Recipe: Delicious Bourbon Fudgsicles (grown-ups only!)

INGREDIENTS:
(Makes 6-8 pops)

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3.5 oz bittersweet chocolate (70-72%), chopped
• 2 TBS dutch-processed cocoa powder*
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 2 TBS bourbon* (see below for non-alcoholic suggestion)

• Popsicle molds
• Wooden popsicle sticks

A glorious pile of chopped dark bittersweet baking chocolate!

DIRECTIONS:

Combine sugar, chocolate, cocoa powder, and salt in a saucepan with 2 cups of water. Warm over medium heat and whisk constantly until mixture just begins to boil. Remove from heat.

Transfer to a 4 cup glass measure or a bowl with a spout and leave at room temperature to cool for 30 minutes.

Stir in the 2 tablespoons of bourbon then pour into pop molds. Place in freezer and leave for about 3 hours without tops, then add the popsicle sticks and return to freezer for at least 4 more hours.

NOTES:

I used a set of these Tovolo Star Popsicle molds and got 6 pops plus a little extra that made for some damn good hot chocolate :)  These molds have their own tops, but I really prefer to use wooden popsicle sticks because they are longer and the pops stick to the wood better than the plastic (so, fewer instances of the stick coming out of the mold before the popsicle). If you want to cover the ends of the pops while they're in the freezer, use some plastic cling film over each one after they're frozen solid; just use the sticks to poke a hole in the plastic wrap.

*Dutch-Processed cocoa powder is an unsweetened cocoa that has been alkalized to neutralize the acid.  It has a more delicate flavor than the other kind of unsweetened cocoa powder, referred to as Natural cocoa powder which has an intense flavor and tastes quite bitter. Lindt is a popular example of Dutch-Processed cocoa, while Ghirardelli is a well-known Natural cocoa powder.

If you'd like to make a non-alcoholic version, leave out the bourbon and try adding a splash of vanilla extract (about 1/2 tsp).