Easy Chocolate Fudge

• 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips, about 18 oz
  Swaps for semisweet chocolate chips

  Instead of chocolate and chocolate chips

  • Semisweet and bittersweet: The same amount, either way. Bittersweet is less sweet and more intense; semisweet is milder and sweeter.
  • Chopped bar chocolate for chips: The same weight (a 12 oz bag of chips is about 2 cups). Melty puddles and streaks instead of neat chips.
  • Chips for bar chocolate when melting: The same weight. Chips melt thicker and less smoothly, so ganache and glazes are a bit stiffer.

  All 4 swaps for chocolate and chocolate chips

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 14 oz
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
  Swaps for unsalted butter

  Instead of butter

  • Salted butter: The same amount, with about ¼ tsp less salt per stick (½ cup) elsewhere in the recipe. Nothing noticeable once you cut the salt.
  • Plant-based butter sticks: The same amount. The closest swap.
  • Refined coconut oil: The same amount: solid when the butter is soft or cold, melted when it is melted. It is all fat, so bakes are a bit more tender and rich, with no butter flavor.

  All 4 swaps for butter

  Cooking for an allergy? Check every label.

• 1 tsp vanilla extract
  Swaps for vanilla extract

  Instead of vanilla extract

  • Vanilla bean paste: The same amount. Stronger, with visible vanilla seeds.
  • Vanilla bean: The seeds of 1 bean for each 1 tbsp extract. A deeper, floral flavor and visible seeds.
  • Alcohol-free vanilla: The same amount. Made with glycerin; a slightly milder taste.

  All 5 swaps for vanilla extract

• 1 pinch kosher salt
  Swaps for kosher salt

  Instead of salt

  • Table salt or fine sea salt: About half as much as Diamond Crystal kosher, about ¾ as much as Morton kosher. The same saltiness when measured this way.
  • Salt by weight: 1 tsp is about 6 grams of table salt, 5 grams of Morton kosher, 3 grams of Diamond Crystal kosher. The most reliable way to swap, especially in baking and brines.

  More for salt

• ¾ cup walnuts, chopped (optional) ≈ 88 g
  Swaps for walnuts

  Instead of nuts

  • Another nut: The same amount. Pecans are sweeter and softer, walnuts slightly bitter, almonds firmer and milder.
  • Toasted pumpkin or sunflower seeds: The same amount. Smaller and crunchier, with an earthy taste.
  • Leave them out, or use chocolate chips or toasted oats: The same amount (or none). Leaving nuts out doesn't change how a batter bakes.

  More for nuts

  Cooking for an allergy? Check every label.

• flaky sea salt, for the top (optional)

Weights from USDA FoodData Central cup weights. Counted things (eggs, cloves, cans) stay as counts, and salt stays in spoons: kosher and flaky salts weigh very differently by brand.

Missing something? Tap Swaps next to an ingredient, or see all substitutions.