Christmas Coal Candy (Black Fudge)

This playful Christmas coal candy turns silky white-chocolate fudge jet-black for a tongue-in-cheek holiday treat that’s rich, creamy, and ridiculously easy. With a gentle, low-heat melt and an overnight chill, you’ll get smooth texture, sharp edges, and that perfect coal look—sprinkles optional.

What You’ll Need

You only need a handful of easy to find ingredients to make this Christmas coal candy. A full list of ingredients with measurements for this recipe is available in the printable recipe card below.

• Sweetened condensed milk – This easy fudge recipe uses a fudge making hack, sweetened condensed milk, unlike traditional fudge that melts sugar with sugar corn syrup. You don’t have to be as vigilant with the temperature or technique and it has a lot more forgiveness.

Test Kitchen Notes

I’ve tested this Christmas coal candy in my kitchen so that I can provide you with these helpful tips and tricks.

• Patience > heat: High heat can scorch your fudge or turn it oily or grainy; so patience is key when melting chocolate and making fudge.
• Jet-black finish: Start with a deep gray color, then whisk in tiny dabs of gel until it reaches the desired black color.
• Clean edges: To ensure clean cuts, chill your fudge overnight and use a warm, dry knife and wipe between cuts.
• Altitude: If you’re at a higher altitude, your melt may take longer- keep it low and steady for smoothest results.
• Grainy/oily: This generally means you overheated it. Rewarm gently off heat, then whisk in 1–2 tsp condensed milk or a dab of butter.
• Too soft: You probably just need to chill longer; next batch add a few tablespoons more chips or use a smaller pan.
• Streaky color: This just means you didn’t mix in the coloring enough. Whisk thoroughly off heat.

Perfect Pairings

If adding this christmas coal candy to a cookie tray, consider adding other fun cookies like Melted Snowman Cookies, Cream Wafer Cookies, Pignoli Cookies or Quick Sugar Cookie Fudge.

And if you have someone on your NICE list, consider making them these adorable no Bake Santa Cookies, Meringue Christmas Trees, Christmas Tree Cake Cones or even Homemade Hot Chocolate Bombs.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Easy Fudge Recipes

When Christmas rolls around, fudge is my go to dessert to both make and eat! Here are some of my favorites.

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Eggnog Fudge

4.08 from 13 votes

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Peppermint Fudge (Easy Condensed Milk Fudge)

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Gingerbread Fudge

4.70 from 10 votes

Christmas Coal Candy Recipe

4.28 from 75 votes

This Christmas Coal Candy is the perfect fudge recipe for Christmas! Give as a gag gift to someone who needs coal for Christmas.

Prep Time: 5 minutes mins

Cook Time: 10 minutes mins

Chilling Time: 8 hours hrs

Total Time: 8 hours hrs 15 minutes mins

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Servings: 16 squares

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Equipment

• 8×8 Baking Dish
• Whisk
• Parchment Paper
• Box Grater

Ingredients

• 3 cups white chocolate chips
• 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons gel black food coloring
• Black or silver sprinkles or sanding sugar , optional

Instructions

• Line an 8×8 square baking dish with parchment paper.
• Heat the 3 cups white chocolate chips, 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk, 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, ½ teaspoon fine sea salt and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract in a heavy bottom sauce pan.
• Stir constantly until mixture is smooth, approximately 5-7 minutes. Keep over low heat, the process it slow, but if you turn up the heat you run the risk of scalding the mixture. It WILL melt… slowly. If you are at a high altitude, this may take longer than stated, be patient.
• Remove from heat and whisk in 2 teaspoons gel black food coloring. You may need more or less depending on the brand. See notes.
• Pour into parchment lined dish and spread evenly.
• Sprinkle with black or silver embellishments, if desired. Allow to cool fully before covering and chilling for a minimum of 8 hours.
• Lift parchment out of the pan and cut into 1-inch squares.
• If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comments or ratings.

Notes

**I’ve made this recipe multiple times now and made modifications so it should be 100% accurate.**

Use milk chocolate or dark chocolate and you can reduce the amount of black food coloring. 

Different brands of condensed milk have varying amounts of water and can take different amounts of time for it to evaporate. I used Eagle Brand when I made this recipe. 

Why didn’t my fudge set? The number one reason fudge doesn’t set is because it wasn’t cooked for long enough or at the right temperature. It must reach the correct temperature for the right amount of time to have water evaporate enough to set the way fudge should.

If you have already put it in the pan and it didn’t set, you can actually transfer it back to a saucepan, add a SMALL amount of water so it doesn’t burn immediately and go through the cooking process again. 

Storage: I like to store mine in the fridge in an airtight container. Allow it to sit for 15 minutes or so before serving to come to temperature.

Freezing: Yes, you can freeze fudge made with sweetened condensed milk. Wrap it well in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 6 months. Like anything though, it will be a little drier after thawing.

 

Nutrition

Calories: 94 kcal, Carbohydrates: 14 g, Protein: 2 g, Fat: 4 g, Saturated Fat: 2 g, Cholesterol: 12 mg, Sodium: 104 mg, Potassium: 92 mg, Sugar: 14 g, Vitamin A: 110 IU, Vitamin C: 1 mg, Calcium: 70 mg, Iron: 1 mg

Calories: 94

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: black fudge, christmas coal, coal candy

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