Goodbye Fall, Hello Winter. There’s no better way to usher in the winter holidays than with a good dose of chocolatey Peppermint Fudge.
My family has had a roller coaster fall, filled with moments of sheer chaos and others of light-hearted bliss. Knowing I needed a little pick-me-up, my husband surprised me with my first hot air balloon ride. I cannot express the overwhelming childlike delight I felt, riding high above the mountain tops, drinking in the crisp air and heavenly surroundings. It was an occasion I will never forget.
The perfect way to say goodbye to fall.
But now I’m ready for Christmas and all the excitement it entails.
This time of year, dreams of sugar plums dance in my head… along with a plethora of dancing cookies and silky Peppermint Fudge.
Chocolate Fudge has a reputation of being a bit of a diva: temperamental, hard to handle, you never know how it’s going to react. Well honey, this Chocolate Peppermint Fudge Recipe is a low maintenance kind of girl: simple, straightforward, and easy to be around.
This fudge recipe is a fantastic spring board for all-things-fudge. With just a handful of ingredients you get a soft sinfully silky, yet dense, fudge that screams HOLIDAYS the moment you taste it.
Cook’s Notes:
The texture of GOOD fudge is derived by SLOWLY melting the chocolate into the mixture. Heating the chocolate too fast will result in grainy fudge. The best way to do this is by heating the chocolate mixture in a glass bowl sitting over a small pot of simmering water. You could also microwave it in 30 second increments, on medium heat.
IF… your fudge does get grainy, that means it heated too quickly and is starting to dry out. You can fix it by adding WATER. Add about 1/4 – 1/2 cup of water to the mixture and bring the temperature back up. Stir until a smooth, yet THICK, texture appears.
(I wish you could see just how SLOW this actually poured.)
To set properly, fudge needs to be the consistency of a REALLY thick cake batter. ALMOST to thick to pour, but not quite. If it’s looser than that, it won’t firm up enough and will be hard to cut and pick up. Keep the mixture over heat, until the right thickness is reached.
For a bubble-free consistency, I like to gently tap the fudge pan on the counter. Not just a couple times, but for a minute or two. This works all the air bubbles up to the surface.
Fudge is very quick to make, but takes time to set. Plan for anywhere from 3 to 8 hours in the fridge before cutting.
Recipe: Peppermint Fudge
Ingredients
- 1 – 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 Tb. butter + extra for buttering the dish
- 1 lb. dark chocolate chips/chunks
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. peppermint extract
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 cup Andes Peppermint Chunks
Instructions
- Grease a 8 X 8 or 8 X 11 baking dish. Sprinkle half the peppermint chunks in the bottom of the dish and set aside.
- Place a medium sauce pot over medium heat with 2 inches of water. Place a glass bowl over the top–making sure the glass doesn’t touch the water.
- Pour the condensed milk and butter in the bowl and heat.
- Add the chocolate chips and salt in the bowl. Stir the chocolate and watch as it melts and thickens–about 5 minutes.
- The mixture should thicken to a THICK cake batter consistency–almost too thick to pour.
- Add both extracts and mix well.
- Pour the mixture into the dish. Gently tap the dish on the counter for at least a minute to allow air bubbles to rise to the surface and to smooth the surface.
- Sprinkle the remaining peppermint chips over the top and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, maybe longer, to set.
- To cut, dip a sharp knife in hot tap water, wipe and cut quickly. Dip and wipe the knife between cuts. Cut into 1 inch squares.
Preparation time: 3 minute(s)
Cooking time: 10 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 12+ (up to 64 pieces)
More Fudgy Creations:
Peanut Butter Fudge ~ Brown Eyed Baker
Red Velvet Fudge ~ I Am Baker
Coconut Milk Fudge ~ Smitten Kitchen
Mocha Hot Fudge Sauce ~ Joy the Baker
How stunning! I have never been in hot air balloon – must be so incredible. You just put me in the holiday mood with these!
love those pix! not much i miss about the east coast, but fall colors are at the top of the list.
Gorgeous photography, both food- and landscape-wise!
The fudge looks delicious, too, but man do I have to recover from Thanksgiving first!
What fantastic photos of your hot air balloon ride! It looks as though the colors were spectacular. As for the fudge – well, chocolate and mint epitomize the holiday season for me. I could eat some of this treat everyday of the holidays.
Absolutely perfect!!!
Sommer, Great pictures from your balloon ride! How sweet of your husband.
First, I really like the fudge dish. I almost bought one of these Polish pottery dishes the other day. They are so pretty.
I have never made fudge, but your instructions look pretty straight forward. I am sure my family would love it. Thanks.
Greetings
Kirsten
love this one! Great xmas gift
Perfect for the holiday season!
Oh my goodness!! This looks so delicious..chocolate and peppermint..the perfect combination. And those pictures from the balloon ride look beautiful. What an amazing experience that must have been!
Peppermint and fudge. A great combo for sure!
Wow, gorgeous photos of your hot air balloon ride – your hubby sure knew what you needed!
WOW, your pictures are SOOOO amazing!! Just gorgeous
That fudge looks to die for. YUM!
“Christmas is coming the goose is getting fat…” I can smell the holiday now. GREG
Yum, yum, yum! How festive!!
yum yum! on my to make list for the party we are having next week. Thanks for sharing
this is SO PRETTY.
!!
