Kahlua Fudge

Kahlua Fudge - made December 14, 2013, recipe adapted from La Phemme Phoodie

I don't want to jinx myself but it's possible that I might have, just maybe, broken my fudge curse. You know the one where I can't make homemade fudge from scratch to save my life without it turning out dry, crumbly and grainy, or, if I use marshmallow creme, that it isn't so sweet that even my sweet tooth trembles in trepidation.

Jez's fudge recipe helped by not failing on me. Then this recipe for Kahlua Fudge from La Phemme Phoodie gave my fudge ego a nice little boost by coming out creamy and actually tasting like it had kahlua in it.  But in a good way. I changed up a couple of things to stack the fudge odds in my favor.  First, I let it boil for only a scant 5 minutes. I think the other times I've made fudge and let it boil for the full amount of time in the recipe, it's always come out a little too firm.  This time I didn't overboil it and while a bit soft at room temperature, newly chilled, it was just right. Even soft at room temperature was still a good creamy consistency. Second, this time I used mini chocolate chips for the semisweet chips.  That helped them melt faster and made for a smoother texture without me madly stirring it trying to get the chips to melt and having the fudge set too soon. The milk chocolate chips were still the regular size so they took longer to melt but still melted okay without too much effort.

Once I spread this in the pan and smoothed the top, I layered plastic wrap directly over the top so it wouldn't form a skin and let it cool. For once I left out the nuts even though I prefer my fudge with toasted almonds. But I wanted to see what it would taste like simply flavored with Kahlua. Although I don't drink, I don't have any issues with liqueurs like Kahlua or Grand Marnier or Godiva chocolate liqueuer (c'mon, it's Godiva. And chocolate) for flavoring. The Kahlua paired nicely with the chocolate and I like the creamy consistency.  At last, I finally made fudge how it should be.

1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1 7-ounce jar marshmallow creme
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1/4 cup salted butter
1/3 cup Kahlua
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups semisweet chocolate pieces
1 cup milk chocolate pieces
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Line an 8" square pan with foil.
2. In a 3 1/2-quart saucepan, combine sugar, marshmallow creme, milk, butter, Kahlua and salt. Bring to a rapid boil, stirring constantly for 5 minutes. Remove from heat; add all chocolate. Stir until melted. Add vanilla. Turn into prepared pan and smooth top.
3. Cool on wire rack for 30 minutes and then refrigerate until firm. Cut into small squares and serve.