This vanilla fudge recipe is fast and easy but you'll need one special tool — a candy thermometer. You can easily adapt the recipe to chocolate if you adjust the amount of white sugar and add chocolate (as indicated in the ingredient list).
Ready Time: 1 hour, 20 minutes (includes one hour cooling time)
Ingredients
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
6 tablespoons margarine (4 tablespoons if you are making the chocolate fudge)
3/4 cup whipping cream (35%)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate (only for the chocolate fudge version)
Method
Grease an 8″ X 8″ dish and set aside (9″ x 9″ works as well, it just makes thinner squares).
Have a medium bowl ready with 1 teaspoon vanilla already added.
Into a medium, heavy-bottom pot add brown and white sugars, margarine, whipping cream (and chocolate, if making chocolate fudge).
Heat over high and stir to combine. Let boil until a candy thermometer (or digital thermometer) reads 240 F. This will take about 10 to 12 minutes and in candy-making terms means you have reached “soft ball” stage.
Pour the hot mixture into medium bowl. Using a hand mixer, mix on medium-high speed (careful not to splatter as this is extremely hot) for about 1 to 2 minutes until the thin splatter on the side of the bowl starts to crystallize and gets dense when you wipe it with your finger. It will be “fudge-like.”
Pour the mixture into the 8″ X 8″ dish and allow to cool before slicing.