Prepare Today Homemade- French Bread

I have tried several french bread recipes and never really had them come out right, or they took too long to make.  Then I came across this recipe from one of my Taste Of Home magazines.  It was simple and came out perfectly the first time I made it.  To make really great french bread I really want a french bread pan, but my loaves come out semi-oval shaped just using a baking sheet.

French Bread Pan

French Bread Loaves

2 T active dry yeast
2 C warm water (110-115 degrees)
2 t salt
1 t sugar
4 1/2-5 C bread flour (all-purpose flour will work but bread flour gives a better texture)
1 t cornmeal

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water for 5-10 minutes.  The yeast will become bubbly.  Add the sugar, 2 C of flour, and salt.  Beat until smooth.  I do this in my Bosch mixer.  Stir in enough of the remaining flour to form a soft dough.  Knead for 6-8 minutes in the Bosch or by hand.  

This is before all the flour was added. The dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl when enough flour is added.

Place the dough in a greased bowl (I just leave it in my Bosch) cover and let rise for about 1 hour.

Punch dough down and turn onto a lightly floured surface.  Divide in half and shape into 2 12-inch loaves.

Here are the loaves about to raise for 30 minutes.

Place seam side down on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.  Sprinkle with cornmeal.  With a sharp knife, make four shallow slashes across the top of each loaf.  Bake at 450 for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.  

There are only 79 calories per slice (each loaf has 12 slices)and only a trace of fat!!!!  These loaves also make delicious garlic bread.  Just split the loaves lengthwise, spread some butter and sprinkle with garlic powder, parsley, Parmesan cheese, paprika and bake for 10 minutes at 350.  You won't have to buy garlic bread from the grocery store anymore!!!
 

Frugal Food Tip- Leftover Reincarnation

Don't waste money by throwing away your food!!

Last week I talked about using all of your produce so it doesn't go to waste. This week is all about using your leftovers in a new way. Honestly I am really not a fan of leftovers.  They just seem to lose that fresh, just-prepared look and taste, but if you use them in a new dish they won't feel like leftovers!
  
Leftovers--Made Over (some ideas from allyou.com)

RICE:  Warm rice with cinnamon, brown sugar, milk and raisins for a delicious breakfast or make into rice pudding.  Adding a little rice to soups/stews will add texture and volume to extend your soup farther. Fried rice is always a favorite in my house. 

JARRED PASTA SAUCE:  When only a few spoonfuls are left heat up and use as a dipping sauce for grilled cheese.

NOODLES:  Toss extra noodles (even with sauce) into a frittata.


GROUND MEAT:  Saute with onions and garlic, add it to jarred tomato sauce and try as a pizza topping.  Or wrap well, label and freeze.  When you've saved up to 1lb make meatballs or meat loaf.  

POTATOES:  Stir mashed potatoes into soup to add body; chop boiled or roasted spuds and saute for a breakfast hash.  Make potato pancakes and fry in a little oil for a yummy side dish.  

VEGETABLES:  Use the extra veggies and turn into leftover soup.  Keep leftover veggies in the freezer until you have enough for a meal. A pot pie is another easy dinner that will use up extra veggies. I keep my veggies in the freezer and then dehydrate them and seal them in a mason jar to save for another meal.

MEATS:  Soups, stews, sandwiches, omelets, casseroles, stir fry, enchiladas, toss into spaghetti sauce, tacos, lasagna, etc.

BREAD:  Store ends in the freezer to use as bread crumbs.  Croutons, toast, and french toast will use up those last few dry bread slices too.

Think outside of the box to save time and money.  Take advantage of leftovers and stop tossing away your food...and money!!

Prepare Today Homemade- Vegetarian Sloppy Joes

Being a vegetarian (only me not the family) I have to find ways to make ground beef recipes for my family.  I don't buy or use red meat (I only cook chicken for my family) so I had to find a great meat substitute to use in tacos, Sloppy Joes, lasagna, etc.  Honeyville Grains (of course) has a great line of meat substitute products, also called TVP.  I use their beef, taco flavored, sausage flavored, and bacon flavored TVP at my house.  For this Sloppy Joe recipe we love the beef TVP but my sister says it is really good with ground turkey instead of ground beef.  I usually make this on the stove top but it is also really good in a crock pot, so I decided to try in in my Saratoga Jacks Thermal Cooker!!

