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This White Chocolate Cranberry Fudge is made with sweetened condensed milk and dried cranberries! With beautiful Christmas colors, this super easy and quick dessert is a great treat for the busy holiday season!
Table of Contents
How to make easy white chocolate fudge
The best white chocolate cranberry fudge
Get the Recipe
So I’m doing something new today and I’m totally excited about it – fudge! And I’m starting off easy with this White Chocolate Cranberry Fudge. White chocolate and cranberries are easily one of the best holiday flavor combinations, so having a quick treat to put together is a must.
Plus, I wanted to make it a little extra special with it being the holidays and all and I added some sparkling sugar to the top. it takes this Easy White Chocolate Cranberry Fudge and turns it into SPARKLING white chocolate cranberry fudge. And who doesn’t love a little sparkle at the holidays?! It makes this fudge would perfect for gifting or for holiday dessert trays.
How to make easy white chocolate fudge
One of the best things about this fudge is how easy it is to put together. With only 5 ingredients, plus some sprinkles, it keeps things nice and simple. All you need is a bowl, a 9×9 inch pan lined with parchment paper and your microwave.
Start off by adding the white chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk to a large microwave safe bowl. Microwave them for one minute, then stir to combine and let the residual heat do as much of the melting as it can. If it needs another 30 seconds or so, go ahead and heat it some more, then stir it until it’s melted.
Once melted, add the vanilla extract, cranberries and a pinch of salt. Use a spatula to combine everything and then quickly pour into the prepared pan. Add the sparkling sugar sprinkles, if you want to use them, and press them into the top of the fudge.
Let the fudge cool to room temperature before cutting into squares. You could also let it cool in the fridge to speed up the process, but it doesn’t have to be refrigerated.
The best white chocolate cranberry fudge
This Easy White Chocolate Cranberry Fudge is so simple to put together and tastes great! It’s smooth and creamy and plenty sweet! The tart pop of the cranberries is perfectly refreshing and cuts the sweetness down just enough. It’s such a perfect pair and festive fudge to try!
This White Chocolate Cranberry Fudge is made with sweetened condensed milk and dried cranberries! It’s a super easy & quick dessert with Christmas colors!
1. Line a 9×9 square pan with parchment paper that covers the sides of the pan. 2. Place the white chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk in a large bowl and microwave for one minute. Stir well to combine and allow the heat to melt the chocolate chips. If needed, microwave for another 30 seconds or so, until the chocolate is completely smooth. 3. Stir in the vanilla extract, dried cranberries and salt, then quickly transfer the mixture to the lined pan and spread evenly. 4. Top the fudge with some sparkling sugar sprinkles, if you’d like to include them, and press them down into the top of the fudge. 5. Let the fudge cool completely to room temperature before cutting into squares. You could also refrigerate it until it’s cool. 6. Cut the fudge and store in an air tight container. Fudge can be stored at either room temperature or the fridge.
You have to control two temperatures to make successful fudge: the cooking temperature AND the temperature at which the mixture cools before stirring to make it crystallize. Confectionery experiments have shown that the ideal cooking temperature for fudge is around 114 to 115 °C (237 to 239 °F).
By cooling the fudge prior to agitation (like in the recipes included in this article), on the other hand, you'll get much smaller, finer sugar crystals and a finished fudge with a smooth, creamy texture. Cool the mixture until it reads 120° F on the thermometer—no stirring. This can take 1 to 1/2 hours.
The fudge is ready when a candy thermometer reads between 112°C to 114°C (234°F to 237°F) or the mixture forms a soft ball in cold water. Let the mixture cool before beating.
It sounds like your fudge simply wasn't heated enough. Fudge is basically a superconcentrated syrup, and it sets when sugar dissolved in the water (from the butter and milk) comes out of solution as the mixture cools and forms crystals.
Candy that isn't cooked long enough will end up too soft; overcooking makes fudge crumbly or hard. High-quality fudge has many small crystals. If the process of crystallization begins too early, fewer crystals form and they become much larger.
How to thicken your fudge? If your fudge it noticeably thin, you may want to add more chocolate. If you are out of chocolate, you can also add 1/4-1/2 cup of powdered sugar. This, however, can make the fudge very sweet.
Allow the fudge mixture to rest until the temperature registers between 150°-160°. Once the desired temperature is reached, beat the ever-loving stuffing out of the fudge. Two to three minutes of hardcore mixing (by hand).
Harden the fudge: Place your container or tins in the fridge for 2 hours, which is the time it takes for the fudge to set. Once it's hardened, cut the fudge into 12 pieces or remove it from the muffin tins. Store in the fridge or the freezer (if you don't devour it right away).
It's important to beat the fudge ingredients to develop the right texture, but you won't get smooth, creamy fudge if you beat it when it's too hot. Beating fudge when it's still over heat creates sugar crystals, aka the grittiness you feel in the fudge.
How can you fix soft fudge? Put it in a microwave safe bowl that is large enough that it won't boil over. Reheat it to the boiling point and cook for about 3 more minutes. Then you can beat some powdered sugar into it if this doesn't make it set.
Saucepan: Choose a heavy, straight-sided metal saucepan that holds about twice the volume of your fudge recipe. A heavy pan distributes heat evenly so the ingredients are less likely to scorch when they boil at high temperature. Using a large saucepan gives the ingredients room to expand when they boil.
Likewise, if you were to use evaporated milk when condensed milk is required, the final product would be too bland, says Cayaban. For best results, "follow the recipe's recommendation for the type of milk to ensure the desired taste and consistency," says Leal.
Use Evaporated Milk- Make sure to use evaporated milk and not sweetened condensed milk. If you accidentally use sweetened condensed milk your fudge will be incredibly over the top sweet.
The main reason is that your Fudge has not reached the optimum temperature. If your mixture only reaches 110 or 112 degrees Celsius it will always be soft. That's why we recommend investing in a sugar thermometer. Another reason your Fudge is not setting is that the ratio of liquid to sugar is too high.
Once a seed crystal forms, it grows bigger and bigger as the fudge cools. A lot of big crystals in fudge makes it grainy. By letting the fudge cool without stirring, you avoid creating seed crystals.
Once the fudge reaches soft-ball stage on the candy thermometer, remove from the heat and let the temperature drop to 110°F. Keep that spoon or spatula out of the pot until this happens. If you stir too early in the process, you'll make the sugar crystals too big and end up with grainy fudge.
The amount of time you cook fudge directly affects its firmness. Too little time and the water won't evaporate, causing the fudge to be soft. Conversely, cook it too long and fudge won't contain enough water, making it hard with a dry, crumbly texture.
Cream of tartar is used in caramel sauces and fudge to help prevent the sugar from crystallizing while cooking. It also prevents cooling sugars from forming brittle crystals, this is why it's the secret ingredient in snickerdoodles!
Introduction: My name is Corie Satterfield, I am a fancy, perfect, spotless, quaint, fantastic, funny, lucky person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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