Christmas Fudge

Christmas Fudge is the softest, richest fudge I make. Creamy and sweet, and rich enough that one small square does the job, with red and green swirled through every piece. Cut it small, pack it in a tin, and it is the easiest gift I give all month.

Want to save this recipe?

Enter your email below and we’ll send the recipe straight to your inbox (and more recipes sent daily!)

Email Address *

Save

Christmas Fudge is what I make first once the holiday baking starts. I have made it the last two years and it is going on the tray again this year. One pan covers a cookie tray, and it is the only thing on it I do not have to bake.

I built this recipe the first time with a tub of vanilla frosting and white chocolate chips, the way a lot of three ingredient fudge recipes do. The two never melted into anything pourable, so it came out thick and grainy, closer to dough than fudge, and the colors would not swirl at all. I started over, and melting the chips with sweetened condensed milk and cold butter is what fixed it.

If you are filling a tin, my creamy eggnog fudge is the other pan I make the same week, and my easy Christmas recipes has the rest of what ends up on the tray.

HOLIDAY FAVORITE

Why This Is the Easiest Gift I Make All December

This is the one I give away the most. I am at the stove for about fifteen minutes, and then the refrigerator does the rest of the work while I get on with everything else. Start a pan in the morning and it is cut and boxed by the afternoon. It comes out looking like something I spent real time on, which is exactly what I want when I am handing it to somebody.

What Makes or Breaks This Fudge

• White chocolate chips: Buy a good brand. I use Ghirardelli, and the better chips melt much more smoothly than the generic ones. Two readers have asked me about swapping in white almond bark, and I have not tested it here, so I cannot tell you it works.
• Sweetened condensed milk: Make sure it is sweetened condensed, not evaporated. The two cans sit side by side on the shelf and they are not the same thing. Fudge made with evaporated milk will not thicken or set.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How to Make Christmas Fudge

Step 1: Line the Pan Line the pan with parchment paper and leave plenty of it hanging over the sides. That overhang is how the whole slab comes out later.

Step 2: Melt It All Together Melt the white chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk and cold cubed butter together low and slow, stirring the whole time, until the chips are gone and the mixture is smooth. Take it off the heat as soon as it gets there.

Step 3: Color the Fudge Move a third of the mixture into one bowl and another third into a second bowl. Color one red and one green, stirring each until the color is fully uniform with no white streaks remaining.

Step 4: Dollop and Swirl
Dollop all three colors into the pan randomly until all the fudge is in. Swirl with a skewer or butter knife, then press the top gently smooth with a piece of parchment.

Step 4: Chill and Cut Refrigerate for the full 3 hours. It needs every bit of that time to set all the way through. Lift the slab out by the parchment, put it on a cutting board and cut it into 64 little squares. Run the knife under hot water and dry it off first and it goes through clean.

How to Store Christmas Fudge

Keep it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. For a tin or a gift bag, fill it straight from the refrigerator and keep it cold until you hand it over. It also freezes for up to 2 months in an airtight container, and it should thaw completely in the refrigerator before you serve it.

More Holiday Fudge and Candy

• Christmas sugar cookie fudge
• Rocky road fudge
• Chocolate Christmas candy
• Christmas puppy chow
• Easy fudge recipes

4.29 from 14 votes

Christmas Fudge

Author — Jennifer Fishkind

Serves — 64

Soft, creamy white chocolate fudge with red and green swirls. Five ingredients, one saucepan, and it cuts into 64 little squares for trays and tins.

PrintRatePin Save Saved

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 5 minutes mins

Chill Time 3 hours hrs

Total Time 3 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Ingredients

 

• ▢ 22 oz (2 11-oz. bags) white chocolate chips (I used Ghirardelli brand)
• ▢ 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• ▢ 4 tablespoons unsalted butter cold and cut into small cubes
• ▢ ¼-½ teaspoon red gel food coloring start with ¼ teaspoon and add more as needed to achieve desired color (Americolor brand used)
• ▢ ¼-½ teaspoon green gel food coloring start with ¼ teaspoon and add more as needed to achieve desired color

Instructions

 

• Line an 8×8 straight sided baking pan with parchment paper being sure to allow enough parchment paper to overhang the sides. This allows for easily lifting the fudge out of the pan to slice once the christmas fudge has set.
• To a medium sauce pan, over medium-low heat, add the white chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk and cold cubes of unsalted butter. Stir constantly for 4-6 minutes or until all the chips have melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
  22 oz (2 11-oz. bags) white chocolate chips , 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk, 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• Transfer ⅓ of the melted white chocolate mixture to a small bowl and add the red gel food coloring (start with ¼ teaspoon and add more as needed to achieve desired color), stirring until fully combined and the color of the fudge is uniform and no white streaks remain.
  ¼-½ teaspoon red gel food coloring
• To a second small bowl add another ⅓ of the melted white chocolate mixture and add the green gel food coloring (start with ¼ teaspoon and add more as needed to achieve desired color), stirring until fully incorporated and the mixture is uniform and no white streaks remain.
  ¼-½ teaspoon green gel food coloring
• To the prepared baking pan add dollops of the white, red and green colored white chocolate fudge mixture randomly until all the fudge has been added.
• Using a wooden skewer, or butter knife, gently swirl the white, red and green christmas fudge until you have a decorative swirl pattern on the top of the fudge.
• Using a small piece of parchment paper, gently press down on the top of the christmas fudge, while it is still soft, to give the fudge a smooth top. Be careful not to disturb the decorative swirl pattern.
• Place the christmas fudge into the refrigerator for 2-3 hours or until the fudge has set.
• Once set, remove the christmas fudge from the refrigerator and gently lift the hardened fudge from the pan, using the overhanging parchment paper, and place onto a cutting board. Slice the fudge into 64 1×1 inch sized pieces and serve.

Jenn’s Notes

Tips:

• Use gel food coloring, never liquid. The extra moisture in liquid coloring can seize the white chocolate or keep the fudge from setting.
• Work fast once the coloring goes in, because the mixture firms up quickly off the heat. If it gets too stiff to swirl, warm the small bowls for 15 to 20 seconds, just until it loosens. If you warm it in the microwave, stir well and do not overheat it or it can burn or seize and you will need to start over.
• Do not overcook the fudge or it will turn grainy. Stir constantly for 4 to 6 minutes, only until the chips have melted and the mixture is smooth. Cook it too long and the crystals in the chocolate separate.
• Smooth the top with a small piece of parchment paper, not a knife. A knife drags through the swirl and never gets it as smooth.
• This is a rich fudge, so cut it small. A large chef’s knife works best, and you can warm the blade under hot water and dry it before slicing.

Storage:

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Freeze for up to 2 months in an airtight container and thaw completely in the refrigerator before serving.

Nutrition Info

Calories: 315kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 24mg | Sodium: 67mg | Potassium: 204mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 36g | Vitamin A: 165IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 149mg | Iron: 0.1mg

Tried This Recipe?

Mention @princesspinkygirl Or Tag #Princesspinkygirl