Mint Meltaways
This recipe for Mint Meltaways is a copycat of the iconic Fannie May Mint Meltaways! This homemade candy has a rich dark chocolate peppermint filling coated in milk chocolate and pastel green, pink, and yellow white chocolate. Made with organic ingredients and no artificial colors, feel good about indulging in these nostalgic candies.
If you love making homemade candy as much as I do, be sure to check out some of my other favorites like Homemade Marshmallows Without Eggs, Vegan Dark Chocolate Mini Peanut Butter Cups, Pink Peppermint Ice, Homemade Chewy Chocolate Caramel Candy, or Peanut Turtle Candy.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- Recipe Name: Mint Meltaways
- Ready In: 2 hours 50 minutes
- Makes: 35 candies
- Main Ingredients: sweetened condensed milk, Dutch cocoa, peppermint extract
- Flavor Profile: creamy chocolate with cool mint
- Dietary Info: gluten free, eggless, no seed oils
- Difficulty: Medium
- Why You’ll Love It: Fannie May copycat recipe
Summarize & Save This Content On
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Nostalgic: This organic candy recipe is incredibly nostalgic if you are a fan of Fannie May Candies! Dare I say, these taste even better than the originals!
- No Bad Stuff: While the traditional Mint Meltaways have artificial colors, this mint candy recipe is free of artificial colors, flavors, and seed oils. You can feel good about making this recipe as opposed to buying them.
- Organic Ingredients: I use organic ingredients in this copycat recipe for Mint Meltaways. This makes me feel even better because I'm enjoying this nostalgic mint candy but with organic ingredients I can feel good about eating!
- Mint Chocolate Candy: This is the ultimate chocolate mint candy if you are a mint chocolate fan. The rich chocolate mint filling is smooth, creamy, and strikes the perfect balance of refreshing and rich.
What are Mint Meltaways?
Mint Meltaways is a signature candy from the iconic Fannie May Candies. This is one of their most popular candies that features a cool mint chocolate truffle filling and the candies are coated in pastel green coating or in milk chocolate coating.
While the traditional candies include artificial colors, flavors, seed oils and more, I have created an organic copycat recipe that has quality organic ingredients you can feel good about indulging in! The traditional candies used to have chocolate coating, pastel green coating, pastel pink coating, and pastel yellow coating. But, more recently just the green and chocolate have stuck around.
History of This Recipe
Growing up in Chicago, one of our most beloved traditions was having Fannie May Candies for the holidays. But when the iconic Fannie May filed for Chapter 11 and decided to close it's doors in 2004, my mom went to every location within driving distance and purchased boxes of Mint Meltaways (among other things) and stashed them in the freezer so our tradition wouldn't have to stop.
If you want the full story, the Chicago Tribune had a great article, find it here. As the article said, Fannie May was a part of every Chicago natives Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter, Thanksgiving and more. Yes, it was just candy, but it also wasn't just candy.
Upon the announcement of closing there was uproar in the entire Midwest. People were lined up outside any Fannie May they could get to, and even going to multiple locations (such as my mom). And, I believe someone took notice. Because a few months later, Fannie May was acquired. While they didn't reopen every single store, they did reopen some iconic stores and there was comfort in knowing that you could still order whatever you wanted online. I am positive my mom still had Mint Meltawways frozen in our freezer at this time as well, so no real harm was actually done besides the frantic panic.
While I will always be a fan, and Fannie May will hold a special place in my heart, the ingredients in their candies are not part of my lifestyle anymore. So, I have developed a homemade recipe for Mint Meltaways, and I will say that this one rivals Fannie May! And, they're made with organic ingredients and free of artificial colors and seed oils!
Ingredients
- Sweetened Condensed Milk: I use organic sweetened condensed milk to make these candies sweet and incredibly creamy, melt in your mouth!
- Dutch Cocoa Powder: I use organic Dutch cocoa powder for a rich chocolate flavor.
