Carnation Evaporated Milk Taste Challenge Starring Fudge

Carnation evaporated milk sent me the opportunity to run a fun little challenge.* They are encouraging people to test their favorite recipes using evaporated milk vs. regular milk. Hey, I am up for some fun and love to turn anything into a competition! I decided to try this little game a few nights ago when I was expecting some guinea pigs friends for dinner.   I looked through the new Carnation Holiday Recipe Guide and decided since I was slaving over a hot stove all day doing the entire dinner by take-out, the least I could do is make a dessert from scratch. I chose the fudge recipe to try. Mmmmmm…. Fudge. A little note about evaporated milk from Carnation:

Evaporated milk is just fresh milk that is gently heated to remove about half of the water and in condensed form, it not only makes dishes richer and creamier but also provides double the protein and calcium per serving.   Since it is available in regular, low-fat and fat-free varieties, you can substitute it for the kind of milk you normally use in your cooking.

In dueling saucepans I made two recipes at the same time – one with Carnation Evaporated Lowfat 2% Milk and the other with regular 2% milk. Here is the recipe I used: Carnation Famous Fudge 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 2/3 cup Carnation Evaporated Milk 2 tablespoons butter or margarine 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 cups miniature marshmallows 1 1/2 cups Nestle Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Line 8 inch square baking pan with foil. Combine sugar, evaporated milk, butter and salt in medium, heavy-duty saucepan.   Bring to a full rolling boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.   Boil, stirring constantly, for 4 to 5 minutes.   Remove from heat. Stir in marshmallows, morsels, nuts and vanilla extract.   Stir vigorously for 1 minute or until marshmallows are melted.   Pour into prepared baking pan.   Refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm.   Lift from pan, remove foil and cut into 48 pieces. *** The first thing I noticed…yep, I am super observant…was that the color was much different between the two mixtures. The other thing I noticed is that any color difference was completely obliterated by the addition of chocolate chips, yet both smelled, looked and…tasted amazing.   Oh pleeeease, like you could stir this concoction without tasting it. Once the two batches of fudge was completed, I placed it out on a platter with different colored toothpicks in each recipe. My guests would be able to taste both and then “vote” for their favorite by the color of the toothpick. What my guests didn’t know was that the wood colored toothpicks were in the Carnation evaporated milk batch and the red toothpicks were in the regular milk batch. My guests humored me and jumped right in.   They tasted each batch of fudge and threw their favorite fudge’s toothpick into a bowl. And so, what was the final score? 5 to 5. Everyone voted enthusiastically for fudge – either batch. YUM. I will say that the Carnation evaporated milk made fudge batch was a little creamier, easier to cut and glossier in appearance, but both recipes turned out super yummy. The recipe is really easy and doesn’t take much time. *I was sent two free cans of evaporated milk and a gift card to cover grocery costs from a representative of Carnation — Thanks!