Candy for Christmas

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Money's tight in the Borda household this Christmas, as I'm sure it is in many households this year. So, I'm going the home made route with some of our gifts. My favorite candy to make is a 'no cook' fudge that tastes nearly as good as something you'd slave over for hours, but all it needs is a few minutes in the microwave.

Basic Recipe -
2 Cups chocolate chips (milk chocolate, semi-sweet - whatever you like)
1 can condensed milk (and again, make sure you've got condensed milk, not evaporated milk!)
1 tsp Vanilla (this can be left out if you don't have it, and still be just as good)

Line a 8x8 cake pan with wax paper.

Put the chocolate chips in a 2 qt glass casserole, and put it in the microwave. Time will depend on your oven, but stir it every 30 secs or so, until they're 'mostly' melted. Add the can of condensed milk and the vanilla, stir thoroughly. Microwave again, no more than 30 seconds at a time, stirring until everything is smooth and well blended.

And that's the recipe, basically!

Now comes the fun part - what do you like in your fudge? Here are some ideas:
Crushed pecans or walnuts
Peanuts 0r a Tbsp of Peanut Butter
Mini-marshmallows
Tiny M&M's
Crushed pretzels

Any combination of these!

The quantity depends on you - 1 cup is a good starting point, depending on what combination you use - if you like it chunkier, use more.

Use your imagination - there are so many directions you can go with it. Some other ideas - try peppermint instead of vanilla. Substitute Butterscotch, white chocolate, or peanut butter chips for 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips.

If you go with mini marshmallows, the heat of the mixture may melt them when you stir them in. If you like it that way, great! If not, let it cool just slightly before you add them.

Anyway - once you have all your add-ins, um, added in, turn the mixture out into your lined cake pan, and put the whole shebang into the refrigerator. In a couple of hours, your fudge will be ready. Take it out of the pan, peel the wax paper off, and cut or break into pieces. Packaged in a pretty little bag or box, you've got a great gift for the mother-in-law or landlady.

Or.. eat it all yourself!

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