I rolled out of bed this morning just itching to stretch my legs with a walk, perhaps to new Gaia Java** down the street. I looked out the bedroom window. Instead of finding sunshine, gray clouds belched rain everywhere. So I cozied up in the kitchen.
We shared the afternoon with my Pete Seeger records and two dozing kitties, and I think the time was well spent. I managed to cook a casserole, some candied nuts, and cranberry-walnut fudge before the storm knocked out our electricity for a few hours. Springtime in Portland!
Until recently, I thought all fudge tasted like those giant, sugary chunks of candy sold in small-town florist shops. Did your hometown flower/ gift shop have a case of truffles and fudge by the front counter? Somewhere near the displays of greeting cards and Yankee Candles? I remember those cases often touted exotic fudge varieties like walnut, peanut butter, maple or mint-chocolate swirl.
A kind lady behind the counter would offer me a sample. Why yes! I will try a piece of the German Chocolate! I'd pop the sample in my mouth, expecting a dense flavor blast of chocolate and coconut. Instead, the sugary brick dissolved on my tongue like chocolate-flavored sand. Yuck.
My friend Brianna recently gave me a stack of old Light & Tasty magazines to browse. I've been marking them full of stick notes all weekend. Taste of Home, a magazine I remember to which my mother subscribed, also published Light & Tasty. Reader-submitted recipes fill each magazine. Plus, the cooks offer delightful, endearing comments on each dish. A favorite: "We often take them (cranberry turkey wraps) to the local stock show and eat them in the stands!"
That's where I found this cranberry-walnut fudge. If you like chewy fudge, the kind that the word "fudgey" is meant to describe, this is your recipe. Delia of Deer Park, Washington, submitted it to Light & Tasty. She says that though the fudge seems decadent, each bite is filled with tons of "fabulous, guilt-free flavor."
Cranberry-walnut fudge
from the 2007 December/January edition of Light & Tasty
makes 1 1/3 pounds
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup or agave nectar
- 1/4 cup low-fat evaporated milk
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup chopped walnuts
- 2/3 cup dried cranberries
Combine chocolate chips and the syrup in a heavy saucepan. Melt the chocolate over low heat, stirring often until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Remove the saucepan from heat and stir in the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Beat with a wooden spoon until thickened and glossy, about five minutes.
Stir in the cranberries and walnuts. Spread the fudge into the prepared pan, decorating the top with a few more cranberries, if desired. Refrigerate until firm, about an hour.
Use the foil to lift the fudge from the pan. For easy, tear-free cutting, fill a tall glass with hot water and set a sharp knife in the glass. Cut the fudge into 1" squared with the knife. Rinse the knife in the hot water between each cut. Store the fudge in an air-tight container in the fridge.
If you liked this recipe, you might also enjoy:
Chocolate champagne truffles
Midnight brownies
Thinish Mint Cookies
**In SW Portland gossip, the shadowy café has closed! Gaia Java has taken its place. It's a much more welcoming shop.
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