Strawberry Fudge

Did you know you can make strawberry fudge using frosting? No need for sweetened condensed milk, this is a fudge made with frosting! A two-colored swirled strawberry-flavored fudge, that is creamy, rich, and melts in your mouth. Full of strawberry flavor and is made with buttercream frosting, strawberry extract, pink candy melts, and more. A strawberry frosting fudge mixture that is light, fluffy, and full of red and pink fudge-swirled colors.

This Strawberry Fudge can be made all year round. Or make this into a Valentine’s Day fudge for your sweetheart! Either way, this fudge recipe melts in your mouth.

This is the treat for a mid-day snack or after dinner. An easy dessert that takes minimal ingredients and a few simple steps to make. This is our easy Strawberry Fudge that we use all the time when we get to craving strawberry desserts.

This Strawberry Fudge Is…

• Made with a container of frosting for a quick homemade fudge that is ultra creamy.
• Uses strawberry extract for a sweet flavor punch. But you could easily add in some freeze-dried strawberries for even more real strawberry flavor.
• Easy ingredients and quick prep for this treat that can be eaten any day of the year.
• A no-bake dessert that is the sweet treat.
• Freezer-friendly to keep on hand for when you get a sweet tooth attack. Just pull out a few small pieces of fudge and nibble.
• This strawberry fudge also makes a great gift for loved ones!

Ingredients Needed

• Strawberry Candy melts
• Red Candy Melts
• Buttercream Frosting
• Sprinkles (optional)
• Strawberry Extract

Variations To Recipe

Here are a few ways you can change up this easy recipe. From leaving out food coloring to adding additional ingredients to enhance the flavor.

• We used a buttercream frosting, you can use any flavor of frosting. Even a cream cheese frosting would be to make this a strawberry cheesecake fudge recipe. You can use homemade frosting but we find store-bought frosting works just fine.
• Leave out the food coloring if you don’t want to use artificial coloring. Or use natural ingredients to color your fudge.
• Sprinkles are optional. They will add a festive look on top of the fudge.
• Swap the strawberry extract with any other flavor to change up the flavor of the fudge.
• Instead of strawberry candy melts you can use pink candy melts without added flavoring. It will create a strawberry fudge flavor as well.
• Dice up fresh strawberries mix into the pink batter and add to the fudge. Just know it will need to be eaten right away as the fudge will break down quicker.
• Use a white and pink color duo instead of red and pink if you want. Or color the pink strawberry fudge differently with whatever colors you want.
• Add in some pecans, walnuts, or other nuts. We love to make a strawberry pecan fudge, it is a great duo of flavors and makes a great treat.
• Fold in some milk chocolate chips or semi-sweet chips into the frosting to add a bit more texture to the fudge. This will add a nice pop of sweetness when you bite into a chocolate chip.

How to Make Strawberry Fudge

Full directions on how to make strawberry fudge are in the printable recipe card. This is a visual walkthrough on how to make it.

1. Add red candy melts in one bowl and pink candy melts in another bowl. Heat the candy melts for 20-30 seconds and then stir the chocolate, to make sure it fully melts without overcooking.
2. Now you will remove the lid and aluminum film from the frosting and heat in the microwave for 30-45 seconds.
3. Stir in the strawberry extract.
4. Pour half the frosting in the red and the other half in the pink. Stir well.
5. Now pour your frosting fudge into the 8×8 pan, alternating the colors.
6. Use a toothpick or knife to swirl colors to blend a bit, then add sprinkles if you want.
7. Refrigerate for 2 hours, or until set. Then slice and serve.

Helpful Tips

Melting Chocolate – Make sure that you don’t overheat the chocolate. If you do it can cause it to seize up. Just heat it up in 20-30 second intervals.

Warm up In Double Boiler – If you don’t want to heat the chocolate in the microwave, then warm up in a double boiler.

Line Pan – Line pan with foil or parchment paper to prevent sticking.

Sprinkles – Add the sprinkles right after you get them poured into the pan. Then lightly press the sprinkles into the fudge, to ensure they stick.

Storing

Room Temperature or Fridge: You can store this fudge at room temperature or in the fridge. If room temperature the fudge lasts 3-4 days, and in the fridge, it is 5-7 days. Just place it in a covered container.

Freezer: You can also freeze any fudge you don’t eat right away. store properly in a freezer bag or container for 3-4 months. Thaw on the counter or in the fridge overnight.

Practical notes

Some common questions for this easy fudge recipe.

How do you make fudge chewy?

You could stir in some nuts like macadamia nuts, dried fruit, white chocolate chips, etc. Even adding in some freeze dried strawberries would be good for this strawberry recipe.u003cbru003eu003cbru003e Feel free to leave it creamy, or add a bit of texture with mix-in ingredients. We would do around 1/2 cup for chocolate chips or nuts, or 1/4 for dried fruit.

How long does it take fudge to set up?

Depending on the humidity and such the fudge can vary from 1-2 hours up to 3-4. We recommend making this the night before you plan to eat, or the morning of when you want to serve it up later in the day.

Does this recipe double?

Double this recipe and use a 9×13 instead of an 8×8 size pan of fudge. This fudge recipe will double nicely. This does make a great valentines day dessert, so if you plan to serve up a larger crowd, double it.

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Ingredients

Makes 8 x8 pan

• 1 container buttercream frosting, 16 ounces
• 1 teaspoon strawberry extract
• 3/4 cup strawberry flavored pink candy melts
• 3/4 cup red candy melts
• Sprinkles – Optional

Equipment

• 8×8 pan

Method

1. Line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper or foil and set aside.
2. Start by adding your red and pink candy melts in separate containers that are microwave safe.
3. Begin to heat the red candy melts doing 20-30 second heat cycles, stirring between each heat cycle. Once melted set aside and repeat with the strawberry candy melts.
4. Then take the lid and aluminum seal off the frosting and heat for 45 seconds in the microwave.
5. Stir in the strawberry extract, and mix really well.
6. Pour half the frosting in the pink and half the frosting in the red. Stir well.
7. Pour the colored frostings in an 8×8 prepared pan, doing a little of each color to creates a swirl effect.
8. Top with sprinkles if you want, and then refrigerate the strawberry fudge for 2 hours or until it is hardened.

Kitchen notes

Frosting –

You can use any flavor of frosting you want. Vanilla, cream cheese, etc. We loved the flavor of the buttercream. Candy Melts – Go right ahead and swap out the candy melts for baking chocolate if you don't want to use a candy melt for this dessert. Temper the chocolate to ensure it sets up properly. Sprinkles – Sprinkles are optional but they add a nice color to the frosting fudge. We used Valentine's Day themed since it is approaching.