Fudgy Fudge

These tasty and rich squares are super expensive to buy, but we all love them and can't control ourselves. Fudge is rich candy made from sugar, butter, and milk.

So few ingredients, yet fudge has a reputation of being hard to make. To make a perfect fudge that taste rich, creamy, and melt in your mouth, the sugar crystallization process have to be just right. Sounds complicated doesn’t it? But my determination have led me to chase after that perfect simple recipe (inspired by allrecipes.com Fudge recipe).

Here, I will share with you all the tips and tricks to help you master the fudge making process. No worries, this recipe is so simple, you won't believe it.

What is better gift for your family, friends, and love ones than a box of fudges? This gift idea is perfect for coming holidays. You can even use this to get extra points on Valentine Day ;)

This was my gift to my coworkers for this holidays and I got so many compliments. Although I must warn you. These are irresistible.

Note: You do not have to make all the flavors written in this recipe. Feel free to choose some of your favorite flavor. My most favorite is the peppermint bark, but if you really like Reese's cup, the Reese Peanut Butter Cup is a must try!

Espresso

• 1 bag of 12 oz 85% dark chocolate chips (~2 cups)
• 1 14oz can of condensed milk
• 4 small bags of instant espresso (0.07oz or 2grams each)
• 3 tbsp of butter
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 tsp of vanilla

Peppermint Bark

• 1 bag of 12 oz 85% dark chocolate chips (~2 cups)
• 1 bag of 12 oz white chocolate chips (~2 cups)
• 2 14oz can of condensed milk
• Crushed candy canes (~1/2 cup)
• 6 tbsp of butter (3tbsp for each layer)
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 tsp of vanilla

Reese Peanut Butter Cup

• 1 bag of 12 oz 85% dark chocolate chips (~2 cups)
• 1 bag of 12 oz reese's peanut butter cup chips (~2 cups) + extra for decorating
• 2 14oz can of condensed milk
• 6 tbsp of butter (3tbsp for each layer)
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 tsp of vanilla

Butterscotch

• 1 bag of 12 oz butterscotch chips (~2 cups)
• 1 14oz can of condensed milk
• 3 tbsp of butter
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 tsp of vanilla

If you don’t have a double boiler, create one using a pot and a stainless steel bowl. Choose a pot that is bigger than the bowl. Fill the water up to half the pot, or until it only touches the bottom of the bowl. Make sure to test out the water level beforehand to avoid water from over boiling and spilling out on you as you melt the chocolate.

Set your stove to medium-high heat and bring the water to a vicious boil. Once it boil, reduce the heat to low (about 3 on a scale of 1-6 of a gas stove). This will prevent the water from spilling out on the side and overcooking your chocolate.

While you wait for the water to come to a boil, prep your mold/ baking dish. If you are making a large batch like me and doesn’t have enough molds to put them in, you can make on like the picture above. Just line your baking sheet with aluminum foil, grease it with butter, and you are set to go. You can make divider like I did by folding your aluminum foil sheet until strip. Try to choose a deep baking pan for a thicker fudge. Make sure to grease your pan real well. This will make it easier for you to remove your fudge later.

Hint: Overheating chocolate will result in thick and lumpy fudge texture, which we DO NOT WANT! Lower the heat as you prepare to melt your chips will give you more control and produce a silky, smooth, and creamy fudge result.

GET TO THE COOKING ALREADY!!!!!!!

Oops, I was too excited to share with you all the trips and tricks I have under my sleeves. For more tips and tricks, check out the last section ;)

Alright...are you ready? It is so simple, you won't believe it.

1. Add in the butter, salt, and vanilla into the mixing bowl that you have heated up on top of your boiling water in a pot.
2. Once the butter completely melted, add the condensed milk and espresso powders.
3. Give it a whisk and add in the chocolate chips.
4. Wait until the chocolate is a little soften and then stir the batch constantly until all chips are melted. This will help melt all the chips evenly.
5. Remove the mixing bowl with the melted chocolate in it from the pot. Set it aside. Use a spatula, fold in the chocolate until it is super smooth and shiny. You are doing this to help remove any water in the sugar and make it more thick. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP.
6. Once it melted chocolate reaches a thick consistency and has a nice shine, pour it into a pan or mold you have prepped and spread it out evenly.
7. Set it aside at room temperature and wait until it is set. This process might requires several hours, so it is best to cover it and let it sit at room temperature overnight.

If you are making all of the other flavors, you need to do make about 3 patches of the espresso fudge. You can also just do 2 patches and split one in half for the peppermint bark and peanut butter :)

Make another batch of the espresso fudge, if you haven’t done so. This will be for the bottom layer.

