My strawberry fudge recipe is easy and delicious! With sweetened condensed milk and white chocolate as the base, this microwave recipe uses plenty of freeze dried strawberries and a packet of strawberry gelatin to add flavor. Although this recipe is super quick, the old-fashioned strawberry flavor is surprisingly strong. If you’re looking for a sweet snack or light dessert, keep reading to learn how to make my strawberry fudge recipe.
Can You Make Strawberry Fudge?
Yes, you can! When most people think of fudge, they think of regular chocolate, or perhaps white chocolate–not strawberry. In fact, many people would think it isn’t possible to make fruit-flavored fudge.
Types of Strawberry Fudge Recipes
In reality, there are a lot of strawberry fudge recipes on the Internet. Although the recipes vary, they normally fall into two groups:
Canned Frosting – This 2-ingredient strawberry fudge recipe from MidgetMomma.com is a great example of how you can make homemade fudge with storebought frosting and white chocolate chips.
Marshmallow Fluff – With strawberry marshmallow fluff as a main ingredient, this version from WhereIsMySpoon.com also calls for white chocolate chips.
My Strawberry Fudge with Sweetened Condensed Milk Recipe
I’m sure the other versions are delicious, but I wanted to try something different. Storebought frosting usually has trans fat-containing hydrogenated oils, and marshmallow fluff can be a bit hard to find. That’s why I decided to invent my own recipe for strawberry fudge with sweetened condensed milk.
Why Make Strawberry Fudge with Sweetened Condensed Milk?
Making strawberry fudge with sweetened condensed milk is great because it’s so quick and easy. While researching this recipe, I realized that many of the other recipes, including both the canned frosting and marshmallow fluff versions mentioned above, called for white chocolate chips.
As I learned from my very popular sweetened condensed milk fudge recipe, using a can of condensed milk and a bag of chocolate chips to make homemade fudge in the microwave is super simple and incredibly delicious. Given the success of my other chocolate recipe and what I saw in existing strawberry versions, I decided to create a new strawberry fudge recipe using the same concept from the past recipe.
Why Use White Chocolate Chips to Make Strawberry Fudge?
Although it might sound odd to use white chocolate chips in a strawberry fudge recipe, it makes perfect sense:
More Neutral Flavor – Compared to normal chocolate, white chocolate’s flavor is definitely more subtle, making it easier to add other flavors on top of it.
Holds Its Shape – Like other types of chocolate, you can melt white chocolate and then cool it down again, and it will harden into a solid that you can cut into pieces.
Readily Available – White chocolate is available in almost every grocery store, so it’s easy to find.
Given these characteristics, it’s no wonder that white chocolate is a main ingredient in this recipe.
Why Use Freeze Dried Strawberries to Make Fudge?
Freeze dried strawberries are strawberries that have been processed to remove almost all of the moisture but not the flavor or nutrients. When ground into a powder, freeze dried strawberries allow you to add flavor from real strawberries without adding moisture–this is super important in some recipes, such as my strawberry cookies with cake mix, since moisture would make the cookies fluffy like a cake, not crisp.
Since moisture, whether from water or juice, can ruin melted chocolate, I knew that adding real strawberries wasn’t an option. That’s why I opted for freeze dried strawberry powder. It worked absolutely fantastic in this recipe, so don’t leave it out–it added a lot of good, old-fashioned flavor.
Strawberry Fudge Recipe Ingredients
My strawberry fudge recipe with sweetened condensed milk has just a few, simple ingredients:
Sweetened Condensed Milk – 14 oz can
White Chocolate Chips – 11 oz bag. If your bag is 10 or 12 oz, that’s OK.
Freeze Dried Strawberries – 1.2 ounces. You can also just buy freeze dried strawberry powder.
Strawberry Jello – 3 oz box. In the US, this is the standard size for small boxes of gelatin.
Unsalted Butter – 1 Tablespoon. If using salted butter, leave out the 1/8 teaspoon of salt.
Salt – 1/8 teaspoon
Recipe Tools
When you make this recipe, make sure you have:
Microwave-Safe Bowl – I recommend a large, glass bowl.
Spatula or Large Spoon – Something to stir the fudge.
Plastic Wrap – To line the dish in which you’re going to pour the fudge mixture.
Casserole Dish – I poured the fudge into an 8×8 dish to harden. For thicker fudge, use a loaf pan.
Rolling Pin and Plastic Bag -or- Food Processor – To pulverize the freeze dried strawberries into powder.
How to Make Strawberry Fudge
Learning how to make strawberry fudge is easy. You just have to follow a few, easy steps:
Dry the Bowl and Utensils
If there’s any water in the bowl or on your utensils, it has the potential to seize your chocolate, ruining the fudge. So, make sure your microwave-safe bowl, spatula, and spoons are 100% dry before you begin.