Vegetarian Sloppy Joe's with homemade hamburger buns!!

 This meal is so simple and all of my children will actually eat it!!   You could also add a variety of different veggies in the meat mixture.  I usually serve our Joes with cut up fresh veggies so I don't add them to the meat, but feel free to play with the recipe and find what works for you!

The TVP is rehydrating on the left in the measuring cup.

 Sloppy Joes
1 T oil
1 1/2 lbs TVP meat, ground turkey, or ground beef (I use 1 1/2 C beef TVP and about 2 C hot water to rehydrate, then drain off the water before adding to the recipe)
1/4 C brown sugar
2-2 1/2 T McCormick Steak Seasoning
1 onion chopped
1 T red wine vinegar
1 T Worcestershire sauce
2 C tomato sauce (I use 2 small cans)
2 T tomato paste (I use the small cans and freeze the extra amount for the next use)

Stove Top Method:  
Heat a large skillet with the oil and add the meat.  (If using TVP rehydrate it in hot water before adding to the skillet, and you don't need to cook it like ground beef, just heat through quickly before adding the remainder of  ingredients)  Once meat is cooked add the brown sugar and steak seasoning and stir well to incorporate.  Add the chopped onion and cook about 5 minutes or until onion is soft.  Reduce heat to medium and add the vinegar and reduce briefly.  Then add the Worcestershire sauce, tomato sauce, and paste.  Stir to combine, reduce to simmer and cook about 5 minutes.  

Slow Cooker or Thermal Cooker Method:
I add all the ingredients (TVP has been reconstituted first) into the slow cooker and cook on low for several hours.  (I made this for a Jr. High teacher dinner for a few of the vegetarians and it was scraped clean!!)
In the thermal cooker I heated the TVP, added the rest of the ingredients and brought the mixture to a boil for 4 minutes before placing in the cooker.  It was still steaming and ready to go 5 hours after I closed the lid! 

I heated the TVP after rehydrating and added all the ingredients and put in the thermal cooker.

 To serve I make my own hamburger buns.  I found a great recipe that uses bean flour and beans to increase the protein in the bread.  Don't let the idea of beans sway you from trying the recipe because the buns come out so fluffy and soft!!  Click HERE to see that recipe.  The recipe makes 24 buns so I freeze most of them for another dinner or lunch. 

Frugal Food Tips

Part of food storage on a budget is to use all the food that you have in your pantry and fridge before it expires.  Sometimes with produce that is hard to do.  "On average, Americans throw out 25% of the food they bring home, worth an astonishing $2,200 per year!!" (All You Feb. 2012 pg. 18) Think of all the long-term food storage you could purchase with $2000.  

I have a subscription to All You magazine, it's great for clipping coupons, and they had a great article called "Stop Wasting Food". After reading it I knew it would go perfect with our food storage on a budget for 2012 and I had to share their ideas with you.  I love to serve and cook with fresh produce, but if I knew how to make it last longer it would save me a ton of money.  Here are a few tips from All You to help stretch your dollar when using fresh produce.


Broccoli Stems-- Make broccoli slaw.  Shred the stems and mix with coleslaw  dressing to change up your regular salad.

Citrus Peel-- Make a habit of zesting citrus before you juice.  To save zest, cover with water in an ice cube tray and freeze.  To use, add to beverages or defrost and drain.

Mushroom Stems-- Finely chop and use to stretch ground beef.


Parsley Stems-- Toss into a juicer, or add to simmering chicken broth.  (Strain both before using)


Wilted Carrots-- Refresh soft carrots in ice water for a few hours before eating.


About-to-Expire Eggs-- If they're just at their expiration date, hard-boil for a nutritious snack.  (eggs do last a couple of weeks beyond the expiration dates)


Softening Fruit-- Freeze bananas to use in baked goods.  If you have extra apples or pears, peel, core, and cook until soft.  Mix with jam and spread on toast for a breakfast treat.


Fennel Fronds-- Use fennel fronds as you would dill--on top of salads, in soup or to flavor coleslaw.


Limp Spinach or Arugula-- Blend past-their-prime greens with walnuts or pistachios, olive oil, and garlic for a nontraditional pesto.

