Vanilla Fudge

A delicious five ingredient classic vanilla fudge recipe that you will want to make over and over again!

So this recipe has been requested over and over again, and here it finally is. I thought I would start off the new year of my recipes for 2025 with one of the most highly requested recipes EVER. 

Fudge Recipes

Fudge recipes have always been one of my most popular recipes to write and produce for you guys as you are all absolutely obsessed, and I’m not mad about it. My most popular fudge recipe over 2024 was my biscoff fudge, and I can see why; it is simple and glorious. The type of condensed milk fudge, which I also call ‘cheats fudge’ is easy and simple, but it’s not really a classic fudge. 

There are endless fudge recipe flavours you could achieve such as cookie dough fudge, mint aero fudge, or even Toblerone fudge. I have done so many different flavours of the ‘cheats’ fudge now, I wanted to produce a recipe that has been requested hundreds (quite literally) or times; vanilla fudge. 

Classic Fudge

So, classic fudge for me is what I would buy myself when I went to Cornwall on holiday as a kid. There are fudge shops all over, I’m aware, but for me it was so synonymous with my Cornish breaks. There is something about the classic texture you get from a recipe and a fudge like this that I just adore and what I am after.

I have had so many requests for a recipe like this, and whilst some of you probably want a vanilla fudge which is the cheats method, it would really still just be a chocolate fudge. Condensed milk fudge needs chocolate to set, so I haven’t produced a recipe like this as I really just want VANILLA and not a chocolate base with vanilla on top.

My oreo fudge is another ‘classic’ style fudge with a slightly different base, but both recipes work. I wanted to do something a little different that reminds me more of a basic classic fudge in terms of the colour, the texture, and flavour, and this recipe it is.  

Fudge ingredients

There are so many ways to make a ‘classic’ vanilla fudge, where the ingredients you use can vary so much. Some use glucose, some use multiple types of sugar, some use milk and cream, and the possibilities are endless. I have made this fudge so many times now to perfect and simplify the recipe for everyone and I adore it. 

• Condensed milk – I found using this as a base was still much more successful compared to other recipes. You use 395g (basically the entire tin) and it’s perfect. 
• Sugar – I tried other sugars, but I did find light brown soft sugar was the best for texture, colour and also flavour. 
• Cream – double cream (or heavy cream) is best as you need the fat content of the cream for the fudge to set properly
• Butter – unsalted block butter, definitely not a margarine. You can use salted block butter however if you prefer a salty flavour 
• Vanilla – the most important bit here, of course. I used vanilla bean paste because I like the flecks of vanilla, but a strong vanilla extract, or the seeds out of a vanilla pod would be perfect as well. 

Thermometers 

So the making of this fudge is quite exact, and there is one thing that is important to make it; a thermometer. I own a thermapen thermometer (which I use for savoury cooking as well) which I use for my baking as well and they are great. However, a simple jam/sugar thermometer is much cheaper alternative and is perfect for the job as well. 

Once you are at the melted ingredients stage of the recipe, you need to turn the temperature of the fudge up and stir it constantly, keeping an eye on the temperature. It needs to reach 118ºc (soft ball stage). If you don’t have a thermometer, you can grab some ice cold water, and drop a small amount into the ice cold water. It should seize into a soft fudge texture and become solid. 

How to make it

To start, the fudge is simple to make where you need to add the condensed milk, sugar, cream and the butter to a pan and melt on a low heat to make sure that the butter melts, and that the sugar dissolves. It’s important to make sure the sugar dissolves so that there isn’t a grain to the fudge later on, and to make sure it sets. 

You then turn the temp up to high and let the mixture boil, and you must stir the fudge constantly to prevent the fudge catching – this is when the ingredients start to burn on the bottom of the pan. It’s not the end of the world if it happens a little bit, but aesthetically it’s not brilliant. 

Once it has reached temp, you can take it off the heat and leave it to sit for five minutes. Add in the vanilla, stir through, and then you need arm power. You need to beat the fudge in the pan, or you can use a metal bowl on your mixer, and mix it like mad to thicken it. This is how you get the texture you are after. 

It takes about 5 minutes or so, on a medium-high speed in a mixer, or it takes 8-10+ minutes by arm power. It needs to be visibly thickened and stop being pourable to be ready. You can then spread it into your lined tin, and set. (It’s worth watching my videos on instagram/tiktok for this recipe)

Flavours 

So as this is obviously a ‘vanilla’ based fudge, I used a vanilla flavouring for this recipe. I always use the same brand (Nielsen Massey) because I simply adore it, and it’s very high quality. I used the vanilla bean paste for this particular recipe as I adore the flecks of vanilla that it shows in the fudge, but the vanilla extract or vanilla pods scraped would also work well. I would avoid any essence however as they are very synthetic and you need a lot of liquid to flavour it correctly. 

If you wanted to use something else, you could use any high quality and concentrated flavouring such as lemon, or even orange, or you could easily add in some extras to this fudge. Chopped biscuits, chocolates, and so on. It’s best to add in any additions after you have fully beaten the fudge to make sure it has cooled down somewhat to prevent anything melting. 

Tips & Tricks 

• This fudge will last for 2+ weeks at room temp once made
• This fudge will freeze for 3+ months 
• I use a thermapen thermometer when making this
• A simple jam/sugar thermometer works very well for this recipe as well 
• I use vanilla bean extract so I can see the flecks of vanilla in the fudge
• If your fudge doesn’t set it may not have been boiled to the correct temp, or not beaten for long enough – these steps are vitally important. 

Vanilla Fudge

A delicious five ingredient classic vanilla fudge recipe that you will want to make over and over again!

Print Pin Rate

Category: Sweets

Type: Fudge

Keyword: Vanilla

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes

Setting Time: 4 hours hours

Total Time: 4 hours hours 40 minutes minutes

Servings: 25 pieces

Author: Jane's Patisserie

Ingredients

• 395 g condensed milk
• 450 g light brown soft sugar
• 150 ml double cream
• 100 g unsalted butter
• 2 tsp vanilla bean extract

Grams - Ounces

Instructions

• Add the condensed milk, sugar, cream and butter to a heavy- based pan
• Stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved and the butter has melted
• Bring the mixture to the boil, stirring constantly, until it reaches 118ºC on a sugar thermometer (see blog post)
• Remove the pan from the heat and let it sit for five minutes. 
• Stir in the vanilla bean extract. 
• Pour the fudge into a bowl and beat for a few minutes until it starts to thicken (5+ minutes using an electric mixer, 8–10+ minutes by hand
• It will visibly thicken through the mixing, so be patient and mix away and trust the process 
• Pour into a lined 8” square tin or 7x10" tin
• Leave to set at room temperature for several hours or in the fridge 

Notes

• This fudge will last for 2+ weeks at room temp once made
• This fudge will freeze for 3+ months 
• I use a thermapen thermometer when making this
• A simple jam/sugar thermometer works very well for this recipe as well 
• I use vanilla bean extract so I can see the flecks of vanilla in the fudge
• If your fudge doesn't set it may not have been boiled to the correct temp, or not beaten for long enough - these steps are vitally important. 

ENJOY!

Find my other recipes on my Recipes Page!

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