Years and Years ago, I thought that I needed to make little gifts for our neighbors. Something small, but thoughtful, and homemade. This was before I knew of things like Pinterest, so I went straight to food. You know, cookies or something to that effect.
Chocolate Fudge Candy
Ingredients
- 7-oz jar marshmallow fluff
- 1 1/2 c white sugar
- 1/4 c butter
- 2/3 c evaporated milk
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3 c semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 c nuts, peanut butter chips, crushed mint M&Ms, crushed coconut M&Ms, etc.
Directions
- Line an 8×8 inch pan with aluminum foil and set aside
- In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine marshmallow fluff, sugar, evaporated milk, butter, and salt Bring to a full boil and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly until thick.
- Remove from heat and pour in chocolate chips. Stir until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in vanilla and nuts (or other item).
- Pour into prepared pan and even out. Chill in refrigerator for 2 hours or until firm. Cut into small squares and wrap in paper, or candy foil.
- If you’re making multiple batches with different ingredients, use the extra candy, nuts, etc., by pressing pieces down into the fudge. This not only indicates which kind of fudge it is, but also gives you a handy grid to use when cutting the fudge after it’s chilled!
And I tried, really I tried, to think of something that I could make that would be good, but that I didn’t necessarily like. Who needs massive amounts of cookies that might be lying around the house, ready to be eaten in a weak moment?
So when I happened upon a fudge recipe that looked relatively easy, I jumped. I found it on Paula Deen’s website, and saw that it could easily be customized. So along came three versions of fudge made every single Christmas season for quite a few years.
I’ve since gotten out of the habit – Christmas is so much busier now, with more group gifts and singing engagements and generally more family celebrations – I’m trying to make it a little easier on myself. It’s just as nice to get a package of truffles from Godiva at Christmas that can be shared with family, right?
But, when a coworker of mine asked if I was going to be making any fudge for a potential group holiday party, I told him that I would do my best to bring some in, and asked which kind he liked the most. Mint!
So, this weekend, I made a batch of Chocolate Fudge Candy, Mint M&Ms style. And, since we haven’t had a party scheduled yet, I took half of the batch, wrapped up the pieces individually, and put them in a tin, just for him!
Enjoy!