Fabulous Five-Minute Fudge

While Scott was busy hooking up his early Christmas gift (a Nintendo Wii!), I found myself with a chocolate craving and no chocolate. Take that back - we had a couple of bags of semisweet chocolate chips, but I wanted to make something yummy. Unfortunately, we were out of eggs, so cookies were pretty much out. Then in glancing through Better Homes and Gardens: The Ultimate Cookie Book, I discovered a section in the back with candy recipes.

Just what my craving needed - a recipe that takes five minutes of hands-on work and 30 minutes of patient waiting... Fabulous Five-Minute Fudge. Also, it only requires four ingredients and one of them is water (unless I chose to add nuts which would bring the total to five). Plus the directions call for making the recipe in the microwave. Ahh, a quick and easy path to chocolate deliciousness...

Fabulous Five-Minute Fudge
Prep: 5 minutes
Chill: 30 minutes
Makes: 24 pieces

Ingredients:
One 12-ounce package semisweet chocolate pieces (2 cups)
2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk (one-half of a 14-ounce can)
1 tablespoon water
3/4 cup chopped walnuts, toasted if desired
1 teaspoon vanilla

1) Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper; set aside. In a microwave-safe bowl, combine chocolate pieces, sweetened condensed milk, and the water.

2) Microwave, uncovered, on 100 percent power (high) for 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 1 minute more or until mixture is smooth, stirring every 30 seconds. [I only did 30 additional seconds, not a full minute.] Stir in nuts and vanilla. Pour onto the prepared cookie sheet and spread into a 9x6-inch rectangle. Chill about 30 minutes or until firm. Cut fudge into 1 1/2-inch squares.

Storage: Layer fudge between waxed paper in an airtight container; can store at room temperature for up to 1 week

Ideas for Variations: Wouldn't it be festive to mix in some crushed candy canes? Or what about trying different chips - milk chocolate, white chocolate, peanut butter?

Oh, and about the Wii... Scott impressed me by hooking everything up without me getting involved and all "control freak" with the directions.

We created our Mii characters, he sampled table tennis and basketball, and then I tried sword play. Definitely could let out some aggression with that game... especially if you made your opponent look like the person currently causing you frustration. Scott joked that during the next argument we have, we'll have to declare "To the Wii" and settle it with an old-fashioned sword fight. Well, once we purchase another remote...  And our verdict on the fudge: REALLY good!  It's hard to stop after one, or two, or three pieces...