Fudge from scratch

Most fudge recipes you see will have evaporated milk, marshmallows, or marshmallow creme. I've even seen fudge recipes made with chocolate pudding. I've actually made them and they're pretty good. This recipe is based on a recipe from Penzey's. I have talked about Penzey's before in some previous posts because they're wonderful, at least to me :). Their store has so many spices, seasonings, and mixes to peruse. I love fudge and it's so customizable to meet different flavor palates.

I made a simple dark chocolate fudge that is nice and smooth. This only took me about 10-15 minutes to complete the initial cooking process then it's all about cooling, a little bit of stirring, then more cooling. As per usual, I have cut down the recipe so it only uses an 8"x4" loaf pan for the fudge. If you don't have to much you can't eat to much :). My husband is concerned there won't be any left when he gets home though, understandable. You should make some fudge too and maybe swirl in a little peanut butter or mix in some nuts when you stir in the vanilla extract. Yum! I used the Natural Cocoa Powder from Penzey's as well as the Vanilla Extract and the fudge had a wonderful flavor. This recipe has been submitted to the Blog Hop over at Meal Planning Magic for the 12 Weeks of Christmas Blog Hop.

Dark Chocolate Fudge

- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup Dutch or Natural cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 1/2 tablespoon light corn syrup
- 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- ¾-1 cups powdered sugar

Instructions:

1. Line an 8x4 inch loaf pan with non-stick foil, or line with heavy duty foil and butter or spray with non-stick spray.
2. Combine granulated sugar, cocoa, butter, milk and corn syrup in a heavy bottomed 2 quart pan. Cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes, stirring constantly and making sure you are reaching to the bottom of the pot while stirring.
3. When it comes to a boil, stir for one more minute. Remove from heat, pour into a large bowl and let cool without stirring until the bottom of the pan is lukewarm - about 1 hour.
4. Stir in vanilla. Measure ¾ cups powdered sugar. Sift the powdered sugar into the pan, then stir to blend using a wooden spoon. Sometimes the fudge needs the full amount of powdered sugar, usually 3/4 of a cup is enough to make it smooth and non-sticky.
5. When the fudge is the consistency of smooth bread dough, press it into the greased pan. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour, then cut into 1-inch squares.

Yield: about 12 pieces
Prep. and cooking time: 15 minutes
Chilling time: 1 hour


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