In case you missed it on the Juliet Brilee Facebook page, here’s the recipe for the cooked fudge frosting from the bookChristmas Cake Day. It’s good for a Valentine’s Day cake too. Who doesn’t love chocolate on Valentine’s Day?
Cooked Chocolate Fudge Frosting
You’ll probably want to double this.
4 oz. baking chocolate unsweetened or bittersweet
4 Tablespoons butter
6 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
To melt the chocolate: Break up the chocolate and place in a glass 2 cup measuring cup. Add the butter, cover and microwave for 30 second intervals, stirring as it melts, until it’s smooth. (Traditional method: Melt the butter and chocolate in the top of a double boiler. Stir, then add to the saucepan. I’ve never done it this way.)
Pour into a medium sized pot on the stove (maybe 4 or 6 qt.?)
Turn the burner heat to medium. Add vanilla to the chocolate. Stir.
Start adding sugar to the chocolate/butter mixture and stirring.
The sugar will melt and the frosting will become glossy and dark.
Pour over cooled layers and frost.
If the frosting starts to become too hard, put it back on the heat, stir and when manageable again continue frosting.
If I need more liquid, I add a bit of the evaporated milk I have left over from the vanilla cake batter, OR half and half or milk or water.
If you love frosting, double this and you will probably have extra. If you are planning on extra then grease a plate or dish for the extra which will be fudge.
If you have extra put it back on the heat and cook and stir until the frosting in the pot changes texture and pulls away from the sides and bottom a bit. If you want to be more exact: when a candy thermometer reads between 112 to 114 °C (234 to 237 °F) or the mixture forms a soft ball in cold water it’s officially fudge. Pour onto a greased plate and cool.
