I bought a candy thermometer a few weeks ago and over the weekend I finally busted it out and put it to work! We actually made a bunch of awesome treats (making candy is so much fun!), but my favorite was definitely this sweet and salty brown sugar fudge. It reminds me of weekends down the shore! Which is nice to reminisce on now that it’s starting to cool down around these parts.
Making fudge is a lot less scary than you may think, so don’t worry if you’ve never worked a candy thermometer before; you can do this! The most important part of the whole process is keeping a close eye on the temperature, and pulling it off the heat once it reaches its number goal. Simple stuff!
The hardest part? Waiting for it to cool in the pan! Patience is a virtue 😉
Salted Brown Sugar & Honey Fudge
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 and 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 3/4 teaspoon flaky sea salt, divided
- 1 vanilla bean, scraped
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
Instructions
- In a heavy bottomed saucepan combine the sugars, honey, cream, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and vanilla bean. Place pan over medium heat and whisk until sugars are dissolved. Place a candy thermometer in the pan, and cook the mixture - stirring occasionally - until the temperature registers at 240 degrees (F). Remove pan from heat. Add the butter, stir until completely melted, then leave the mixture to stand - with the thermometer still in - until it's cooled to 120 degrees (F).
- Pour the fudge into a parchment paper lined baking pan (I used an 8x8 square cake pan), sprinkle with remaining sea salt, and let set for at least 4 hours in the refrigerator. Cut into tiny squares and serve, or store in an airtight container. Fudge will last up to 7 days.
I’ve never made real fudge before, just the microwave cheat kind. This looks totally worth the effort. I love the sweet and salty combination!
This is amazing! We must be on the same wavelength–I also just purchased a candy thermometer, and had no idea what to try first! Yum 🙂
Just curious, but what sort of room do you live in that is between 140-120F?
That is just the temperature the thermometer should be before pouring it into the pan.
Oh wow, Ashley, this sounds incredible. Brown sugar is always a win – so caramely and rich. And in this fudge. Heaven. Pinned!
YUM! Homemade fudge is totally worth the candy thermometer investment 🙂
I am guessing it is 1 1/2 cups brown sugar? Recipe doesn’t specify.
Ah yes! Sorry. The 1 1/2 brown sugar = 1 1/2 cups brown sugar. I’ll add that in now. Thank you!
This recipe is soooo good – the butter/brown sugar/salt combination is just right for our family, BUT
I’m disappointed in the texture; it’s very grainy. I’ve used a candy thermometer quite a bit so I don’t think temperature was the problem. I’ve read that too much stirring, or that scraping down the sides of the pan and mixing in the crystals that form there, can cause more crystallization . Any suggestions?
This would be the best gift for someone, wrapped in some cute boxes! You should start a fudgery haha… I don’t think fudgery is a word, but you should!!
Oh my goodness, this fudge is perfection. And I’ve never made homemade fudge before!! Need to do this immediately. Awesome!
Every time I start heating sugar to make caramel or candy I feel thoroughly petrified…but the end results is so worth those minutes of fear. Love this sweet salty brown sugar fudge! No way I’d be able to stop at just one (or five) pieces!