Extending the Life of Lettuce-- I learned this from Lisa at Honeyville Grain.  Chop your Romaine lettuce and then seal it in a jar with your food saver.  You can have fresh salad for up to 14 days.  It has to be sealed with a vacuum sealer for this to work though.  Click HERE to see more info on sealing a salad in a jar.


And my favorite new tip is for green onions.....you can grow them inside on a window sill!!!  I have tried this and it works.  I may be the last person to know this but if I didn't know maybe someone else out there can use this tip too.

 Don't throw away your green onions after using the green parts.  Place the white part of the onion in water and place in a window.  I just added water when it would get low and didn't do anything else.  I don't have a green thumb so this was so exciting for me to learn.

This is a week and half of growth.  I would have grown more in the glass but I couldn't find the bag of green onions that were in my fridge.  (no one would admit to throwing it away)  I am excited to have green onions on hand all the time now. I used to dehydrate my green onions to have some on hand, but this is so much better.  Next time green onions are on sale I am buying a bunch and growing new ones all together in a glass!!

--One more tip for green onions is to use an empty water bottle, chop the green onions and store them in the water bottle in the freezer. Just use what you need and put back in the freezer.

There are so many ways to stretch your dollar and these are only a few ideas.  If you have any great ideas please leave a comment and I'll write another post about stretching the food dollar. 

Prepare Today Homemade- Orange Chicken (Crockpot & Stove Top)

My family loves orange chicken and I have tried out a few recipes lately and found two recipes that I think are pretty good.  I have to take my family's word on the chicken part (I don't eat meat) but I liked the sauces for these two dishes.  I will tell you which one I liked better though :)

The first way I cooked orange chicken was in my Saratoga Jacks thermal cooker.  I took a slow cooker recipe and used it for the thermal cooker.  The sauce for this recipe came out REALLY thick so I added some chicken broth to it, (about 1 can) but I think it took some of the flavor away from the orange sauce.  I'll add less next time.  Two of my five children weren't a fan of this one although they ate it.  I found the recipe HERE from 365Crockpot.com and I added some of my own spices according to some of the comments on that link.


Crock Pot Orange Chicken
1 1/2lbs chicken cut into cubes
1/2 C flour
oil for browning
1 T kosher salt (if you use table salt 1 T will be too much, start with 1/2-3/4 t salt instead)
6 oz. orange juice (I used the real thing not the frozen stuff, but that will work too)
3 T brown sugar
1 t balsamic vinegar
3 T ketchup
These are what I added for flavor:
1/2 t ginger
2 cloves garlic
about 2 T soy sauce


Dredge the chicken in flour, shake off excess and brown in oil.  It doesn't have to be cooked all the way, just browned.  Mix the salt through soy sauce and stir.  Add all to a small slow cooker.  You don't want a lot of empty space in your slow cooker.  This meal will cook in about 2-3 hours on high.  It doesn't make a lot of sauce so I would double the sauce ingredients and like I mentioned earlier, it comes out really thick and you may want to thin it a little with chicken broth.  Serve over rice.


This is how I cooked it in my thermal cooker.

I browned my chicken, after dipping in the flour, right in the thermal cooker pan.  

I mixed all the sauce ingredients and added them to the browned chicken. (I didn't have orange juice on hand but I did have clementine oranges.  It takes a lot of little oranges to get 6oz of juice;)

I brought the sauce/chicken pot and a pan of rice to a boil for 4 minutes.  Then I put them in the thermal cooker.  I made this at 2:00 in the afternoon and my kids ate it for dinner at 6:00.  My family liked this better than I did, I thought this dish was just OK, edible but missing something.  Most of my kids liked it and I loved having it cook all by itself in the thermal cooker.  Honestly I liked this next recipe better. (sorry for no photos of the next recipe, I didn't know I was going to share it)


Cashew Orange Chicken
 3/4 C orange juice
1/3 C honey
1/4 C soy sauce
1 T cornstarch
1 t ground ginger
1 t garlic powder
1/2 t pepper
2 T oil
4 green onions chopped
2 large carrots sliced
1 celery stalk sliced
4 chicken breasts cut into 1" strips
1 C cashews

Mix in a small bowl the orange juice through the pepper and stir, set aside.  Heat 1 T of oil until it smokes and stir fry the onions, carrots and celery until the onion is fragrant.  Set aside and keep warm.  Heat the other T of oil until it smokes and stir fry the chicken until browned.  Add the veggies, sauce, and cashews.  Cook until the sauce thickens and is bubbly.  Serve over rice.  