Prep the Mold Before You Start
It’s important make sure the dish in which you’re going to harden the fudge is lined with plastic wrap. Once everything is mixed together, the fudge will start to set quickly. If you forget to line the dish, taking just an extra minute or two to prep the dish will make the fudge much harder to pour and spread.
Pulverize the Freeze Dried Strawberries
After gathering the ingredients and prepping the dish, the first step in my strawberry fudge recipe is pulverizing the freeze dried strawberries. I did it the old-fashioned way: I put the freeze dried strawberries in a plastic bag and hit them with a rolling pin until they turned into dust.
I think you could also use a small food processor, too. You could even buy freeze dried strawberry powder and skip this step. However, if you don’t want to buy special tools or pay more for the powder, a rolling pin, a plastic bag, and some built-up anger will work just fine, hahaha
Combine the Sweetened Condensed Milk, White Chocolate Chips, and Butter
The next step is pouring the sweetened condensed milk, white chocolate chips, and butter into a microwave-safe bowl. Since just a few drops of water can make chocolate seize and ruin the recipe, it’s very important to make sure the bowl is clean and 100% dry.
Melt the Sweetened Condensed Milk, White Chocolate Chips, and Butter in the Microwave
Once these ingredients are in the bowl, melt them together in the microwave. Microwave them on high, uncovered, for a total of 2 minutes using 30-second increments, stirring after each increment.
Stir Every 30 Seconds, And at the End
It’s very important to stir every 30 seconds to make sure everything melts evenly, so don’t forget!
At the end of the 2 minutes, the white chocolate chips may appear to not be fully melted. Simply keep mixing the soon-to-be fudge together a few times, and the chips will melt totally.
Add the Freeze Dried Strawberries and Strawberry Jello
After the sweetened condensed milk, white chocolate chips, and butter are melted and mixed together, it’s time to add the freeze dried strawberries and strawberry gelatin to give the fudge flavor. The order in which you add them doesn’t matter.
However, it’s important to note that once you add the strawberry gelatin, the fudge mixture will become a lot harder to stir. Like I said earlier, it’s important to have everything ready at the beginning because this recipe moves quickly, especially at the end.
Don’t Forget the Salt!
Although you can add the salt to the sweetened condensed milk, white chocolate chips, and butter and melt the 4 ingredients together, I waited until the end of the recipe because, honestly–I forgot, LOL.
Pour the Strawberry Fudge into the Prepared Dish and Smooth It Out
With all of the ingredients now mixed in, pour the soon-to-be fudge into the prepared dish. Use a spoon or spatula to smooth it out as much as possible.
Chill in the Refrigerator to Set the Fudge
Once the strawberry fudge is distributed evenly and smoothed out, let it cool down for 15-30 minutes before placing it in the fridge. Then, place the fudge in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours to set. There’s no need to cover it while chilling–I didn’t.
Cut and Serve the Fudge
3-4 hours later, your strawberry fudge should be firm enough to cut and serve–enjoy!
How Long Does Strawberry Fudge Take to Set?
My old-fashioned strawberry fudge recipe takes 3-4 hours to set. To be on the safe side, I would give it 4 hours in the refrigerator.
How Many Servings Does This Recipe Make?
Honestly, it depends on how big you cut the pieces. If using an 8×8 casserole dish, cutting the strawberry fudge into 32 pieces will give you portions that will require multiple bites to finish but still aren’t too big. To make 32 evenly-sized pieces, make 8 horizontal cuts, then 4 vertical cuts.
How to Store Strawberry Fudge with Sweetened Condensed Milk?
To store your strawberry fudge, place it in a sealed container in the refrigerator. Although you could wrap each piece individually, I don’t think that’s necessary–besides, it would be very time-consuming.
How Long Does Strawberry Fudge Last?
If stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator, your strawberry fudge should keep for 3-4 weeks. After that, it will start to dry out and lose flavor.
Can Strawberry Fudge Be Frozen?
Yes! In fact, if you want your strawberry fudge to last more than a few weeks, I recommend freezing it.
If you don’t want the pieces of fudge to freeze together, spread them out on a baking sheet so that they aren’t touching, then place them in the freezer. Once fully frozen, put them into a plastic bag. By freezing them spaced-out first, they won’t stick together when you go to take them out of the bag.
However, if you don’t mind having to pull the pieces of fudge apart, you can just put all the pieces of strawberry fudge into a bag and then put the bag in the freezer. This recipe is forgiving.
Can I Make Strawberry Fudge with Regular Chocolate Chips?
Although you technically could make this recipe with milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips, it would no longer be “strawberry fudge.” Instead, it would become “strawberry chocolate fudge.” I’m sure it would be delicious, so if you give it a try, let me know!
