Chocolate Covered Cherry Amaretto Fudge
The wonderful flavors of chocolate, maraschino cherries, and Amaretto liqueur all combine in this rich and delicious Chocolate Covered Cherry Amaretto Fudge. It will be your new favorite chocolate-and-cherry treat.
I just realized I've only shared two chocolate-y sweet treats with you so far this year {Chocolate Covered Oreo Cake and S'mores Cupcakes}. Well, with Valentine's Day fast approaching, I think it's time to change that. Don't you?
Enter Chocolate Covered Cherry Amaretto Fudge.
Yes my friends, modeled after my favorite Valentine's candy ... chocolate covered cherries ... it's chocolate and cherries and amaretto liqueur all rolled up into one rich and delicious fudge.
I'm not a huge fan of most of the pretty-much-pure-sugar Valentine's candies out there. Like cinnamon red hots. And gum drop hearts. And the-now-prevalent Valentine candy corn.
And even the classic-of-all-classic Valentine candies, conversation hearts. Nope, I don't even really like conversation hearts ... I'll only eat the yellow ones. {Yes, I know it's bizarre.}
For me, my Valentine candy has absolutely got to involve chocolate.
And my absolute favorite?
Chocolate covered cherries.
So I decided to replicate the flavor of my favorite Valentines candy treat in fudge form. Now sure, I could have just made my own chocolate covered cherries. By wrapping each individual cherry in a confectioners sugar mixture and then dipping each in chocolate. But fudge ... it's waaaaaay less tedious.
And I got to add amaretto.
Which adds a wonderful subtle almond flavor along with the cherry ... a flavor combination I love.
Another thing I love about this fudge is the way the cherries get a little 'oozy' inside the chocolate ... much like the oozy center of chocolate covered cherries themselves.
And will be more than quite content with this chocolate-cherry creation.
How about you? Do you prefer sugary Valentine's candy, chocolate Valentine's candy ... or both?
Chocolate Covered Cherry Amaretto Fudge
Ingredients- 2 1/2 c. granulated sugar
- 1 c. unsalted butter
- 1/2 c. whole milk
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 13 large marshmallows, torn in half
- 1 (9 oz.) package Nestle Toll House cherry flavored DelightFulls baking morsels
- 1 c. confectioners sugar
- 1/4 c. + 2 T. amaretto
- heaping 1/3 c. well-drained maraschino cherries, cut in half {I pat them dry with a paper towel}
- Line a 9x9" pan, bottom and sides, with foil. Rub foil with butter or lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a small bowl, whisk together confectioners sugar and amaretto. Set aside.
- Place granulated sugar, butter, and milk in a large pot. Bring to a full rolling boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Continue stirring and boil for 3 minutes this is important for the fudge to set up properly, so time it! {Make sure to stir constantly ... and to keep the mixture at a full rolling boil. If the mixture froths up too much, turn the heat down just a little bit. Also, I sometimes lift the pot off the burner, still stirring, for just a second or two.}
- After the 3 minutes, remove from heat. Add vanilla, marshmallows, and DelightFulls chocolate morsels. Stir until marshmallows and chocolate are completely melted and blended into the sugar mixture. Add amaretto mixture to the pot and stir until blended in. Gently stir in maraschino cherries.
- Pour into prepared pan. Refrigerate until fully chilled. Once chilled, cut into to small squares. Store fudge in the refrigerator.
Note This is a fairly soft-textured fudge, best enjoyed straight out of the refrigerator or after having set out for just a short time. It still tastes great if it's set out for a while, but it will leave some chocolate on your fingers!
Enjoy!
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