Pina Colada Fudge

One of my favorites of all the different types of fudge that my dad used to make was his pina colada fudge. I didn’t really know a lot about fudge, although I do recall the fantastic flavors. I also remember that you can only have a small amount of this fudge as it is so sweet. I found his recipe for this fudge and knew I needed to make it.

This recipe comes from a Pillsbury Bake Off, which tells you a bit about the ingredients. When the competition began in the late 1940s, people used standard ingredients such as flour and sugar. Since this recipe is from the 2002 contest, the requirements are different. Typically, recipes need to include one or two premade or specialty ingredients. This recipe uses Pillsbury vanilla frosting, which is unusual in fudge but explains why this fudge is so sweet.

I do use slightly different recipes from my dad, and I could tell the difference. I use desiccated coconut, which is smaller cut and less sweet than American-style coconut. I also wasn’t sure about the dried pineapple, as what I found was slightly darkened due to the drying process. In the end, the fudge looked as expected, so the pineapple I used was fine. The coconut, since it is a smaller cut, is very prevalent. I like this since I love coconut so much. This tastes a lot like Dad’s, but slightly different. And yes, it is still very sweet.

Pina Colada Fudge
2 cups white chips
3.25 ounces chopped macadamia nuts, toasted
16 ounce can Pillsbury vanilla frosting
1/2 cup chopped dried pineapple
1/2 cup toasted coconut
1 teaspoon rum extract
1 teaspoon coconut extract

Line a 9” square pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

Place the white chips in a microwave-safe bowl; microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring frequently, until the chips are melted and smooth.

Reserve ¼ cup of chopped macadamia nuts. Fold in the remaining macadamias, vanilla frosting, dried pineapple, coconut, rum and coconut extracts. Mix until thoroughly combined and then spread in the prepared pan. Top with the ¼ cup reserved macadamia nuts.

Refrigerate until firm, at least an hour, before cutting into small squares.

Recipe from Michelle Grosella, BakeOff 2002 via Pillsbury