Can I Use Fresh Strawberries in this Recipe?
Probably not. Although strawberry puree is a main ingredient in my strawberry cake with jello recipe, it won’t work in fudge. As stated above, water can make melted chocolate seize, so the moisture in strawberry puree would likely ruin this recipe.
Although you could potential cook down the puree until most of the moisture boils away, I’m still not sure if it would work. If you give this a try, let me know how the recipe turns out!
Can You Make Strawberry Fudge on the Stovetop?
Yes! This strawberry fudge recipe is super versatile, so if you prefer to do things the old-fashioned way, you can melt the condensed milk and white chocolate chips on the stovetop with the water bath method.
Why Is My Strawberry Fudge Gritty?
If you try the fudge before it’s firmed up fully, you may find that it has a gritty texture. That’s from the strawberry gelatin and freeze dried strawberries. Once the two dry ingredients have had time to fully hydrate and chill, the texture will be a lot smoother.
Why Is My Fudge Soft?
If your fudge is soft, it’s probably because it hasn’t chilled long enough to set firmly. Like I said above, I would give it 3-4 hours–preferably 4–before serving.
Another possibility is that the fudge has been out of refrigeration for a long time. Although the fudge won’t melt at room temperature, it won’t be as firm. My advice is to leave it out of the refrigerator for 30 minutes, and then serve–that should make the strawberry fudge a bit softer, but not too soft.
A Chef’s Review
Honestly, I was really pleased with how my strawberry fudge recipe with sweetened condensed milk turned out. The strawberry flavor was surprisingly strong for such a quick and easy recipe: everyone who tried it really liked it. Although there was a bit of “and cream” flavor in the background due to the white chocolate, everyone who tried this was absolutely amazed by how good and fruity it was.
In addition to the old-fashioned flavor, this recipe is super easy. As I said above, all you have to do is melt 3 ingredients together in the microwave, add a few other things, then chill the fudge in the refrigerator. The hardest parts are pulverizing the freeze dried strawberries and making sure everything is dry.
And to top it all off, this fudge had a bright pink color that represented the flavor perfectly. Like I said, this strawberry fudge was a bit hit with my friends and I. Since fruit-flavored fudge isn’t very common, you and your family are sure to live this.
Possible Changes to the Recipe
Although I was very pleased with how this strawberry fudge recipe turned out, possible changes include:
Lactose-Free Sweetened Condensed Milk – For those who are lactose-intolerant, this might be a good option.
Vegan Fudge – Although I haven’t tried it, I imagine that sweetened condensed coconut milk, vegan white chocolate, vegan butter, and vegan strawberry gelatin could be used in this recipe, too.
Strawberry Fudge Recipe Variations
If you’re looking to add a twist to this strawberry fudge recipe, try:
Red Sprinkles – Shake red sprinkles on top of the fudge before putting it into the refrigerator. This will add not only more color but also nice crunch.
Chocolate Drizzle – A touch of melted semi-sweet chocolate added once the fudge is in the mold, or even once cut into pieces, would be nice.
Easy Fudge Recipes
If you like homemade candy, be sure to check out these other easy fudge recipes on my site:
Sweetened Condensed Milk Fudge Recipe – Make a chocolate treat with just 2 ingredients!
Recipes with Strawberries
Strawberry Pie with Frozen Strawberries – If you can’t get high-quality fresh berries, this is a great option.
Strawberry Dump Cake – This 3-ingredient strawberry dessert is perfect for beginner cooks.
Strawberry Cake with Jello – Adding strawberry gelatin and puree to cake mix makes this cake amazing.
Strawberry Fudge Recipe Directions
Strawberry Fudge Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk (397g)
- 1 11 oz bag white chocolate chips (312g)
- 1.2 ounces freeze dried strawberries (34g)
- 1 3 oz box strawberry Jello (85g)
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Before starting the recipe, make sure you have all the ingredients and that the mold for the fudge is lined with plastic wrap.
- Pulverize the freeze dried strawberries. I put the berries in a plastic bag and crushed them with a rolling pin, but you can use a food processor, too).
- Combine the sweetened condensed milk, white chocolate chips, and butter in a microwave-safe bowl.
- Melt the 3 ingredients together in the microwave, uncovered, on high power using 30-second increments.
- After each 30-second increment, stir the fudge. Microwave for a total of 2 minutes (4 increments).
- Once the 3 ingredients and melted, add the freeze dried strawberry powder, gelatin, and salt.
- Pour the fudge mixture into a mold lined with plastic wrap. Make sure to spread it out as evenly as possible.
- Chill the strawberry fudge in the refrigerator, uncovered, for 3-4 hours (4 hours is preferred).
- Once the strawberry fudge has set and is firm, cut and serve.
YouTube Video
Be sure to watch my YouTube video tutorial:
