The first recipe I ever perfected was fudge. I admit, part of it had to do with the fact that fudge was something my mom had given up on making well. Starting in about middle school, to judge by the handwriting on the recipe card, I made many batches of fudge each winter. Teachers, family, and friends all got fudge as holiday gifts, and no one ever complained.
But when I gave up dairy, some 10 or 12 years ago, I gave up on fudge. I tried making evaporated and sweetened condensed non-dairy milks a few times, never all that satisfied with the results. When I found a coconut milk-based sweetened condensed milk this year, I was thrilled! Until I realized that my amazing fudge recipe used evaporated milk. Darn it all.
There is a conversion. It involved math. I did it. And the results are tasty. It’s not perfect — coconut milk is brilliant, but in almost every use, it still tastes of coconut, and fudge generally doesn’t taste of coconut, but the flavor isn’t too strong to get past here. Bonus: this recipe is easy. It takes less than 10 minutes of active work, and requires no specialized equipment. Plus, the way the chocolate just doesn’t look like it is going to blend in — and then it does? It’s like magic.
- 1 can sweetened condensed coconut milk 7.5 oz was the only size out there
- 1 Tablespoon non-dairy milk
- 1.5 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup butter or margarine PLUS
- 2 Tablespoons butter or margarine
- 1 1/4 cup chocolate chips check for allergens!
- In a saucepan over medium heat, bring non-dairy milks, sugar, and butter or margarine to a boil. Boil for one minute, stirring constantly.
- Remove from heat, and add chocolate chips. Beat with a wooden spoon for 3 minutes.
- Pour into lined baking dish at least 8x8 inches square.
- Cool completely and cut to desire serving sizes.