Chocolate Fudge

Okay, okay, I know this is far from 'healthy', but come on, it's the week of Valentine's Day! What better excuse to whip out all the chocolate concoctions and indulge? My beau loves his chocolate fix from time to time so I decided to make him something he can enjoy that is homemade! The first time I made the recipe, it did not turn out right. Yes, I was discouraged because I rarely fail at any recipe, but after taking a 10 minute break, I decided to get right back to it and try again. What a waste of chocolate; my heart hurts a little! In any case, make sure you follow the steps below carefully or else you will end up with a crumbly, oily, gritty, rock-hard mess! I used a food scale to measure out the amount of marshmallow fluff needed because I cannot find a 7 oz. jar of fluff and I wanted to accurately measure out half of that for my use. You can substitute heavy cream for the evaporated milk if you would like. I also took the liberty of decreasing the amount of sugar to make it less sweet, which is reflected in the recipe. Since this was a part of my significant other's gift, I decided to use a heart-shaped silicone mold. Get creative! Lightly grease any pans with a spray or butter (or line with aluminum foil) if you are not using silicone! Remember to work fast and have everything measured out and ready to go because the fudge sets pretty quickly. Happy fudge making!

Yields: 48 bite-sized pieces

Ingredients:

1 (7 ounce) jar marshmallow crème/fluff

1 ¼ cup white sugar

2/3 cup evaporated milk

¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter

¼ tsp. salt

2 cups milk chocolate chips

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 tsp. vanilla extract

½ cup chopped nuts, optional

Directions:

1. Line an 8x8 inch pan with aluminum foil. Set aside.

2. In a large saucepan over medium-low heat, combine marshmallow cream, sugar, evaporated milk, butter and salt. Bring to a boil, then immediately lower the heat to low and cook for an additional 5-6 minutes, stirring constantly (very important!). It will turn a slight amber color.

3. Remove from heat and let it sit for a minute before pouring in semisweet chocolate chips and milk chocolate chips. (The chocolate will seize up if you put it in while the mixture is scalding hot still = crumbly, gritty, oily, rock-hard yucky 'fudge'.) Stir until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in vanilla and nuts (if using). Pour into prepared pan. Chill in refrigerator for 2 hours, or until firm.