How can HTML code be successfully inserted into menus using PHP in WordPress?

To successfully insert HTML code into menus using PHP in WordPress, you can use the `wp_nav_menu_objects` filter to modify the menu items before they are displayed. This filter allows you to add HTML code to menu items by accessing and modifying the menu item objects.

function custom_menu_item_html( $items, $args ) {
    foreach ( $items as $item ) {
        $item->title = '<span class="custom-class">' . $item->title . '</span>';
    }
    return $items;
}
add_filter( 'wp_nav_menu_objects', 'custom_menu_item_html', 10, 2 );