Immortal Wordsmith

Chocolate fudge doesn’t need to be sickly sweet… in fact, my favourite chocolate fudge recipes use dark chocolate and are delightfully bitter. Below I’ve shared my 4 favourite recipes that are perfect for Christmas. Peppermint to remind you of candy canes. Vanilla, allspice and almonds for marzipan and vanilla scented candles. Winter nuts and currents for mince pies. And finally, orange and ginger for a Christmas spiced orange liqueur.

You don’t need to be overly exact with the amount of chocolate, milk and butter. For some very bizarre reason, the only tin of condensed milk I could find was 397g, so I split that 4 ways.

You also only want a very small amount of butter – about 25g of butter for every 400g of milk. If you’re making a huge batch of just one flavour chocolate fudge, then no problem… however to make small amounts of 4 different flavours, you’re better off weighing a single 25g lump of butter and cutting it into quarters rather than attempting to weigh out 6 and ¼ grams of butter.

When it comes to the flavours for the chocolate fudge, try to stick as close to my chocolate fudge recipe amounts. Too much liquid and your fudge won’t set at all.

Dark Chocolate and Peppermint Fudge

• 100g condensed milk
• 100g dark chocolate (I used a mix of Bournville and Lidt)
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 6g and ¼ butter
• 1 tablespoon icing sugar

Chocolate, Vanilla, Allspice and Almond Fudge

• 100g condensed milk
• 100g chocolate (I used a mix of Cadbury milk and Bournville)
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon allspice
• 3 or 4 almonds, chopped for decoration
• 6g and ¼ butter
• 1 tablespoon icing sugar

Chocolate, Winter Nuts and Currents Fudge

• 100g condensed milk
• 100g chocolate (I used 45g Cadbury milk chocolate, 45g Bournville and 10g lidt dark)
• 1 tablespoon of mixed nuts, chopped for decoration (I used hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts and redskin peanuts)
• ½ tablespoon of currents for decoration (I used a mix of sultanas, dried cranberries, raisons and candied orange peel)
• ½ tablespoon of currents to go in mixture
• 6g and ¼ butter
• 1 tablespoon icing sugar

Dark Chocolate, Orange and Ginger Fudge

• 100g condensed milk
• 100g dark chocolate (I used a mix of Bournville and Lidt)
• Teaspoon of concentrated orange juice
• Teaspoon of ground ginger, plus a pinch for decoration
• Candied orange peel for decoration
• 6g and ¼ butter
• 1 tablespoon icing sugar

Chocolate Fudge Method

Line a small box or plastic container with greaseproof baking paper.

Put the condensed milk, chocolate, butter and flavourings in the small saucepan and slowly heat on the lowest possible setting.

Stir occasionally, being careful not to increase the heat.

Once all the ingredients are melted, silky smooth and getting thick, take the saucepan off the heat and add the icing sugar. Mix quickly to combine and then pour (or spoon) the chocolate fudge mixture into your container.

Smooth over the top with a spoon. Cover with cling-film and leave to set in the fridge for at least an hour.

You don’t really need to wash the saucepan between fudge batches if making all 4 flavours and you should leave the peppermint until last, as the other flavours are fairly subtle and won’t ruin the next chocolate fudge mix.

Finally, serve as nibbles at your Christmas party or a tasty treat for yourself and Santa on Christmas eve!