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No candy thermometer is required for this easy homemade holiday fudge.
Creating a gift from the kitchen is the perfect way to show your love. You can find more of my favorite candy and treat recipes here including my Grandmother Zola’s soft caramels and my Aunt Dorothy’s peanut brittle is the best.
Holiday Fudge
We are fudge people. The Christmas holidays couldn’t happen at our house without at least one or two batches of fudge. My mom has made her rocky road fudge for decades and my mother in law is a big fudge maker too. Whenever we would visit their home at the holidays the first place my husband went was the refrigerator to find the fudge.
Our love for fudge runs deep in our family.
My mother in law usually made mint fudge which is what I am sharing with you today. You can use peppermint extract or mint extract, which ever you prefer. To give them even more minty goodness I used mint M & M’s on top to add some holiday color.
How to Make Fudge
- Line a 9 x 13 pan with parchment paper or foil. Make sure the foil or paper goes all the way up the sides of the pan to make the fudge easier to remove. Spray lightly with cooking spray.
- Combine sugars, milk and butter in a heavy sauce pan.
- Bring to a low boil, just beginning to bubble and start timer for 5 minutes.
- Stir constantly for five minutes, allowing it to come to a full boil. Stir, stir, stir!
- Stir in Marshmallow fluff and extract until combined.
- Add in chocolate and stir until melted. Immediately pour into prepared pan.
- Shake or tap the pan to get the surface of the fudge smoother, avoid touching it with your hands.
- Allow to set up at room temperature.
- Using the paper or foil, lift fudge out of the pan. Cut into squares and store in an airtight container.
Tips For Perfect Fudge
- Use a heavy pan, I actually have my mom’s old candy pan but if you don’t have a heavy pan, look for an old pressure cooker at Goodwill, they work great.
- Quality ingredients such as real butter and good quality chocolate and don’t use a generic Marshmallow Fluff, trust me, it makes a difference.
- Watch your weather. I found that making fudge on a damp, rainy day can cause your fudge to fail, so, if possible, choose a sunny, non rainy day for your fudge making.
- No candy thermometer required.
- Turn regular fudge into holiday fudge with either mint or peppermint extract.
Does Fudge Need To Be Refrigerated?
Fudge does not need to be refrigerated. It can be stored at room temperature in an air tight container for 1-2 weeks. You can store it in the refrigerator in an air tight container for 2-3 weeks if you prefer eating your fudge cold or chilled.
Holiday fudge is one of my favorite things to make at the holidays. It is always nostalgic to me and reminds me of both my mom and my mother in law. I love a recipe that has a face and a sweet memory attached to it. Not only do I get to enjoy delicious fudge but I get to enjoy that sweet memory every time I make it.
Other favorite holiday treat recipes:
White Chocolate Cinnamon Pretzels
For all of my other favorite kitchen products and tools visit my Amazon Store.
Did you know I wrote a cookbook? Check out the Holiday Slow Cooker Cookbook for 100 delicious recipes
Holiday Fudge Recipe
Easy Holiday Fudge
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 cups Sugar
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 12 oz. evaporated milk
- 1 jar Marshmallow Fluff
- 1 tsp mint or peppermint extract
- 2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
- 2 cups milk chocolate chips
- 2 oz. unsweetened chocolate chopped
- mint M & M's for garnish
Instructions
- Line 9×13 glass pan with parchment or foil. Let the foil or paper go up the sides of the pan, so you can grab the paper to remove the fudge from the pan. & then spray lightly with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a heavy saucepan, combine sugars, milk and butter. Bring to a low boil, just beginning to bubble and start timer for 5 minutes.
- Stir constantly for five minutes, allowing it to come to a full boil. Stir, stir, stir!
- Stir in Marshmallow fluff and extract until combined.
- Add in chocolate and stir until melted. Immediately pour into prepared pan.
- Shake or tap the pan to get the surface of the fudge smoother, avoid touching it with your hands.
- Allow to set up at room temperature.
- Using the paper or foil, lift fudge out of the pan. Cut into squares and store in an airtight container.
Nutrition Facts:
Melinda from WA says
I wanted to try this recipe for two reasons: 1) it was a no-candy thermometer required recipe, and those recipes always turn out great; and 2) you are fudge people. I knew it was worth trying!
And – this recipe is a keeper!! A perfectly creamy, mint-flavored fudge.
Because I like fudge more chocolaty than sugary, I used about 1/4 cup less granulated sugar and only 1 1/2 cups of milk chocolate and semisweet chocolate chips for all the rest (I didn’t have any bittersweet chocolate on hand). A super fantastic recipe!