RECIPE: Quick and Easy Homemade Fudge - The Perfect Christmas Present

This is a really quick and easy recipe to make homemade chocolate fudge. It also makes a perfect gift for family, friends, colleague's or your child's teacher. So spread some holiday cheer with this sweet and simple handmade gift this Christmas. It is so simple and quick to make that it is also the perfect last minute pressie.

Homemade Chocolate Fudge:

Ingredients: 

• 1 tin (397g) of condensed milk (branded or supermarket own)
• 400g plain dark chocolate (minimum 50% cocoa solids but this means the budget bars in supermarkets can be used)
• 50g of icing sugar

Plus a flavouring of choice -  or you can leave it as it is:

• For a coffee taste stir in a tablespoon of instant coffee granules.
• For a festive feel stir in a handful of dried cranberries or chopped cherries
• For sophistication add a couple of drops of peppermint flavouring to make an after-dinner mint chocolate.
• We have made it with nuts to eat at home, but conscious that I don’t know everybody's individual allergies, so we don’t make it with nuts to give it away.

Method:

1. Break the chocolate into pieces and melt, either over a pan of boiling water or carefully in a microwave oven.
2. Once melted, open the condensed milk and add to the melted chocolate in the same bowl.
3. Stir and then heat either in a pan until it is just about to bubble or in a microwave for about 2 minutes.
4. Remove from the heat or microwave and add the icing sugar, stir well and add flavourings of your choice, then stir again to evenly distribute the additions.
5. Once cooled, pour the mixture into a container lined with cling film, this time we used two plastic tubs but we have also used baking trays too in the past. 
6. Then smooth out, and place in the fridge until hard. This will take at least a couple of hours. If we have time we leave ours in the fridge overnight.
7. When solid, take out of the fridge, remove from the tray, peel off the cling film and cut into  cubes - approx. 2cm with a sharp knife. Top with icing sugar if you wish.

Presentation:

We wrap them in gift bags with ties (£1 for 10 from a pound shop), sometimes put them in a festive paper cup too and keep them in the fridge until ready to deliver.

Cost:

• Bags £1
• Chocolate: £1.20
• Condensed milk: £1
• Icing Suger: 10p
• Flavouring – anything from a few pence to a pound

In total it costs about £4 and a little effort (but also an enjoyable activity in the kitchen for the boys. It makes enough for at about 6 presents .

Time: 20 mins (plus time to set)

Cost: £4

Boys Club Rating: There is never enough. The boys love making it and they love eating it, as well as giving as a gift.

What do you think about homemade presents at Christmas?

Deb x