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Chocolate Toffee Fudge

By Morgan Bolling

Published on October 29, 2018

Time

40 minutes, plus 2 hours cooling and 2 hours chilling

Yield

Makes about 3 pounds

Chocolate Toffee Fudge

Ingredients

3 cups packed (21 ounces/595 grams) light brown sugar 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces⅔ cup evaporated milk ½ teaspoon salt 12 ounces (340 grams) bittersweet chocolate, chopped5 ounces (142 grams) large marshmallows (about 3 cups)1 ½ tablespoons instant espresso powder ½ cup Heath Toffee Bits

Before You Begin

You will need a digital or candy thermometer for this recipe. We developed this recipe using Kraft Jet-Puffed Marshmallows. With this brand, 21 marshmallows yield 5 ounces. Be sure to use evaporated milk here, not sweetened condensed milk. We developed this recipe using Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Premium Baking Bar. You can substitute semisweet chocolate bars or bars labeled “dark chocolate,” but we do not recommend using chocolate that's 85 percent cacao or higher. If you're using an electric stove, the mixture will likely take longer than 5 minutes to reach 234 degrees in step 2.

Instructions

  1. Make foil sling for 8-inch square baking pan by folding 2 long sheets of aluminum foil so each is 8 inches wide. Lay sheets of foil in pan perpendicular to each other, with extra foil hanging over edges of pan. Push foil into corners and up sides of pan, smoothing foil flush to pan. Spray foil with vegetable oil spray.
  2. Combine sugar, butter, evaporated milk, and salt in large saucepan. Bring to boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring frequently, until mixture registers 234 degrees, 3 to 5 minutes.
  3. Off heat, add chocolate, marshmallows, and espresso powder and whisk until smooth and all marshmallows are fully melted, about 2 minutes (fudge will thicken to consistency of frosting). Stir in ¼ cup toffee bits. Transfer mixture to prepared pan. Sprinkle with remaining ¼ cup toffee bits. Let cool completely, about 2 hours. Cover and refrigerate until set, about 2 hours.
  4. Using foil overhang, lift fudge out of pan. Cut into 1-inch cubes. Let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving. (Fudge can be stored in airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.)
Chocolate Toffee Fudge
Photography by Keller + Keller. Styling by Catrine Kelty.

Chocolate Toffee Fudge

Save

Time

40 minutes, plus 2 hours cooling and 2 hours chilling

Yield

Makes about 3 pounds

Ingredients

3 cups packed (21 ounces/595 grams) light brown sugar
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces
⅔ cup evaporated milk
½ teaspoon salt
12 ounces (340 grams) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
5 ounces (142 grams) large marshmallows (about 3 cups)
1 ½ tablespoons instant espresso powder
½ cup Heath Toffee Bits

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

3 cups packed (21 ounces/595 grams) light brown sugar
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces
⅔ cup evaporated milk
½ teaspoon salt
12 ounces (340 grams) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
5 ounces (142 grams) large marshmallows (about 3 cups)
1 ½ tablespoons instant espresso powder
½ cup Heath Toffee Bits

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

3 cups packed (21 ounces/595 grams) light brown sugar
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces
⅔ cup evaporated milk
½ teaspoon salt
12 ounces (340 grams) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
5 ounces (142 grams) large marshmallows (about 3 cups)
1 ½ tablespoons instant espresso powder
½ cup Heath Toffee Bits

Test Kitchen Techniques

Why This Recipe Works

We were after a creamy, rich, ultrachocolaty fudge that didn't take hours or an arm workout to put together. Cooking a brown sugar syrup to a temperature between 234 and 238 degrees (what candymakers call “softball stage”) assured fudge that was firm yet pliable after cooling. The brown sugar offered a deep, caramel-y flavor that enhanced the chocolate. Marshmallows guaranteed a smooth, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Bittersweet, rather than milk or unsweetened, chocolate struck the perfect balance—still sweet enough to taste like candy but also deeply and satisfyingly chocolaty. Toffee and coffee play nicely with chocolate, so we bumped up this fudge with instant espresso powder and buttery toffee bits.

Before You Begin

You will need a digital or candy thermometer for this recipe. We developed this recipe using Kraft Jet-Puffed Marshmallows. With this brand, 21 marshmallows yield 5 ounces. Be sure to use evaporated milk here, not sweetened condensed milk. We developed this recipe using Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Premium Baking Bar. You can substitute semisweet chocolate bars or bars labeled “dark chocolate,” but we do not recommend using chocolate that's 85 percent cacao or higher. If you're using an electric stove, the mixture will likely take longer than 5 minutes to reach 234 degrees in step 2.

Instructions

  1. Make foil sling for 8-inch square baking pan by folding 2 long sheets of aluminum foil so each is 8 inches wide. Lay sheets of foil in pan perpendicular to each other, with extra foil hanging over edges of pan. Push foil into corners and up sides of pan, smoothing foil flush to pan. Spray foil with vegetable oil spray.
  2. Combine sugar, butter, evaporated milk, and salt in large saucepan. Bring to boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring frequently, until mixture registers 234 degrees, 3 to 5 minutes.
  3. Off heat, add chocolate, marshmallows, and espresso powder and whisk until smooth and all marshmallows are fully melted, about 2 minutes (fudge will thicken to consistency of frosting). Stir in ¼ cup toffee bits. Transfer mixture to prepared pan. Sprinkle with remaining ¼ cup toffee bits. Let cool completely, about 2 hours. Cover and refrigerate until set, about 2 hours.
  4. Using foil overhang, lift fudge out of pan. Cut into 1-inch cubes. Let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving. (Fudge can be stored in airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.)

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