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Loudoun County Fair Champion Candy: 3-Ingredient Recipe for Orange Creamsicle Fudge

Our county fair is so, so small. Every year, we go to the Great Frederick Fair (if you’ve never been, you should. It’s worth it.) Whole buildings full of entries for judging, from arts, crafts, textiles, produce, farm products, and more. The Loudoun County Fair is not that. The fairgrounds has one building it sets aside for the Blue Ribbon Showcase, with one room dedicated to exhibits. Each category fits on one table, with maybe 2 to 20 entries per category. The photography categories have the most entries every year, followed closely by the jams and jellies, and cakes.

Photo of a plastic storage container with pieces of white fudge inside with a blue ribbon and a purple ribbon attached

Ribbons for First Place and Best of Division!

I’ve been entering for the past couple of years, and I’ve done extremely well. My chocolate cake won the Grand Champion Cake category the first year I entered, and my jams and jellies have consistently taken home a blue or a red ribbon each year.

This year, I decided to enter a candy, and I started testing out recipes. I made kind of an educated guess - I had never really paid much attention to the candy entries, but I thought most of them were probably chocolates or caramels. I decided to try something different, with classic flavors that were just a bit nostalgic.

You’re going to want to kick me when you see this recipe.

Orange Creamsicle Fudge

Ingredients (equal parts by weight):

  • White chocolate chips
  • Store-bought vanilla frosting
  • Orange slice candies

Example Measurements

  • 12 oz white chocolate chips
  • 12 oz vanilla frosting
  • 12 oz orange slice candies

Championship Batch

1 heaping tablespoon frosting, 1 heaping tablespoon white chocolate chips, 5 orange slice candies

Instructions:

1. Prepare the pan.
Line a rectangular pan with waxed paper, using at least two rectangles of paper overlapped in an X shape to cover the whole pan. The edges of the waxed paper should overhang the pan by 1 to 2 inches.

2. Soak the candy (optional but recommended)
Soak the candies in warm water for about 10 minutes. This helps dissolve the sugar crystals on the surface, giving the finished fudge a smoother, creamier texture. Drain and pat dry before using. Use a sharp knife to chop the candies into bits.

3. Melt the chocolate and frosting together
In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the frosting and white chocolate chips. Microwave the mixture in 30-second intervals, stirring between each until smooth.

4. Stir in the orange slices
Gently mix in the orange slice bits.

5. Set and slice
Pour the fudge into a parchment-lined pan. Smooth the top and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or until firm. Slice into squares.

I tested this recipe in tiny batches a few times, trying out a few different variables. Whole candies (too chewy), melted candies (not worth the trouble), and chopped to smithereens (not worth the trouble). The sweet spot seems to be pieces of orange candy that are about the size of a chocolate chip. They stir in nicely without taking a ton of work to chop them up. And I definitely prefer the overall texture when I take the time to soak the candies first to remove the sugar crystals from the outside.

The judges sometimes leave comments about our fair entries - it depends a little on the individual judges. For this one, the judge wrote “Delicious” which I took to mean: this fudge recipe made me smile. It was colorful, fresh and fruity, and it makes me think of days as a kid while I was at the fair eating an orange creamsicle push pop. More than just a blue ribbon for best fudge, this (barely a) recipe won the overall prize for the Division.

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