Peanut Butter Fudge

My brother-in-law is visiting, and before he arrived last Monday I made a batch of peanut butter fudge, his favorite. Well, in the past week, we've eaten the whole batch, so I got up early to make up another one he can take with him when he leaves tomorrow or Wednesday. It's the best peanut butter fudge recipe I know, and it's no-fail. I got the recipe from Mom, and I don't know where she got it, so I can't properly credit it.

Combine in heavy pan (I use a 3 quart pan):
1 cup milk
2 cups sugar

Boil without stirring until it reaches 234 degrees F. I recommend buying a digital thermometer with a long probe and a timer/temperature alarm. We got ours from Amazon and it's great. You just clip the probe onto the side of the pan, with the tip positioned a little bit above the bottom, and wait until it beeps. I use a binder clip to hold the probe in the pan.

Add:
1 1/2 cups peanut butter
7 ounces marshmallow creme
1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir until completely combined. Turn into a wax paper lined 8 x 8 inch pan and let it cool. That's it. No beating, no inadvertent spoon candy (you know, when you eat fudge that didn't set up by the teaspoon when you were a kid). I usually cut it into 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inch squares. It's pretty rich.

The wax paper lining for the pan is handy because no sticking and you can haul the cooled fudge out by the paper and cut it on a board instead of in the pan.

Now, I have to add that there's two schools of fudge making. Those that use marshmallow creme and those that don't. The marshmallow creme fudge is more predictable but more foamy. The other kind is creamier and more sugary textured. But about half the time it doesn't act right for me. I don't seem to have the candy-making gene like my Mom. So, marshmallow creme it is.

Also, note the 1 1/2 cups of peanut butter. Seriously peanutty stuff. Try the Skippy Natural Creamy. It doesn't separate like the old natural peanut butter and has a better flavor than other peanut butter brands.