I remember many times going into stores and buying fudge. They had all sorts of kinds and they usually offered some free samples. I never was obsessed with fudge, but my brother really was! But if I ever got fudge it always involved some sort of peanut butter. What’s better than peanut butter and chocolate?
Fast forward to now and I really love anything that has to do with chocolate (and peanut butter in general). Can you tell by my latest posts? But I think it’s something than when you are eating healthy you can eat very easily because there are a lot of unsweetened varieties. Unsweetened chocolate and cocoa powder. Don’t forget about cocoa powder. There’s almost endless options to do with cocoa powder. I feel like I am trying to make an exhaustive list of cocoa powder recipes. I guess bear with me, or enjoy with me as I go about all of these chocolate posts.
This recipe is reminiscent of my peanut butter cup recipe. It has a lot of the same ingredients, but in a different and easier way. The fudge is more creamy and doesn’t have as much of a peanut butter taste. I think it is because it blends with the coconut oil in just the perfect way. Plus, you can make this whole recipe in 15-20 minutes (almost including clean-up time!). So it is something that is made easily and tastes great. You can refrigerate it or freeze it for later.
Ingredients
1 cup organic peanut butter (creamy or crunchy)
3/4 cup coconut oil
2 tablespoons birch xylitol, powdered
1 teaspoon Stevita stevia, powdered
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
Directions
- Line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper
- Add 1 cup of water to a small saucepan and put it over medium heat. You are going to use this as a double boiler to make the fudge. I find it much easier to heat everything up so it melts together well. It also dissolves the xylitol and stevia so you don’t get a crunch from the crystals
- In a stainless steel bowl or thick glass bowl add the peanut butter and coconut oil and set on top of the saucepan. This will be your double boiler. It heats it more evenly and doesn’t scald the fudge as it could if you just put it directly on the stove
- Add the sweeteners (I powdered the stevia and xylitol together in a coffee grinder) and cocoa powder and salt and stir to combine. I used a whisk because it breaks up the little bits of the ingredients until they melt together
- Once everything is all mixed together take off of the heat and add the vanilla, stir one more time
- Pour the fudge into the pan and put in the refrigerator to harden for 1-2 hours (it can sit in there longer though)
- Cut with a sharp knife and serve. Store in the refrigerator or freezer
Enjoy!
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I just made some fudge using a slow cooker to melt dark chocolate chips, coconut milk, honey & a dash of salt. Two hours in the slow cooker then stir in your vanilla. Let it set for 4 hours to cool to room temperature. Next it said to stir vigorously for 5-10 minutes until it loses some of the gloss. I used my hand mixer instead. Pour into your pan and refrigerate until firm.
I’ve never thought to use a slow cooker to make fudge. I bet it was easy and tasted amazing!
Dr. Meghan
Just made this recipe tonight! I poured it into ice cube trays and froze it and was able to eat it in about 1/2 hr after freezing! They popped right out…probably because of the coconut oil.
Oh, I like the idea of ice cube trays. That works great too!!
would like the carb count for this if possible
I keep a constant supply of this fudge in my freezer at all times! I even add a little almond flavoring into it every once in awhile!
I love the idea of almond flavoring. Wow!!
Love, LOVE, Love this Fudge!!! I am trying tonight with walnuts in the bottom of the pan before pouring the batch in and have been sprinkling a little extra mineral salt on top for an extra salt fix!
The little man loves it too!
Thanks so much Dr. Meghan for a super yummy, sugar-free recipe that is easy to make and we love to eat! (not to mention easy to clean out of the pan afterwards too:))
Thanks for letting me know how much you love the ridge. I have to agree… it is one of my favorites too!
If I have liquid stevita, can I use that? DO you know about how much I would use?
Hi Lauren. That’s a great question. Yes, you can definitely use liquid stevia. I never use stevia in liquid form (no reason, just like my powder because I have come to know how to use it). I would suspect you need at least 20 drops. So I would start slow and taste it while it’s still hot and see if it needs any more. You can always add more! Let me know how it turns out!
What brand of Xylitol do you use? I’ve tried several different brands, and most of them make me feel SO sick to my stomach. I’ve read that the birch bark kind is the best, but last time I tried it I still got sick from it. Have you heard any feedback about this, or has anyone had a similar experience? I really want to make this recipe! :-)
I Kit-
I use Smart Sweet Xylitol. But it sounds to me that your body doesn’t do well with xylitol (sugar alcohols) at all. In large amounts everyone won’t feel great. But for you, your tummy probably responds poorly in even small amounts. But no worries, you can substitute that out! You can just add more stevia to the fudge and it’s still amazing.