Oaxacan Hot Fudge Sauce

Fondue it, put it on banana sundaes, this is your all-natural Oaxacan fudge sauce.  I love Oaxacan chocolate.  It is minimally processed (my mother-in-law grinds her own cacao beans for her homemade chocolate).  And the chocolate-cinnamon-almond combination is sinfully delicious.

This recipe also calls for mezcal, which is a hard liquor made from agave.  Mezcal is native to Oaxaca.  The crema de mezcal is its liqueur version. 

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 ounces (227 grams) Oaxacan chocolate, cut into small pieces
• 3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter
• 4 tablespoons coffee- or mocha-flavored crema de mezcal (use Kaluhua if you can't find mezcal)

PREPARATION:

1. Put chopped chocolate in a clay pot or metal bowl (something that won't melt or shatter when you fill it with very hot liquid).
2. Heat heavy whipping cream and butter until it just begins to simmer.
3. Remove heavy whipping cream and butter from heat and add mezcal or Kaluhua.
4. Immediately pour the hot liquid over the chocolate pieces.  Let sit 5 minutes.
5. Stir with a whisk until smooth.
6. Serve hot.

To store leftovers, transfer to a glass jar and store in refrigerator.  To reheat, remove lid from jar and heat in microwave for 1 minute.  Stir, then microwave at 20-second intervals (stirring at every interval) until the fudge sauce reaches the desired temperature.  Alternatively, remove the lid from the jar and place the jar in a pot with enough water to half-immerse it.  Heat until chocolate melts (give it a stir every now and then once it starts to melt to make it melt faster).