This dish was devoured and there were only a few stray carrots left in the pan.  I really like the crisp veggies and the cashews.  I mentioned I don't eat meat so I really liked the added protein of the cashews.  This dish also only took about 15 minutes to make!  I want to try the cashew chicken in the thermal cooker, but I will add the cashews only before serving.  I think it will work but with less crisp veggies.  You try them and decide which one you enjoy more!!


"Have Faith, Unencomber Your Life, Lay Up In Store" -Keith B. McMullen

How To Eat on $10 A Week

The focus for 2012 on this blog is going to be filling our pantry on a tight budget.  I am going to use the word pantry more than the word food storage because we are counseled to have a 3-month supply of food that we normally eat.  Food storage isn't about mysterious #10 cans in the basement for "just in case" scenarios.

With getting food storage for less on my mind I was so excited to see that Honeyville Grain was having a free class on "How to Eat on $10 A Week:  A 10 Step Guide to Living on Less", taught by Cindi Van Bibber.  Cindi has written a few books on cooking with wheat, eating more vegetables and sprouting, but eating on $10 a week is her new book.  You can get more information by checking our her blog HERE.

Cindi teaching her Veggies With a Side Of Fruit Class at Honeyville Grain.

 The whole idea behind Cindi's guide is to work hard for 6 months at building up your food storage and after the 6 month mark you'll be able to use that storage for daily living.  Once you have stored food and supplies for 6 months the shopping you do will be to maintain the storage you have.  That's how you can get your price point down to $10 a week per person for food.  

A 10 Step Guide to Living on Less: By Cindi Van Bibber


Step 1:  Find Your Average

• Go through every bill you pay in a year.  Make a budget by dividing the money coming in by 12, subtract the bills you pay and this will be your monthly average. Now you will need to make a list of everything you would probably purchase in one year.  This includes household supplies, food, snacks, toiletries, etc.
• Looking at a list of everything you buy will allow you to cross off the unnecessary items.  Cindi suggests that you quit buying snacks.  Think of how much a box of 10 granola bars costs.  I know they are around $2.50 on sale.  I have 5 kids and that box of granola bars would last 2 days at my house if they ate one a day.  I can make a whole tray of granola bars that last a week or so for much less!!
• By making a list and setting a budget you can see where your money is going and also where you can cut out the extra spending.

Step 2:  Work With Half

• In step one you should have come up with a number for your household budget, the monthly average.  This will include food and household supplies.  Say you have $600 a month for that.  You are going to cut that budget in half and work with it.  The first half ($300) is going to be for groceries and the second half ($300) is going to be for getting food storage, birthday/wedding gifts, and saving.  
• You're going to live like this for 6 months and build up your food supply.  If you need more money for groceries you can use some money from the second half of the budgeted money.  After 6 months you will have built up a livable supply and now you can go into maintaining mode.  
• Watch the grocery store sales and use the case lot sales to buy food in bulk for the lowest price.  Having a price point list of the food you use along with the lowest prices you have paid listed will help you stay within budget. Also if you come across a good deal or a great clearance buy more than one to have on hand for birthdays or wedding presents. This money can come out of the second half of your household budget.  If you find a great price on chicken, use the second half of the budget money and not the grocery money.
• After 6 months the second half of your household budget money can be used to start saving for bigger ticket items like a food dehydrator, wheat grinder, mixer, etc.  Or for emergency money.

Step 3:  Make A List

• Make and use a weekly calendar of the meals for the week with the cookbook page numbers or where the recipe is found.  Knowing what you have on hand will save you from running to the store and spending more money.  The stress of making dinner every night is also eliminated. 
• Make a yearly list of birthdays etc. and have the money set aside for the gifts.  Or buy toys or generic gifts on clearance and save.  

Step 4:  Plan Ahead

• Plan your meals around your food storage.
• Have gifts on hand for unexpected birthdays or weddings.  Finding gifts on clearance and thinking ahead for an event will save you money.

Step 5:  Learn To Cook

• Know how to use your kitchen and the items in it.
• Know how to cook with your stored food.
• Have the correct utensils to make cooking easier.  If you need a whisk or spatula go get it!
• Do whatever it takes to know how to cook!!  Look online or take a few classes.
• Learn to sprout to have fresh veggies when your budget is tight.

