Silky and fragrant, this almond Christmas fudge uses the reliable 240°F soft-ball method for that classic, fine-grained bite. Finish with real almond extract, chill overnight, and slice into neat squares that hold beautifully on cookie trays and gift tins.
Why This Christmas Fudge Works
Thermometer-true texture – Using a thermometer for exactness ensures the soft-ball stage turns out perfectly and you get a fine grain for texture.
Subtle sweetness – With white chocolate and corn syrup to prevent crystallization, this fudge is definitely sweet, but in a subtle way.
Make-ahead & giftable – You get sharp edges after an overnight chill making this fudge perfect for gifting for the holidays.
Traditional Fudge Making
Fudge is basically melted sugar, but the sugar needs something to dissolve into, you use light corn syrup, also a variation of sugar, and cream. The sugar melts and comes to the soft ball stage of candy making.
For the best results, don’t rely on timing or your eyes, get a candy thermometer. Don’t stir during this time, it can separate and ruin the batch.
| Stage | Temperature | Concentration |
| Thread (syrup) | 230 to 234 °F | 80% |
| Soft Ball (fudge) | 234 to 241 °F | 85% |
| Firm Ball (caramel candy) | 244 to 248 °F | 87% |
| Hard Ball (nougat) | 250 to 266 °F | 90% |
| Soft Crack (salt water taffy) | 270 to 289 °F | 95% |
| Hard Crack (toffee) | 295 to 309 °F | 99% |
Recipe Essentials
You only need a handful of simple ingredients to make this almond fudge. A full list of ingredients with measurements for this recipe is available in the printable recipe card below.
- Unsalted butter
- Sugar
- Light corn syrup
- White chocolate
- Heavy cream
- Fine sea salt
- Almond extract
Test Kitchen Notes
I’ve tested this christmas fudge recipe in my kitchen to provide you with tips and tricks that work!
- Thermometer accuracy: Before beginning, check the accuracy of your thermometer. Test in boiling water (should read ~212°F); recalibrate if needed.
- Slice clean: To ensure clean cuts, warm a sharp knife, wipe between cuts; keep fudge cold while slicing.
- Texture fix: If your fudge is slightly firm, serve it at room temperature; if it’s slightly soft, chill longer.
- Flavor balance: Almond is potent- make sure to measure accurately; a pinch more salt can sharpen flavor.
Variations
Feel to free to jazz this christmas fudge up in any way you’d like! Here are a few options.
- Toasted Almond Crunch: Fold in some chopped toasted almonds after cooling, before panning for added texture.
- Chocolate-Drizzled: Drizzle melted dark chocolate or milk chocolate after chilling; allow that to set, then cut.
- Cherry-Almond: Press a few chopped dried cherries on top for color and flavor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Traditionally made fudge won’t be white for a simple reason, you’ve toasted the sugar and vanilla extract is brown. There are recipes that use marshmallow fluff or sweetened condensed milk that will give you fluffy white fudge.
Despite being used interchangeably quite often, there is a difference. Heavy cream has a 36% milk fat while and whipping cream is only 30%. Heavy cream is better for stabilized homemade whipped cream and thickening sauces because it has a higher milk fat and thicker texture, but only slightly.
Fudge has some water in it and if it goes through extreme temperature changes, it will produce sweat.
More Fun Christmas Treats
When Christmas is in the air, baking and making treats is one of my favorite things!
Christmas Fudge (Almond Fudge) Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter , plus more for greasing the pan
- 2 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- ½ cup white chocolate
- ¼ cup light corn syrup
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoons almond extract
Instructions
- Using a cold stick of butter, grease a large piece of parchment paper and then line an 8×8 square baking pan. Set aside.
- Place 1 tablespoon unsalted butter in a large glass or metal mixing bowl. Set that mixing bowl on a cooling rack. The mixture will be super hot and you won’t want to touch the moping bowl after you transfer the mixture. The cooling rack allows air to circulate all the way around the bowl, cooling faster.
- Add the 2 1/2 cups sugar, 1 ½ cups heavy cream, ½ cup white chocolate, ¼ cup light corn syrup and ½ teaspoon fine sea salt into a medium heavy saucepan.
- Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until sugar has dissolved, approximately 10 minutes.
- Increase to medium heat, bringing to a low boil. Do not stir or mix any longer. Attach candy thermometer and continue to cook without stirring. Allow candy thermometer to come to 240°F (soft ball stage) and continue to cook for 1 minute. This can take 10-15 minutes, so be patient.
- Carefully pour the hot mixture into the mixing bowl with the butter. Do not scrape the bottom of the pan in case any of the sugar scaled to the bottom.
- Whisk the butter and 2 teaspoons almond extract into the mixture. It will be bubbly and hot. Be careful!
- Allow to cool at room temperature for 30-40 minutes before mixing well and then transferring to the prepared and lined square dish.
- Use a small offset spatula to quickly spread fudge to sides of pan and smooth top. Allow to further cool before covering and chilling in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours. If you want to add embellishments or sprinkles, do it now while fudge is still tacky.
- Lift parchment out of the square dish and cut into 1-inch pieces.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comments or star ratings.
Notes
Nutrition
Why do you need the box grater? It’s listed under equipment.
Typo- I hope you don’t need a box grater for fudge, that would be weird. Thanks for letting us know 🙂
I can’t wait to make this fudge recipe it sounds very good. I got into baking during covid to have something to do that would be fun and informative. I’m always looking for new recipes to try.
I loved it
Yay!!! Thanks so much for coming back to let us know!
I’m hoping to make a rainbow cookie fudge (in flavor, not necessarily appearance) and so would like to layer this over a thin layer of chocolate fudge and swirl in some raspberry preserves. Any suggestions on at what point I should put in the raspberry? And also, does this freeze? I make fudge for friends and family across the country and worry about this one lasting the few days in the mail!
Hi Samantha! That is so thoughtful of you to send goodies to friends.
My thoughts would be you’d need to make the chocolate and white fudge at nearly the same time. In order to swirl in the preserves, both fudges will need to be semi soft so it doesn’t crinkle all weird. Do it right after pouring so it all sets together. And let us know how it turns out!
For mailing, this fudges does freeze well, but is best kept refrigerated. I would take into account the climates you are sending to- like Florida versus Michigan. LOL.
Almond is one of my favorite flavors! Thanks for demystifying the candy making process!
That fudge looks absolutely perfect! Just the right consistency – I can tell from your pics. And so cute with the sprinkles!
Who knew fudge was so easy and we probably all have the ingredients on hand at all times…I know I do! What a fun, festive recipe! Thanks for another winner!
This fudge is so pretty! Love it saving it for Christmas!
This fudge looks amazing and perfect for Christmas. I’ve always been intimidated with candy making, but maybe I need to start braving my fear. And your super clear instructions will come in handy.