Bring Out The Fudge!

So its a start of a new year!!! and the end of the holiday baking :(, oh well, it was fun while it lasted!

What you all do for your new year's eve bash?

For us, Me and Dave went to my sister's new year eve party.  It was just a small group of close family and friends :D, nothing to crazy lol. It was super fun!

For the festivities I made and bought along some chocolate cashew fudge :D.They were a hit and pretty much just like a chocolate bar. My sister has told me that the ones I gave her to eat are all gone, unfortunately only her, Mathew and her friend got one piece to share amongst themselves :O.She has a husband that seem to be a extreme chocoholic haha, he needs help lol. Or she just needs a refill by looking here for the recipe lol.

Back to what happen on new years lol......

The dinner was delicious with a variety of different foods including turkey, enchiladas, perogies, veggies and treats.I got super full from all the good food, but I still seem to go back for snacks :P lol. Christmas and the new year are the best baking times and the worst time for over eating :P lol.

After dinner we listen to music while playing games, telling stories, and taking lots of photos. The night was full of  laughter( funny sounding ones, mostly me :P lol) and maybe some dancing was included as well :D lol.By the time midnight hit we were sort of relaxed and we all took a drink and gave hugs etc.It was a funny night and you definitely don't need a lot of drinking to have fun on new years or anytime.

So its a brand new year, 2011 and by the end of January this little blog will be one years old :D. I cant believe I have actually work hard to stick with this and let it help me learn something new everyday.

In 2010" The Art Of Baking" was born and maybe in 2011 something else that's great will come around in my life as well.Will just have to wait and see! :D

Well the chocolate cashew squares were simple to make and you can easily change up the ingredients to your liking or the baking stock you have. For me I didn't have the tasty macadamia nuts they asked for so I replaced them with some salted cashews that were on hand in the pantry. Sometimes even a main ingredient in the title can be easily changed or replaced. Its all in what you want in the final product, just don't change to must with certain ingredients.

For any recipe I use butter at all times because of the flavor and texture.Butter is usually only used for baking here and I try not to use any margarine. If there is no butter I don't bake or I move on to a different recipe without it. However hard margarine is perfectly fine for a cheaper replacement and more of it to use; however we just don't have in the house.

Now I have no idea if you can replace sweetened condensed milk with just another dairy product. You wouldn't get the exact texture or flavor of course, but I wonder if anyone knows good replacements for it.Please comment if you've tried some thing yourself or some knowledge on this subject :)

These were called squares but there way more like fudge then anything :D.It just seems like a better thing to be called now that I make them. There smooth and elegant while having a pure chocolate richness with a great crunch.The cashew gives a slight salty flavor and pairs so well with dark chocolate. Cashews are so smooth in texture just the same as macadamia nuts. I love them both and work so well with chocolate :D. If you've never tried them together you are sorely missing out on a great treat.

So get your baking on!

 Chocolate Cashew Fudge ( Adapted From Chocolate Macadamia Squares, Company Coming Chocolate Squared)

1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup butter( hard margarine)
1/2 cup cocoa ( sift to prevent lumps)
1/2 cup milk
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs
6 Semisweet chocolate baking squares, chopped
1 cup salted cashews, chop

In a medium saucepan, add condensed milk, butter(or margarine), sift in cocoa, and milk, stir. Put on medium heat until butter is melted. Remove from heat. Turn off.

Add flour, brown sugar, and vanilla, stir until smooth. (Spoon and level dry ingredients).

Add eggs one at a time, beating with a wooden spoon after each time.

Add chocolate and chopped cashews, stir. Pour into a greased glass pan (9 x9 inch pan)

Bake at 350F about 30 minutes + until firm on top. Can do toothpick, its alright if soft crumbs are on toothpick. Its a very soft fudge.

Cool and then cut into desired sized squares.