Kidney Diet Tips

Kidney-Friendly Recipe Review: Easy Low Phosphorus Fudge

Have you been looking for a low phosphorus chocolate fix? Well, Easy Low Phosphorus Fudge might be a great option for you! Many of the patients who have tried it really enjoyed having this sweet treat. Plus it offers chocolate lovers a great low phosphorus alternative to a high phosphorus indulgence.

Easy Low Phosphorus Fudge Nutrition

Portion size is important when it comes to sneaking in some of the foods that have always been a “no no” in the kidney diet. Most people on the renal diet have a difficult time limiting phosphorus. Phosphorus is naturally occurring in manyfood items, or is added as a food additive. This fudge recipe is quite a sweet treat, so it doesn’t take much to get that chocolate-sugary fix! I served half portions to the patients, and most found that to be just right!

The Shopping & Prepping

Almost all of the ingredients were easy to find at multiple grocery stores, and preparing this recipe was really easy. I did run into a little difficulty when it came to finding the half & half creamer that did not have any phosphorus additives, so I substituted vanilla almond milk creamer, and omitted the one teaspoon of vanilla extract. They came out perfect! When cooking the creamer and sugar on the stove, be careful, because the mixture did bubble a lot, and splatter a little, so be sure to use a fairly deep sauce pot and a long handled wooden spoon. After you remove the sugar and creamer mixture from the stove, you will need to stir in the marshmallows and chocolate. Be sure to carefully stir in these ingredients quickly, because the fudge starts to set right in the pot. Have your pan greased and ready to go before you start cooking the fudge.

Our Village Tasters

The fudge was enjoyed by many of the patients! Most everyone liked how creamy the texture was, and liked being able to sneak in some chocolate to their renal diet. The fudge is pretty sweet, and some patients did find it a little too sweet for their liking.

Additions & Substitutions

  • If you have trouble finding half & half creamer without phosphorus additives, try substituting an equal amount of almond milk creamer (and if you use vanilla almond milk creamer, omit the vanilla extract)
  • To sneak a little chocolate into your renal diet, try making half this recipe and:
    • Toss with unsalted pretzels, popcorn and/or dried cranberries to make a tasty snack mix
    • Drizzle over High Protein Rice Crispy Treats
    • Stir in Crispy Rice Cereal and scoop out into small rounds with a cookie scoop to make a renal friendly version of a Crunch® bar
  • Cut the cooled fudge into small cubes, and freeze in a zip top bag for whenever you need that chocolate fix!

Similar Recipes from Davita.com

In addition to Easy Low Phosphorus Fudge, try some of these other delicious sweet treats from DaVita.com:

Joseph Ewing, RD, LDN

Joseph Ewing, RD, LDN

Joseph Ewing, RD, LDN is a renal dietitian with DaVita, a freelance dietitian and a personal chef in addition to being a co-author of four cook books. Among them is the "Feed Your Athlete: A Cookbook to Fuel High Performance". Joseph has degrees in culinary nutrition and culinary arts from Johnson and Wales University and completed a dietetic internship program at the University of Maryland. Joseph has over a decade of experience in the culinary nutrition industry.