Directions are exactly the same as Espresso Fudge, except use white chocolate chips and add in crushed candy canes.

1. Into the clean mixing bowl on top of the boiling pot, add in the butter, salt, and vanilla.
2. Once the butter completely melted, add the condensed milk and the white chocolate chips. Wait until the chocolate is a little soften and then stir the batch constantly until all chips are melted.
3. Remove the mixing bowl with the melted chocolate in it from the pot. Set it aside.
4. Add in your crushed candy canes and mix well.
5. Use a spatula, fold in the chocolate until it is super smooth and shiny.
6. Once your batter reaches a thick consistency and has a nice shine, pour it over the espresso chocolate fudge that you have prepared previously.
7. Set it aside at room temperature and let it set overnight.

Make another batch of the espresso fudge, if you haven’t done so. This will be for the bottom layer.

Directions are exactly the same as Espresso Fudge, except use mini peanut butter chips.

1. Into the clean mixing bowl on top of the boiling pot, add in the butter, salt, and vanilla.
2. Once the butter completely melted, add the condensed milk and the chips. Wait until the chips are a little soften and then stir the batch constantly until all chips are melted.
3. Remove the mixing bowl from the pot. Set it aside. Use a spatula, fold in the chocolate until it is super smooth and shiny.
4. Once your batter reaches a thick consistency and has a nice shine, pour it over the espresso chocolate fudge that you have prepared previously.
5. Add in the mini peanut butter cups on top. Set it aside at room temperature overnight.

Make another batch of the espresso fudge, if you haven’t done so. This will be for the bottom layer.

Note: for my batch I didn't make an espresso fudge bottom layer, but adding the espresso fudge layer will help balance out the sweetness of the butterscotch. Trust me, I learned from eating so many butterscotch fudges afterward.

Directions are exactly the same as Espresso Fudge, except use mini peanut butter chips.

1. Into the mixing bowl on top of the boiling pot, add in the butter, salt, and vanilla.
2. Once the butter completely melted, add the condensed milk and the chips. Wait until the chips are a little soften and then stir the batch constantly until all chips are melted. This will help melt all the chips evenly.
3. Remove the mixing bowl from the pot. Set it aside. Use a spatula, fold in the chocolate until it is super smooth and shiny.
4. Once your batter reaches a thick consistency and has a nice shine, pour it over the espresso chocolate fudge that you have prepared previously. Set it aside at room temperature overnight.

After it is set overnight, use a pizza cutter to cut them up into tiny cubes. Pizza cutter will help make even pieces and straight edge. Separate them out with a sharp knife. Once your pizza cutter is covered in chocolate, wipe it down with a wet paper towel before continue cutting.

Don’t forget the grab a bite to reward yourself for all the hard work.

Which flavor is your favorite? My is the peppermint bark.

It doesn’t matter whether you are making these fudges as gifts or for yourself, wrapping them up nicely will make them feel more special.

If you are making them for yourself, just place into into a airtight container. Stack them into layer with a plastic wrap in between each layer. The plastic wrap helps prevent each layer from sticking to each other. Eat within 5 days. I am sure that won’t be hard.

For gift ideas, place a parchment paper down inside a box that has a window. To make it super festive, use decorative parchment paper. I didn’t have decorate parchment paper, so I place a decorate paper underneath of my parchment paper to add color.

Place your fudges into the box. Lay them out any way you like, be creative. I group my fudges according to their flavor. Close the box up and tie a beautiful bow with twine rope. Cut out a cute label of any shape and add your initial or signature to make it super special and cute.

I used a window cupcake box size 6.25" X 6.25" X 3". You can brought it on Amazon.com for super cheap.

• For a fancier fudge, feel free to use any fancy chocolate bar for the espresso fudge flavor. Make sure to chop up your chocolate bar into tiny chunks. This will prevent overheating chocolate and reduces the time to melt the chocolate.
• Salt helps balance out the sweet flavor. Try to use sea salt if can. I think it give a deeper flavor than normal salt.
• Make sure that your butter is fully melted prior to adding the chips in. Adding chips beforehand will result in a clumpy fudge.
• To make cute fudge shape, you can always use non stick shapes mold. Just make sure to grease it well with butter.
• When reusing your bowl, make sure to clean it real well between each batches. Wipe it dry, make sure it is dry completely. We do not want our batter to have water in it or it won’t set.
• Do not skip the folding part after the chocolate melted. It will not set and your fudge will be running if you do so.

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