keto!
An essential part of this vegan hot fudge sauce is some good cocoa powder! I started using Rodelle’s Gourmet Baking Cocoa around Christmas when I found some at Costco and I am not going back! Rodelle kindly sent me some of their gourmet baking cocoa and pure vanilla extract, which I used in this recipe. The baking cocoa is dutch processed, so it has a rich chocolate taste. A little vanilla rounds out the flavors. Each dairy free fudge sauce spoonful really is perfection!
I used powdered sugar instead of the regular white granulated sugar that my dad’s original hot fudge recipe used. The powdered sugar has just a little bit of cornstarch in it, which helps the fudge sauce to thicken up. If you can’t do corn, I would try using granulated sugar ( 3/4 cup instead of 1 cup) and a teaspoon of tapioca starch or arrowroot starch.
With this vegan and dairy free hot fudge sauce recipe in your back pocket, the possibilities are endless.
- ½ cup (1 stick) vegan butter (I used earth balance)
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 4 tablespoons Rodelle Gourmet Baking Cocoa
- ½ cup full fat coconut milk( I used So Delicious Culinary Coconut Milk but canned full fat coconut milk will work too)
- 1 teaspoon Rodelle Pure Vanilla Extract
- pinch of salt
- Melt the vegan butter in a saucepan over med-low heat.
- Add the powdered sugar and cocoa and stir until smooth.
- Add the coconut milk, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt and stir until smooth. Bring to a simmer, and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- Serve warm.
Whoa! This looks insanely delicious!
Thank you Emily!
It’s so delicious… by the spoon at this point! Made your cream puffs too, forming into a cake design for my daughter’s birthday celebration! Whipped cream, custard filling, I can’t wait to taste the end result!
That sounds like a delicious way to celebrate!
I want that hot fudge… and the ice cream cake! Holy moly!
I always ask for hot fudge when I’m out, so I definitely need a recipe so I can make it at home. Looks so yummy!
Thanks Melissa! This is so much better than any hot fudge I have ever had out. I can’t wait for you to try it!
YES! I love baking with full fat coconut milk in place of the dairy — it works in so many amazing vegan applications. I haven’t tried the Rodelle baking cocoa, but I love their vanilla extract. I’ll have to look for the cocoa for my next cocoa craving!!!
~jules
Thanks Jules! Full fat coconut milk can work miracles in a vegan/dairy free kitchen.
You HAVE to try Rodelle’s baking cocoa. It has the perfect chocolate/acidity balance!
This looks crazy good, Brianna! Wow! Great idea to use the coconut milk – Brilliant! I love the Rodelle baking cocoa too, but our costco didn’t have it the last time I needed cocoa. 🙁
Thanks Jeanine! I asked at my Costco, apparently the Rodelle Baking Cocoa was a holiday item. When Christmas rolls around I hope it is in stock again so I can stock up!
AMAZING!! I love me some good hot fudge 🙂
Thank you Sarah!