It was Crevette’s school fair on Saturday and we had to bring cakes and food on Friday, but it is one of my working days so I had to find something I could make ahead. When my mum came to visit, her fudge obsession did not go unnoticed and as she bought some of the creamy treats, it made me crave them even though it is not normally the kind of sweets I go for. I have to say that at this stage of my pregnancy (37 weeks), I am craving pretty much anything and everything sweet.
Whenever we visit our family in Devon, we can buy fudge so I had never bothered trying making it until last year when I stumbled upon a photo tutorial claiming to be easy and ‘foolproof’ on Pinterest one day. As I happened to have all the ingredients at home and some time in my hands, I decided to make it. It was easy; I have to agree with that. It was also a total and utter disaster as it was inedible and I threw it all in the bin (Pinfail!).
This time, I decided to go to sources I knew I could trust, namely BBC good food, Nigella Lawson and Jess who blogs at ‘What Jessica Baked Next’.
I started with BBC good food’s Vintage Vanilla Fudge, which keeps for up to two months in an airtight container. I have to admit the recipe was not too straightforward to follow as a sugar thermometer was needed, and it took over forty-five minutes to make. The instructions were to leave the fudge to set at room temperature, but the next day, I found it too soft and decided to keep in the fridge. I like it, but it is slightly too creamy for me.
A couple of days later, I made Jess’ Fudge, replacing the custard creams with Oreos. Her recipe was incredibly simple to follow and had four ingredients only (sugar, clotted cream, golden syrup and biscuits). It took me less than fifteen minutes from start to finish. When I finished making it, it truly was a magic moment as I could tell it had worked straight away. I could not wait for it to set so I could try it. I was not disappointed the next day when I cut it to put in jars with the children. It was scrumptious!
Both the children and I agreed it was better than the previous batch, but hubby, our fudge expert at home, still prefers the first one.
I ran out of jars, time and space in the fridge so I did not make Nigella’s one in the end, but here is the recipe for her Vanilla Fudge if you want to have a go.
When it was time to put the fudge in jars, Crevette and Beanie wanted to help so we did it together whilst hubby was giving Jumpy a shower. We made a lot of mess in the process but the children had fun and the result looked so good I wanted to keep some. I had not made quite enough for that so I only kept a couple of jars as little presents for two of my friends.
What a lovely idea. I have a school fete looming so I think I’m going go try and make these instead of cakes. Thanks for the inspiration #bloglovin
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I am glad that gave you an idea my lovely! x
Looks delicious! It’s lovely to make your own fudge even if it does take a while x
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I just love it when we manage to make something for the first time! x
Gorgeous pics as always. My mouth is absolutely watering now. My dad is the fudge maker in this family. I’ll be sure to send on the recipes.
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Thanks Abby. I will have a piece now on your behalf!
That looks amazing! I can’t believe you manage to do all that with 3 small children and whilst heavily pregnant, I hope the fudge went down well at school.
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It must have because we did not even see it there when we arrived half an hour after the start of the school fair. x
Hello! I am not a big fan a fudge myself but I think they look so pretty! Excellent idea as a present to E’s teachers at nursery. I have been saving jam jars – I may now have found what to put in them! Might be too sticky for a summer treat… I will definitely test them xx
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I am not normally a huge fan of fudge either when I am not pregnant. It is a great idea to save jars for end of term pressies; they always come in handy. You are right, fudge might be too sticky as a present for the end of the school year. Check out my “Just a Little Presents”; it might be a good alternative! (it can be made months in advance as well, which is great!) x
YUM! I am a massive fudge connoisseur and am incredibly fussy. I challenged a fudge stall holder to prove how crumbly his fudge was before I bought any – it was the perfect level of crumble for me but a touch too much vanilla, but I bought two bags just to be sure. I really might try and make this, but my teeth will fall out if it is too easy. 😉 lovely post Mel xx
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Always safe to buy a couple of bags just to be sure; I definitely agree with you! Do try making it. It is worth it, and you can always brush your teeth afterwards! x
That’s a lot of utterly divine looking fudge lovely lady! Hope it was super yummy xx
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Most of it was for the school fair but I kept a little jar for us. It was yummy! x
Oh WOW! this looks amazing, especially the Oreo Fudge. Am going to make these for the teachers at the end of term! Perfect. Whoop!