Step 6:  Implement Your Learning

• Don't just learn about food storage...use it in your everyday life.
• Store what you eat....eat what you store!!

Step 7:  Share What You Learn

• When you share something you are learning about it becomes a part of who you are.  You take ownership over it and it becomes a part of you.
• Be excited about what you are doing and others will too.  (the kids included)
• Others may have problems or questions just like you and together you can find answers.  (I personally wouldn't know half of what I know with out the information I get from attending classes at Honeyville Grain.)  They don't pay me for the name dropping, I really do learn so much from the classes.  Look online for information if there isn't a local resource. 

 Step 8:  Rotate & Replenish

• Writing the date on a can will make it easier to see when it expires.  Keep track of what you have and don't waste your hard earned money.  
• Keep replenishing what you use.

Step 9:  Save

• After you have been storing food for 6 months with your budget from step 2, start saving for emergencies.  Don't use  your $$ for extras like boats, cars, TVs, etc.  
•  Use the extra money for saving or to help you live.  (wheat grinders, dehydrators, Bosch mixer, extra food storage, emergency supplies)

Step 10:  Refinement

• There is always room for improvement. 
• Keep progressing!!

"Have Faith, Unencomber Your Life, Lay Up In Store."  -Keith B. McMullen

Prepare Today Homemade- Sweet Lentil Stew

Don't let the title mislead you because the sweet refers to the sweet potato in this yummy stew.  I have been going through my crock pot recipes to find some dinners to make in my Saratoga Jacks thermal cooker and this one sounded perfect!  This is a healthy stew and perfect for a cold winter day.

The ingredients are simple and most are shelf stable.  I could have used freeze dried sweet potatoes and dehydrated potatoes but I wanted fresh for today.  If you had your potatoes in cold storage this would work perfect for you.  

To use a thermal cooker, like the Saratoga Jacks or a wonder oven, you will need to boil your food for several minutes before placing the pots in the cooker.  Notice I have water boiling in the smaller insert pan.  This is to fill all the negative air space in the cooker.  You don't want a thermal cooker with a lot of air space because this will cool the food down too quickly, and it needs to be kept in a safe temperature zone.  My stew didn't fill the larger pot so I used boiling water to fill in the space.

The pans have both come to a boil and now they are sitting on top of each other and ready to be "cooked" in the Saratoga Jacks thermal cooker.

Dinner will be hot and ready when we get back from gymnastics tonight.  I love the feeling of having dinner ready and I didn't have to prepare it during the crazy after school hours.  I am making some french bread to make it a meal.


Sweet Lentil Stew
1 3/4 C dried Lentils washed
1 lg sweet potato peeled and chopped to 1" cubes
1 lg potato peeled and chopped into 1" cubes
1 jar spaghetti sauce (I used Hunts canned sauce)
1 medium onion chopped
2 garlic cloves
3 C water
1 T olive oil


This recipe is originally made for a crock pot.  If you want to slow cook it just add all the ingredients except the olive oil into your crock pot and cook on low 8-10 hours.  Stir in the olive oil just before serving.


To make in a thermal cooker or wonder box:  Add all ingredients to a large pot.  Bring to a rapid, rolling boil with the lid on, for 4 minutes.  If your stew doesn't fill the pot all the way, heat the smaller insert with boiling water and add both pots to the thermal cooker.  If using a Wonder Box cover your pot and secure in cooker.  In the Saratoga Jacks cooker layer both pots with lid on and close the cooker.  Let stew "cook" for 5-8 hours.  Stir in the olive oil just before serving. 


Serve with rolls and a salad.

Saratoga Jacks Thermal Cooker

I love Honeyville Grain!!  I have mentioned them quite a few times here on the blog, but they really are a great resource for food storage and emergency preparedness.  They have started carrying a new product in their retail stores called The Saratoga Jacks Thermal Cooker. I have found a new favorite gadget!!

The whole idea behind a thermal cooker is the heat from a short, rapid boil will keep your food cooking in an insulated cooker for up to 8 hours. Think of a cordless Crock Pot!  The Pioneers that crossed the plains in the 1800's used the same concept called a hay box.  They would cook their soups or stews in the morning, place the pot in a box surrounded by hay and the food would slow cook all day long while they walked. 