I’ve always wanted to go an a balloon ride but get nervous at the thought of being up so high! The view from up there looks amazing though.
Going to try and whip up a batch of these for the holidays or one of our rescue holiday parties. I’m sure I will get chocolate all over the kitchen but it will be worth it!
Oh I am so ready for Christmas too! I can’t wait to bake tons in December. This fudge looks absolutely wonderful.
That peppermint fudge looks so delicious! This year I have become mildly obsessed with peppermint and chocolate, so it’s always great to find another yummy recipe.
This fudge could get me in to some serious trouble! And I mean SERIOUS!! Looks so freaking god!
I am in love with this grouping of photos, so rich!
Mmmm, this fudge looks great; however, I’m not sure if I’m ready for Winter yet! Perhaps because it’s 80 degrees today in San Diego.
Love the pics!! How sweet is he, you totally deserve a treat!! I love, love fudge and what better month than Dec to indulge with this sweet treat!!
This looks wonderful…and easy!
I am pinning it to my Xmas board!
Saw it on FG…congrats
This is the most festive, lovely fudge. And what a sweet hubby…your views were breath taking…thank you for sharing them with us.
looks like the hot air balloon ride was amazing. Gorgeous photos!
what beautiful photos of ballooning, this fudge looks amazing!
Peppermint and chocolate. The perfect combination. Great pictures. Come visit us. We have pumpkin fried rice today. Be sure to stop by on Friday and register for the dress we are giving away from the Shabby Apple.
This fudge looks so good. I love the chocolate and peppermint combination. Your photos from the hot air balloon are stunning!
Your photos from the balloon are just gorgeous! And I love this fudge. A lot of people use white chocolate for peppermint fudge and bark, but I can’t stomach white chocolate so I always appreciate recipes like this!
This looks so delicious. I love peppermint and never get enough!
Just fabulous!! I “need” to make this very very soon!! Yum.
I am SOOOO jealous of all of your beautiful red and orange trees! In California, the only trees that turn pretty colors like that are the ones that are planted in shopping centers and center divides on large streets. It’s so artificial!
Also, the fudge looks AMAZING. I make a million cookies with my mom every Christmas, including fudge. The best we ever made was last year when I accidentally started making brownines instead of fudge…and then after finishing the brownies, accidentally 5x-ing the recipe…anyway, I sat there and stirred the fudge until my mom got enough pans ready. I was sure it was ruined, but it turned out to be the best we’d ever made!
That looks positively divine! What a sweet hubby to surprise you with a balloon ride and man, what a view!
This looks awesome, and what great fudge tips! Can’t wait to try it.
That looks delicious! It’s time to get on the holiday fudge bandwagon here!
Oh, you won’t catch me up in a balloon. I got dizzy last week when we visited Hoover Dam! Hubby thinks I’m wimpy! : ) Lovely fudge and great tips. I just want to reach in my computer and grab one!
I always make babka for gifts and last year i got tired of it and started making new things. This sounds fabulous for gifts this year, saving the recipe!
LOVE the photos from your fabulous experience. I have to admit I’m not a huge fudge fan (too sweet), but I’ll also admit, these photos of yours make me want to make it!
oh, my, I am not a chocolate fudge fan…but peppermint and chocolate sounds DIVINE. thanks, Spicy!
Simply gorgeous!! I can’t believe fall just came and went but also excited for winter wonderland
Those pictures are gorgeous! But I am so glad that I get to see them from my desk because I am scared to death of heights! I would have kept my eyes closed and missed the entire thing.
Yummmm…I gotta start my christmas cookies 0_0
Who doesn’t love fudge! I am not an expert at candy making so I’m happy to have this post. I just may try making some! Looks so yummy!
This looks really rich and seems quite easy to make. Great photos, Sommer.
I’m making chocolate truffles with peppermint and your cinnamon roll cookies this weekend so I just had to come by and check out your peppermint fudge! It looks just perfect and your hot air balloon photos are gorgeous;-)
What a delicious looking fudge. Totally loving it!
I want this like RIGHT now. Looks fabulous, what a fun & festive treat
Looks delicious! I love the combination of peppermint and chocolate, the perfect holiday flavor combo!
Drooling over the pictures. What a nice winter treat.
Gorgeous photographs and the chocolate peppermint is so perfect for the holidays. Such a great gift.
You had me at peppermint!
Looks beautiful, do you think you could leave out the peppermint for just chocolate fudge, I would love both
I haven’t made fudge in years! This recipe just may be what will break that. Perfect for the usual baked goods swap during Christmas!
Ug. I didn’t get it right. Mine was more like a chocolate brick. I melted the chocolate slowly, must not have been slowly enough. It became grainy and dull. I’m so mad. I want to be a good candy maker, especially fudge. Oh well, it still went into peoples holiday goodie box. Tasted fine.
Omg thank you so much for the tip. My fudge always turns out grainy and i could not figure it out.
Found some of this fudge in your freezer, while you were sunning in Hawaii. Took out four pieces and we ate it while watching Puss In Boots at the movies yesterday. Wow, some tastie fudge–and the kids with Pops and Nans loved the movie. Hurry home!
Love these pictures!! How beautiful. Love the idea of peppermint fudge….I’ve never thought of it.
Wow. These photos are divine and make mouth water! Gorgeous fudge that is definitely gift worthy.