Fudge frosting from BraveTart: Iconic American Desserts (page 121) by Stella Parks

Where’s the full recipe - why can I only see the ingredients?

Accompaniments: Classic yellow layer cake

Always check the publication for a full list of ingredients. An Eat Your Books index lists the main ingredients and does not include 'store-cupboard ingredients' (salt, pepper, oil, flour, etc.) - unless called for in significant quantity.

Notes about this recipe

  • kshell on May 25, 2026

    Despite scrupulously following the instructions my frosting is grainy, oily, and too firm to spread. Here is where I believe this may have failed: beating the fudge mixture for 15 minutes is way more time than what is needed to bring it from 115F to 68 (and if you dig around online there is a typo and it only should cool to 78!) When I got this mixing I walked away to start tidying up and about 6 or 7 minutes in I heard the mixer sound change to a louder thump. It had become solid and grainy. I tried her trick where you microwave a cup and beat it back in and this helped for about 10 seconds before seizing again. This was before the butter was added. The sides of the bowl still felt warm, like I should have still been within the window to add the butter. I see in another note someone added warm water and got the texture back. I wish I had known to try that. There are not many frostings that I enjoy, and I really wanted this to work! I don't think I'll try again for a good long while.

  • MarciK on March 26, 2023

    This sounded like a good idea until I realized my fudge making skills are not quite advanced enough. I heated the fudge to 235 then took off heat, and watched the temperature on the thermometer clime all the way to 250 off heat. It was half solidified to the pan, but I managed to scape some up to turn into frosting. As I’m beating it, it got thick and creamy, then went beyond to dry and crumbly. I was able to beat it up with a bit of warm water to get it creamy again before adding butter. It never got smooth, but it was soft and spreadable and tasty. If you’re not used to candy making or working with a candy thermometer, this might not be the recipe to try for the first time for a special event. But it is delicious and worth perfecting.

  • ddenker on June 07, 2018

    I really wanted this to work as I'm looking for a non-confectioner's sugar chocolate frosting that is amazing...my go-to. Sadly, I was disappointed. I made this for my husband's birthday cake (see yellow cake note from 5/21/18). I think I let the frosting cool a bit too long and could never truly fix it per her troubleshooting notes. I literally had to place the frosting on with my fingers as it was so thick and unspreadable.

  • MollyB on May 21, 2018

    I carefully followed the recipe on this, but it was a total failure for me. Reading more about fudge, I think my failure might have been due to the fact that I'm at 5,000 feet of elevation and the lower boiling point here caused problems. I may try again with lower target temperatures. The standard seems to be to deduct two degrees from the temperature required for every one thousand feet of altitude above sea level. (The yellow cake from the cookbook, which Parks pairs the fudge frosting with, was fabulous,)

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