the easiest no-fail chocolate fudge
Somehow it’s the eve of Christmas Eve, and I’ve still not completed my dessert plans for our Christmas day dinner. Pumpkin pie will be on the menu for sure. It just wouldn’t be Christmas at our house without pumpkin pie. I made a pie recipe from Bobby Flay at Thanksgiving using my homemade pie crust, and it’s a definite winner. I keep going back and forth between a cheesecake. or an almond cake, or perhaps an olive oil cake. I have six Meyer lemons from our little tree just waiting to be used, so I’ll probably try to work them into a recipe somewhere.
Speaking of sweets, let’s talk fudge. With the abundance of gorgeous cookies and desserts that appear this time of year, sometimes it’s the simple things that I crave. Melt-in-your-mouth, creamy chocolate fudge fits in that category for me. I’ve made fudge for years and years, and the recipe I use is the easiest one I’ve ever found. It’s also fail-proof. Whenever I make it and serve it to friends, I inevitably hear stories about how they’ve made fudge and it won’t set up or it just doesn’t turn out right. This fudge? It always turns out right. Always.
The recipe comes from the back of a jar of marshmallow creme, I believe. I have a handwritten recipe card with the recipe on it, and I think I wrote it out back when I was a freshman in college, when I first discovered it. You could probably make it with marshmallows, but this is really the only opportunity I have to use marshmallow creme, so that’s how I make it.
What desserts are you serving Christmas day? Do you go for the fancy ones, or is there a simple sweet that you absolutely must have?
Yield: About 3 pounds
No-Fail Chocolate Fudge
This recipe is tweaked from one that came off a jar of marshmallow creme. It's so simple, yet so incredibly perfect. I never add nuts, but feel free to do so if that's your thing.
Ingredients:
3/4 cup (1 and 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
3 cups granulated sugar
1 pinch kosher salt
5 ounces evaporated milk
12 ounces semisweet chocolate, either chips or chopped
7 ounces marshmallow creme
1 teaspoon good vanilla extract
Directions:
Line a 9-inch square baking pain with non-stick aluminum foil (or use regular foil and lightly grease it).
In a heavy saucepan, stir together butter, sugar, pinch of salt, and evaporated milk. Bring to a full rolling boil on medium heat, stirring constantly. Continue cooking until the mixture registers 234°F on a candy thermometer, approximately 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in chocolate, marshmallow creme, and vanilla. Mix until smooth, chocolate is melted, and all ingredients are incorporated fully.
Pour into prepared pan and cool at room temperature. Once fudge is firm, lift foil from pan, set on cutting board, and cut fudge into squares. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature for up to one week.
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To be able to make fudge is mythical to me. My mom could never make it, no matter how many times she tried and I specifically remember having to crack off a piece from the container in the freezer because that was the only way it would set! Your recipe is wonderfully simple, thank you. I might just pass it on to my mom, for old time’s sake.
Love this recipe! The marshmallow creme must be the secret weapon to the creaminess. Wish I had a bite right now! Happy Holidays!
Ah, it’s the simple things, and this fudge seems too good to be true – I would have never thought of marshmallow creme! It makes sense now, though. Merry Christmas to the entire family!
I love fudge! My mom always made it when we were kids… A recipe very similar to this one! Now I’m wishing I had made some for Christmas!
I hope you and your family had a lovely holiday!
This is absolutely my favorite fudge! For perfect fudge, it’s worth investing in a candy thermometer (most are very inexpensive). Then there’s no guess work about how long to cook the fudge.
Yup, this is a variant of the recipe off the Marshmallow Fluff jar which I’ve used since I was a kid and always had awesome results with. It also works great using different types of chips (white chocolate, peanut butter, milk chocolate, chocolate mint, etc.) and mix ins for endless variations. This year I did one batch with peanut butter chips and one batch with Ghiardelli double chocolate chips (with peppermint extract instead of vanilla and some crushed candy canes pressed into the top of the fudge. Soooo good.
Just stumbled upon your blog. It’s lovely. Gotta love that marshmallow fluff!
This recipe (or something very similar) appeared in a PEOPLE MAGAZINE ages ago, it was included in an article about a group of California Monks who were looking for a money making project (other than wine) and used this recipe to sell fudge!!! So I always called it MONK”S FUDGE. After moving, I misplaced the recipe, so I was thrilled to find this posted on Pintrest. Thanks for sharing.
Mine stuck to the foil. If I made this again I would put in buttered dish.