Oat flour makes this delicious fudge healthier and lighter than most! It tastes like fudge and no-bake cookies. Adjust the mix-ins to your liking.
– ¾ cup creamy unsalted almond butter or peanut butter – ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chip – ⅓ cup maple syrup or honey – 4 tablespoons butter, sliced into small cubes, or ¼ cup melted coconut oil – ¾ teaspoon salt (scale back, to taste, if your nut butter is salted) – ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon – 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract – 1 ¾ cups old-fashioned oats ground into flour, see step 1 – 1 cup whole pecans or other nut – Optional: Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling on top
Prep work: Preheat oven to 325°F. Two parchment paper strips should fit inside an 8- to 9-inch square baker. Cross the papers at the bottom of the baker and fold the ends up the sides (see photos).
Make your own oat flour by blending or processing 1 and ¾ cups of oats into a fine flour. Toast nuts: On a small, rimmed baking sheet (I used parchment paper for easy cleanup), layer the nuts.
Bake until fragrant, 7–10 minutes for thinner/smaller/chopped nuts and 10 for whole pecans. Put large nuts like pecans on a cutting board and chop them with a chef's knife.
Make fudge: Mix nut butter, chocolate chips, sweetener, butter, salt, and cinnamon in a medium, heavy-bottomed pot. To melt the mixture, stir frequently over medium heat. Remove pot from heat.
Add vanilla extract, oat flour, and chopped pecans to the pot. The mixture will have thickened, so you may need to work hard to mix in the pecans. You can!
Carefully pour fudge into your lined square baker. Push the mixture evenly across the baker with the back of a sturdy mixing spoon. Use parchment paper to press the fudge into a thick, heavy-bottomed drinking glass or mason jar until it's evenly packed.
Use the bottom of your parchment-covered glass to gently press flaky sea salt onto the fudge. To firm up and remove the shine, cover and freeze the fudge for 30–45 minutes.
Let the fudge chill for a few hours if you're not in a hurry. Cut fudge into 1 ¼-inch columns and rows using a chef's knife. Fudge will last a few days at room temperature or weeks in an airtight freezer bag.