When I was a kid, Halloween meant trick-or-treating with my brothers and sometimes some other neighborhood kids. We would dress up and hop in a van, and while driving from one location to the next, we would compare our loot. One neighbor always handed out homemade popcorn balls.
Packets of Skittles, Smarties, and M&M’s would disappear into our tummies between houses. The older kids would try to convince me that one of my Milky Ways was worth two Tootsie Rolls.
Another year there was a fierce competition for who could get the most Butterfingers. I didn’t care – the candy I most wanted were Snickers.
Snickers has been my favorite candy bar for as long as I can remember. When I found out I could buy king-sized Snickers with my meal plans during my freshman year here at EMU, my healthy habits went out the window. So when I discovered Snickers fudge, I nearly swooned.
The first time I ever had Snickers fudge, I was throwing a little get-together for some friends. For dinner I had planned on grilled lamb, vegetable shish-kebabs, asparagus, and spinach risotto.
Dessert was far from my mind, but fortunately my friend Colin came to my rescue.
We were already stuffed from our meal, happily leaning back and enjoying the companionship, when Colin unveiled one of the most delicious desserts I’ve never had, Snickers fudge. An entire pan devoted to the delectable combination of chocolate, peanut butter, marshmallows and caramel.
We ate our fudge slowly, savoring each sweet bite. We set our forks down, closed our eyes and marveled at the flavors traveling across our tongues. This wasn’t a fancy dessert, a tiramisu or a cheesecake. It was four simple layers that worked so well together that I would happily eat it over a real Snickers bar any day.
I do not recommend hoarding this treat. It is meant to be shared. Densely sweet, with each layer adding its own intense flavor, there is nothing about this dessert that can be considered to be a “fluff” layer as far as flavor goes, although the marshmallow layer certainly brings a fluffy texture. A small serving is often sufficient, at least for a little while, and then there is always seconds.
A few of the ingredients might not be regular ingredients in your shopping cart, like marshmallow crème or condensed milk, but finding them in a regular grocery store shouldn’t be a problem – and the results are definitely worth trying out some new ingredients. Plus, it’s fairly easy – no baking, just a lot of melting and stirring ingredients together before freezing them in layers.
Snickers fudge is a dessert meant for those of us with a sweet tooth. It’s a dessert that delights the Snickers eaters of the world. And while it’s not scary – there’s no fake blood or gooey textures – it is certainly the dessert that I would choose for this Halloween, the perfect holiday to celebrate our favorite candy bars.
Snickers Fudge
Servings: 24
Ready in: 1 hour plus 1 hour chilling time
Ingredients:
FIRST LAYER
1 cup milk chocolate chips
¼ cup creamy peanut butter
SECOND LAYER
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup sugar
¼ cup evaporated milk
1 ½ cups marshmallow crème
¼ cup creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup salted peanuts
THIRD LAYER
14-oz. bag caramels, unwrapped
¼ cup evaporated milk
FOURTH LAYER
1 cup milk chocolate chips
¼ cup creamy peanut butter
Directions:
Coat a 13 × 9 pan with cooking spray and set aside.
FIRST LAYER: In a small bowl, combine chocolate chips and peanut butter. Heat in the microwave in two 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval. Stir until creamy and pour in an even layer into the bottom of the prepared pan. Place pan in freezer.
SECOND LAYER: In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.
Stir in the sugar and evaporated milk and bring to a boil. Cook stirring constantly for 3 minutes.
Remove from heat and immediately stir in marshmallow crème, peanut butter and vanilla. Add peanuts and stir until incorporated. Pour mixture over the chocolate layer from the freezer and spread evenly. Place back in freezer.
THIRD LAYER: Add the caramels and evaporated milk to a small saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly until caramel is melted and smooth. Remove pan from freezer and put caramel over the second layer. Place back in freezer.
FOURTH LAYER: In a small bowl, combine chocolate chips and peanut butter. Heat in the microwave in two 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval. Stir until creamy and pour in an even layer onto the top.
Refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour and cut into squares when ready to serve. Keep refrigerated.