- Peppermint Extract: You'll need organic peppermint extract for this mint chocolate candy!
- White Chocolate: Make sure to use organic white chocolate that is meant for melting. This means it's free of stabilizers (such as soy lecithin or sunflower lecithin). Opt for a white chocolate bar as opposed to chocolate chips which usually have these ingredients.
- Food Dyes: I use organic beet powder for pink, matcha powder for green, and India Tree's Nature's Colors Yellow dye for the colors. You can find them all my Amazon Shop.
*For a full list of ingredients and measurements, visit the recipe card below.
Tips for Homemade Mint Meltaways
- Always use a digital food scale for the best results.
- You do not have to form these into the squares, I just do because that's the iconic shape! But, you can just roll them into balls if you prefer.
- You can use all milk chocolate or all white chocolate for the coating, either works. I do a mix as that is what Fannie May did!
- These need to be stored in the fridge, because of the cream center.
- You can also freeze these for longer, just store in an airtight container.
How to Make Mint Meltaways
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the sweetened condensed milk, powdered sugar, butter, cocoa powder and peppermint extract.
- Mix on low until combined, scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to ensure everything is combined. Transfer the bowl to the fridge and allow it to chill for about an hour, or until you can easily scoop out the filling.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a tablespoon, measure out the filling onto the baking sheets. You’ll get about 35 candies. You’re just measuring the filling here, it’s okay if it’s still a bit sticky.
Place the trays in the freezer and let them chill for 20 minutes, or until they are firm enough to handle with your hands (not too sticky).
- Remove from freezer and form them into the iconic squares, by squishing each side together with your index finger and thumb. Place them back on the parchment paper and place the baking sheets in the freezer until the squares are very firm, at least 1 hour.
- Add the milk chocolate and white chocolate into separate heatproof mixing bowls and melt.
- You can melt using a double boiler, or doing 30 second intervals in the microwave, stirring between each one.
- If you want to color the candies pink, green, and yellow like Fannie May then divide the white chocolate into 3 bowls. Add a small amount of beet powder for pink, matcha powder for green, and the India Tree Nature’s Colors for yellow to make pastel colors. Stir to combine completely.
- Remove the candies from the freezer and dip into the milk chocolate and white chocolate. I like to use a fork, like a spoon, so excess chocolate can drip back into the bowl, then place back on the baking sheets. To get the iconic swirl that’s on top, once the candies sit for a moment, take a small amount of chocolate and swirl it on top. Place the tray back in the freezer to set until firm, about 20 minutes.
Recipe FAQ's
They are a candy that was made famous by Fannie May Candies. A mint chocolate truffle filling is coated in either a pastel green coating or milk chocolate and they simply melt in your mouth, hence the name.
Yes! They taste exactly like them!
The combination of sweetened condensed milk, powdered sugar and butter will melt from the warmth of being in your mouth!
Incorrect ratios of ingredients can cause them to be too firm or too soft. This is why using a digital food scale and measuring properly is key.
If you didn't sift the powdered sugar, that can cause the filling to be grainy or have clumps of powdered sugar. Sifting powdered sugar is key.
Yes, you don't have to do the iconic square shape and you can instead roll them into balls for ease. They will still look beautiful and taste delicious!
No, you don't. You can temper the chocolate coating if you are gifting or want to leave these out for a party. Otherwise, I don't temper the chocolate as these do need to be stored in the fridge anyways, so I don't think it's necessary.
I like to use a fork, like a spoon, to dip the candies into the melted chocolates. This will help excess chocolate drip back into the bowl so you don't waste it. This also helps prevent a pool of chocolate from forming under the candies.
Once dipped, they just need to set in the freezer until the chocolate hardens. This only takes about 20 minutes.
Store in the fridge or even in the freezer. Because they are made with heavy whipping cream, they do need to be chilled. They'll last for about 2 weeks in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer! Just store in an airtight container.