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I am sure they will love it! Make sure you include a little message to keep it in the fridge, especially if we get a hot end of term. x
Absolutely love the decorating on the jars you are so creative. The oreo fudge sounds right up my alley I am obsessed with anything oreo. YUMMY!!! I am not normally a huge plain fudge fan but this could work for sure. I could do with some now. Send over, thanks! lol hahahah I will definitely be trying it out as it sounds less complicated then the ones I have tried in the past. Easy and quick is my motto to cooking delight! Great post hunny as always. Thank you for linking up to Share With Me. Off to pin these bad boys for a later date. #sharewithme
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I was quite happy with the jars I have to say. Simple but effective. I am a big Oreo fan at the moment. I dunk the biscuits in my tea in the evenings, have Oreo ice-cream at pretty much any time of the day, and now Oreo fudge… this might be turning into an obsession… x
Sounds like me!!! And all jealous because I am being a good eater at the moment. Or trying to.
One mouth well and truly watering here Mel! And beautiful snaps as ever 🙂 #sharewithme
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Thanks a lot! x
ooh I think I now know what I am going to be making for the teacher’s presents at the end of term this year! Thank you- the Oreo fudge looks amazing! My only worry is how to get it out of the house before my husband sees it and eats it!
x x
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You hide it, lady, you hide it! Let me know if you make it. Jess’ recipes are incredible, only visit her blog if you have just eaten otherwise you will drool all over your keyboard! x
I would want to make some! I love oreos and they are on sale on Tesco’s! Do you think it would change if I will use double stuff oreos? #ShareWithMe
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I am sure it will be just the same with any type of Oreos. Hope you enjoy them (you will love Jess’ recipes, they are amazing!). Mel
You clearly put so much time and effort into this sort of thing Mel and it really pays off because the end result is so appealing! It looks amazing and pretty and I’m sure it tastes delicious too. You have some very lucky friends!! X
Oh yum – I am addicted to fudge. And so beautifully presented too. #RecipeoftheWeek
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Thanks! I am sure you would love those recipes!
The jars of fudge look so pretty. I bet they were a huge success at the school fair.
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Thanks Julie. x
This looks delicious! I have never made fudge, it is on my list to have a go! Found your recipe via A Mummy Too recipe linky!
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You would love Jess’ recipe. It is incredibly quick and easy to make!
They look lovely, I’d have bought the vanilla one! #sharewithme
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Even though I preferred the Oreo fudge, I kept a jar of the Vanilla one for us and I have to say it really was scrumptious after a few days in the fridge. All gone now!
I love fudge. I usually make failsafe stuff with condensed milk, but this Christmas made different more complex proper fudge. None of it really set, so definitely looking for some nice easy fudge again for next year. This looks delicious, and the jars are really cute as well.
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Thanks Emma. I was quite pleased with those little jars! You should try Jess’ recipe, it is really easy peasy to make.
What a lovely gift idea although as I am trying to shift a few pounds at the moment the making of any fudge will have to wait a while!
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Well, looking at the list of ingredients, you are probably right. Not great for diets! (but oh so yummy!)
Oh, I love fudge! You’ve inspired me to try the easy one the next time I need a food gift to take somewhere… I’ll let you know how I get on! #TastyTuesdays
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Hope you enjoy it! Jess never ceases to amaze me. Her recipes are great!
I love this, so gorgeously presented and sound delicious!! Would be lovely as gifts xxx #tastytuesdays
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Thanks. I love it when I give myself time to think of homemade presents. It just makes it so much more special.
I love fudge. Yours looks fabulous in the jars
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Thanks Alison. It was delicious! Just thinking about it now makes me want to make it again.
Utterly stunning and love how you’ve created gift jars too. My husband is obsessed with fudge but I still can’t recreate it as good as his Mums! Thanks for linking up to #tastytuesdays
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Get his mum to write a guest post for you! I would definitely try making it. x
Good idea Mel, she lives in South Africa but is fab at the computer so will consider asking her x
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😉