The Easiest Fudge Recipe For Last-Minute Christmas Gifts & Treats

There are few things more stressful than last-minute holiday prep. Wrapping presents, grabbing stocking stuffers, finding those tights your child just wore last week — it’s all a little chaotic. But the absolute worse is realizing you didn’t grab a gift for your next door neighbor (who already dropped off a tin of cookies for you) or panicking about a dessert to take to your mother-in-law’s Christmas Eve party. That’s where you need an easy fudge recipe. I know — fudge sounds fancy. You buy fudge when you’re on vacation and it looks all perfect and Willy Wonka-esque in the glass cabinets of the chocolate shop — but fudge is the ultimate last-minute Christmas gift.

This easy fudge recipe is also super adaptable. Whether you like nuts in your fudge, dried fruit, or even a swirl of peanut butter, this recipe is for you. My mom has been making this fudge — also known as Fantasy Fudge, originally found on the back of your favorite Jet-Puffed Marshmallow Creme jar — since I was a little kid, and it’s just the best. You don’t need a candy thermometer, you don’t need a scale — all you need is a heavy saucepan, a baking dish, and some parchment paper. Make extras to give away as gifts and save a bunch for your Christmas gathering or for Christmas night when you want to snuggle with your family and have a sweet treat.

The containers of Jet Puffed Marshmallow Creme now have a different Fantasy Fudge recipe, but here’s the tried-and-true original.

The Easiest Fantasy Fudge

Ingredients

• 3 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup butter
• 2/3 cup evaporated milk
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 7 oz. jar Jet Puffed Marshmallow Creme
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper.
2. Bring sugar, milk, and butter to a boil over medium heat, stirring to help the sugar dissolve and keep it from burning.
3. Let boil for five minutes with occasional stirring.
4. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips.
5. Add marshmallow creme and vanilla.
6. Pour into pan and allow to cool.

So easy, right? Double or triple it however you need, and if you want to add nuts or dried fruit, do that after the marshmallow creme and vanilla. It’s soft, sweet, a little chewy, and will just fill you with holiday spirit. A tin lined with parchment paper and full of fantasy fudge makes for the best Christmas gift, and you can get it together in just a few minutes. Now that’s a Christmas miracle.