Yes, they do. You can order them online, but they only make an assorted box of green coated and milk chocolate together. They have discontinued the pastel pink and yellow colors.
Serving Ideas
These organic Mint Meltaways are on my holiday baking list every single year, as they are so nostalgic. They also make a wonderful addition to a DIY Christmas Cookie Box!
Serve them up on a holiday dessert table with other seasonal favorites like Chocolate Peppermint Christmas Tree Cupcakes, Festive Gingerbread Snack Cake Without Frosting, Easy Christmas Present Brownies, Homemade Chocolate Marshmallows Without Eggs, or Dark Chocolate Peppermint Pretzel Bark!
My mom always gave us these for Valentine's Day too. You can make them all pink coated for Valentine's Day and gift with other chocolate candies in a Homemade Valentine’s Day Chocolate Box.
These also make a wonderful Easter candy as they are pastel colored, perfect for Easter. We had these in our Easter baskets every year. Combine them with other Easter candy like Dark Chocolate Coconut Almond Butter Eggs, Strawberry Cream Drops, or Dark Chocolate Raspberry Truffles With Cream Cheese for a naturally colorful and delicious Easter basket!
More Homemade Candy Recipes
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Mint Meltaways
Equipment
- Digital Food Scale
- Stand Mixer
- Small Pot
- Half Sheet Pan
- Parchment Paper Sheets
- Heatproof Mixing Bowl
- Chocolate Thermometer (optional)
Ingredients
- 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
- 454 grams powdered sugar (sifted)
- 57 grams salted butter (softened)
- 43 grams Dutch cocoa (sifted)
- ½ teaspoon peppermint extract
- 10 ounce white chocolate
- 10 ounces milk chocolate
- Beet powder
- Matcha powder
- India Tree Nature’s Colors Yellow
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the sweetened condensed milk, powdered sugar, butter, cocoa powder and peppermint extract. Mix on low until combined, scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to ensure everything is combined. Transfer the bowl to the fridge and allow it to chill for about an hour, or until you can easily scoop out the filling.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a tablespoon, measure out the filling onto the baking sheets. You’ll get about 35 candies. You’re just measuring the filling here, it’s okay if it’s still a bit sticky.
- Place the trays in the freezer and let them chill for 20 minutes, or until they are firm enough to handle with your hands (not too sticky).
- Remove from freezer and form them into the iconic squares, by squishing each side together with your index finger and thumb. Place them back on the parchment paper and place the baking sheets in the freezer until the squares are very firm, at least 1 hour.
- Add the milk chocolate and white chocolate into separate heatproof mixing bowls and melt. You can melt using a double boiler, or doing 30 second intervals in the microwave, stirring between each one.
- If you want to color the candies pink, green, and yellow like Fannie May then divide the white chocolate into 3 bowls. Add a small amount of beet powder for pink, matcha powder for green, and the India Tree Nature’s Colors for yellow to make pastel colors. Stir to combine completely.
- Remove the candies from the freezer and dip into the milk chocolate and white chocolate. I like to use a fork, like a spoon, so excess chocolate can drip back into the bowl, then place back on the baking sheets. To get the iconic swirl that’s on top, once the candies sit for a moment, take a small amount of chocolate and swirl it on top.
- Place the tray back in the freezer to set until firm, about 20 minutes.
Notes
- Always use a digital food scale for the best results.
- You do not have to form these into the squares, I just do because that's the iconic shape! But, you can just roll them into balls if you prefer.
- You can use all milk chocolate or all white chocolate for the coating, either works. I do a mix as that is what Fannie May did!
- These need to be stored in the fridge, because of the cream center.
- You can also freeze these for longer, just store in an airtight container.
- High Altitude — Follow the recipe as noted.
Nutrition
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Now that Christmas is approaching, I will try these sweet treats for sure! Thanks for sharing
Even better than Fannie May!
“These are phenomenal” – the group of guys I served these to. One says “it tastes like Christmas!”