The modern day idea for the hay box is called a Wonder Box and is used by food storage enthusiasts all over the world.  The Wonder Box is also a life saving cooker for women in third world countries.  

 They are relatively easy to make and only around $30 to put together.  If you would like instructions click HERE to view them.  I have wanted to make one for quite a while now but now that I have a Saratoga Jacks cooker I may not need one.  The only reason I would probably make one is there isn't a size restriction on the pan you put in it.  With the Saratoga Jacks you are limited to their pan size for cooking.  You can cook bread in a Wonder Box using 42oz juice cans but that size juice can barely fit in the Saratoga Jack, but that is the only downside to the Saratoga Jack that I have found. The selling point for me was that I can conserve my fuel in an emergency by only having to bring my food to a boil for a few minutes, and letting the cooker do all the work without electricity.

I made dinner for my family in my Saratoga Jack the other night and it turned out really good!!

The thermal cooker comes with a large pan with a smaller insert that sits right on top to cook things like rice or veggies.  I made a recipe off of the Saratoga Jacks website called Mexican Chicken Delight with Rice.

 This recipe couldn't be any easier.  In the large stock pot that came with the cooker add chicken, cover with 1" of water, then add the black beans, corn, pineapple and a large container of salsa.  Place the pan on a heat source, bring to a rapid boil with the lid on for 4 mintues, then place in the SJ base and close the lid.  When cooking with a thermal cooker you need to bring your food to a hard rolling boil for 4 minutes for raw meat and only 2 minutes for non-meat dishes.  I made rice in the smaller pan and it only needed a 2 minute boil before being stacked onto the larger pan.  Once the lid is closed, don't peek, it will let all the heat escape. It almost feels like magic because the food will cook and the heat will be retained for up to 8 hours!! Nothing will burn or overcook.  Meats will be fall-off-the-bone tender and rice cooks up moist and fluffy.  

 Here are my pots coming to a boil.  They will stack together and cook in the thermal cooker at the same time. Dinner was as simple as opening the thermal cooker and setting the table.

 Remember the lid must go on the pot as it is boiling so it will heat up too.  You want as much heat as possible to be in the thermal cooker when you close the lid.  Adding a cold lid to the pot would cool down your food and it wouldn't cook properly.

 Here are the pots stacked with the lid on and then I closed the top of the Saratoga Jacks and let it sit for about 6 hours.  

 Dinner was hot, cooked through, and ready to eat when we were.  Click HERE for the complete recipe.  I have fallen in love with this gadget!!  I can't wait to try out other recipes.  I made bread in it yesterday, but that is for another post :)  

If you want more information check out their website at saratogajacks.com and also the Honeyville Grain store in Salt Lake City can help you with any questions you may have. 

"Have Faith, Unencomber Your Life, Lay Up In Store" -Keith B. McMullen

Prepare Today Homemade- Grandma's Chocolate Sauce

I love to hear stories of mothers who cooked amazing meals and the recipes got passed down from generation to generation.  I wish that's how it was for my family.  Don't get me wrong, my mom cooked for 6 children every night of the week and also a hot breakfast on the weekends.  There just aren't that many recipes that are family favorites and were passed down from my grandmothers.  Food in my family was all about serving the masses and not breaking the bank. So with that being said I bring one recipe to you from my mom, Grandma's Chocolate Sauce.  My kids ask her for it every time we have dessert at her house.  I think I got the sweet tooth baking gene from my mom :)

 The ingredient list for this recipe is quite simple.  It uses all shelf stable ingredients and is simple to put together.

Mix the sugar, evaporated milk, vanilla, and chocolate chips into a saucepan.  Notice I grabbed the mini-chips by accident and started pouring them in before I noticed.

Stir constantly over LOW heat until all the chocolate is smooth and melted.  This can take about 10 minutes until it finally all melts.  It is worth it though!!

We made this on New Year's Eve as a treat and my three year old had just had a bath and couldn't wait to help out.  

We topped our ice cream with the yummy chocolate sauce and also dipped some strawberries in it!!

Grandma's Chocolate Sauce

3 C chocolate chips
1 can evaporated milk
1 C sugar
1 t vanilla

Mix all ingredients in medium sauce pan.  Stir constantly over low heat until the chocolate is smooth and melted, about 10 minutes.  Cool slightly and serve with ice cream or as a dipping sauce.