4 Ingredient Peanut Butter Fudge Recipe - Butter with a Side of Bread (2024)

FAQs

Why is my peanut butter fudge not getting hard? ›

Fudge Didn't Set

If your fudge turned out super sticky, or it didn't set as it cooled, it probably never got hot enough. This mistake is super easy to avoid if you use a candy thermometer and cook the fudge to the temperature specified in the recipe (usually between 234 and 239°F).

Butter is added in the final stages to add flavor and smoothness and inhibit large crystal formation. Use unsalted butter so you can add a small amount of salt (¼ teaspoon per stick of butter) to the sugar/liquid mixture. Salt tends to stabilize the mixture and keep it from foaming as much.

The key to successful, nongrainy fudge is in the cooling, not the cooking. The recipe calls for heating the ingredients to the soft-ball stage, or 234° F, then allowing it to cool undisturbed to approximately 110° F.

Sugar, Glucose Syrup, Full Cream Condensed Milk, (Milk, Sugar, Lactose), Non Hydrogenated Vegetable Fat (Palm, Palm Kernal Oil), Salted Butter (4%) (Butter, Salt), Fondant (Sugar, Glucose Syrup, Water), Salt.

OPTION 1) Depending on how runny it is, you can either use it as a frosting for cakes, or a sauce for ice-cream. OPTION 2) Freeze it overnight. Cut it into squares. Cover each square thickly in melted chocolate, ensuring no part of the fudge is exposed.

You can definitely use salted butter and unsalted interchangeably. If a recipe calls for unsalted butter and additional salt, just use a little less of the salt that the recipe calls for. That's the only tweak you need to make!

Substitutes for Salted Butter

Salted butter differs from unsalted because it's preseasoned with (you guessed it) salt. So for 1 cup of salted butter, trade 1 cup margarine or 1 cup shortening plus ½ teaspoon salt; ⅞ cup vegetable oil plus ½ teaspoon salt; or ⅞ cup lard plus ½ teaspoon salt.

Choose the right butter – You can use salted or unsalted butter, though using salted gives it a bit of contrast, like salted caramel. If you'd prefer to enjoy the richness of chocolate, choose unsalted butter. Don't over-stir the fudge.

It's not brittle or crumbly, at least not unpleasantly so. 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.

Why is my peanut butter fudge dry and crumbly? ›

Follow the recipe to a tee when cooking the sugar

However, it's important to bring the sugar to the exact right temperature. If it doesn't boil, your fudge will end up too mushy, and if it cooks for too long, you'll end up with a dry, crumbly mess.

If the temperature is too low, the fudge will be too soft and sticky, and if it's too high, it will turn into a hard, crumbly mess. The ideal temperature to cook fudge is between 232-234 degrees F (111-112 degrees C).

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!

Fudge is a dense, rich confection typically made with sugar, milk or cream, butter and chocolate or other flavorings. The base for fudge is boiled until it reaches the soft-ball stage (135 to 140 degrees F), then stirred or beaten as it cools to minimize the formation of sugar crystals.

Use the size recommended in your recipe, otherwise a larger pan produces thinner pieces of fudge, and a smaller pan produces thicker pieces. To keep the fudge from sticking to the cooling pan, line it with non-stick foil or parchment paper, or coat it with cooking spray, butter, or a neutral oil.

Bring the fudge back to a boil with 1–2 US tbsp (15–30 ml) of cream. If your fudge is soft or runny, it probably didn't come up to a high enough temperature while it was cooking. Put it back into the saucepan and add 1–2 US tbsp (15–30 ml) of 35% fat whipping cream.

Pour Fudge into Prepared Pan

Once the fudge has thickened and the nuts are added, pour the fudge into the prepared pan. Allow it to set at room temperature until firm, about three hours or overnight.

In the oven - wrap the fudge in foil with a tiny bit of water, perhaps 2-3 teaspoons and bake at a low temperature (120-140C or 248-284F) for 10-20 minutes, or until the fudge no longer feels/looks dried out.

We like to set this fudge in the freezer to make it quicker! Once you add the fudge to your pan it will need just 30 minutes in the freezer to set.