Easy Chocolate Fudge

Homemade chocolate fudge made without a sugar thermometer or a double boiler in sight! It’s rich, silky smooth and a decadent treat perfect for the holidays and Christmas presents!

The Christmas baking starts now and we all know that Christmas = fudge season. Fudge or any kind of homemade chocolate confectionery is definitely something I would love to receive during the festive season as a present. This fudge would make a brilliant gift wrapped up in cellophane bags and tied with cute ribbon, but it would also be fantastic to make and serve on a platter at parties. Guests can help themselves or even take a few pieces home and share if they want to!

I’ve been working on this fudge recipe for sometime trying to get it perfected ready to share with you. The first time I made this fudge it was divine, however the following time I made it, I used half dark chocolate and half milk chocolate and the flavour was spot on. I also changed the originial recipe by adding some icing sugar to the mix, as the previous time I had made it the texture was silky smooth, but wouldn’t cut into perfect, neat pieces like I wanted it to.

This isn’t actually how traditional fudge is made as you won’t need any specialist equipment like a sugar thermometer and you don’t need to test for soft or hard ball stage. Not all food needs to be overly complicated to prepare and this recipe proves how easy fudge can be to make. In a large non-stick saucepan, gently heat chopped chocolate, a can of sweetened condensed milk and a little bit of butter until it’s melted and smooth, then stir through sifted icing sugar.

The hardest part, as with most no-bake recipes is the time waiting for the end result to be revealed. This fudge needs at least a few hours in the fridge to set – it will still be a little squidgy, so I would definitely recommend leaving it overnight to ensure it’s really nicely set and will cut easily, but of course, that’s only if you can resist trying a piece beforehand!

(Makes 36 pieces)

Ingredients:

400g (14 ounces) dark or milk chocolate, broken or chopped into small pieces – you can use a mix of the two

397g (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

25g (2 tablespoons) butter

100g (2/3 cup) icing/confectioners’ sugar

Method:

1. Line a 20cm / 8-inch square tin with parchment paper or cling film. Set aside.
2. Place the chocolate, condensed milk and butter in a large non-stick saucepan. Melt the ingredients gently on a low heat – take your time with this otherwise the chocolate will burn and go grainy. Stir occasionally until the mixture is smooth and all the chocolate is melted completely.
3. Take off the heat and sift in the icing sugar and mix until thoroughly combined. The fudge will start to get really thick at this point and will begin setting.
4. Evenly spread the fudge mixture out into the lined tin. Smooth over the top with the back of a spoon or a spatula. Leave fudge in the fridge for at 3-4 hours until set or overnight for the best results.
5. Once the fudge is set, remove it from the tin. Using a large sharp knife, carefully cut the fudge into 36 pieces or more if you want you make smaller pieces of fudge. Fudge will keep stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 weeks. It’s a great recipe to make ahead of time ready for Christmas or any other special occasion! See the recipe notes below for tips on freezing.

Recipe Notes:

• Use real chocolate not chocolate chips. Chocolate chips have stabilisers added so they hold their shape and don’t melt completely, therefore if you use chocolate chips your fudge will not be as smooth as it should be.
• For this fudge you can use dark/milk chocolate or a mix of both. I used chocolate flavoured with orange oil, however you can use any flavoured chocolate you’d like.
• Be patient. Melt the chocolate, condensed milk and butter in a large saucepan over a low heat. If it’s too hot, you may risk splitting the mixture and the chocolate will go grainy. Unfortunately once you’ve overcooked chocolate there’s is no way of getting it back.
• I tend to use unsalted butter is most of my baking, however as this fudge is quite sweet, I would recommend using salted butter instead of unsalted butter.
• This fudge can be frozen for up to 3 months. Just make sure you wrap it up well and store in an airtight container. Don’t forget to pop a label on it so you know how long it has been in the freezer for! When you’re ready to thaw it, take the fudge out of the freezer and leave it to defrost in the fridge overnight.

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