In an effort to try to get someone to try to make fudge and tell me how it came out
, I will post the recipe I recently got, along with the umpteen hints people gave who had tried it and who claimed they KNEW how to make fudge. When you see the amount of "hints" afterward, I guess you will know one of two things: One, I would really, really, really like to be successful at making what I call REAL fudge, and two, how MANY things can go wrong.
Old-Fashioned Chocolate Fudge
Makes 18 to 24 squares. Recipe from Allrecipes.com.
2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
1 cup milk
4 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1. Grease an 8x8 inch square baking pan. Set aside.
2. Combine sugar, cocoa and milk in a medium saucepan. Stir to blend, then bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer. Do not stir again.
3. Place candy thermometer in pan and cook until temperature reaches 238°F (114 degrees C). If you are not using a thermometer, then cook until a drop of this mixture in a cup of cold water forms a soft ball. Feel the ball with your fingers to make sure it is the right consistency. It should flatten when pressed between your fingers.
4. Remove from heat. Add butter or margarine and vanilla extract. Beat with a wooden spoon until the fudge loses its sheen. Do not under beat.
5. Pour into prepared pan and let cool. Cut into about 18 to 24 squares.
Notes from reviews:
• One sugar crystal in the pot after it is cooked will ruin the candy. I always make sure that I take a wet paper towel and wipe down the sides of the pot after the mixture comes to a boil to remove any undissolved sugar; I never put a spoon into the mixture after it comes to a boil (it might have sugar crystals on it) and I never stir or move the fudge after it is cooked (do not stir the butter and vanilla into it until it is cooled to at least 115°F). Then, and only then, beat like mad until it loses its gloss and then pour it quickly into your pan. It shouldn't take a long time to reach the desired temperature if the size of the pot is large enough.
• IMPORTANT - chemistry says add 1 tsp of corn syrup (or something with corn syrup in it like marshmallow) to help prevent crystallization of the sugar. I've also found buttering the sides of sauce pan will help the fudge not form crystals and come out creamy. Heat this recipe slowly on medium heat, as it will burn if you heat it too fast. I heat my fudge to exactly 236°F and quickly put it into the sink of cool water until it gets to 110°F (or about to where you can hold the pan in your lap without burning your legs through jeans). My mom and grandmother always say "Don't scrape the sides much at all," and I think that also has to do with crystallization. After 110°F, beat the fudge until it loses its gloss and you notice "something different" in terms of thickening. I'm sorry I can't tell you more, but you'll get it once you do it. Fudge sets within about 90 seconds, so this part takes practice! if it doesn't set you can just throw it back into the pot and try the same thing again as is (reheating to 236°F and adding 1/4 cup more milk). This recipe doesn't make much, but I don't recommend trying to make two batches at a time unless you've made this several times. Make your second batch separately, you can use the practice.
• To clean the pot, add some milk and reheat it, while swirling it around and scraping the sides. It will all come off and you will end up with the best mug of chocolate you’ve ever had. And an utterly clean pot. I recently had a $5 mug of hot chocolate a local luxury chocolatier, and it was indistinguishable from the one I made last night with all the leftovers in the pot. Why soak it with soapy water when you can make yourself a free mug of utterly decadent hot chocolate?
• And this time I wanted it to be JUST a hair softer than before, so I took it off of the heat sooner. Too soon. It took forever to set. Both times I took it off of the heat and immediately added the butter, mixed it in, and then added the vanilla. The first time it didn't take too long to beat the sheen off of it. The second time it wasn't done, but I'm SO glad I didn't give up and throw it out! I got out my hand mixer and just mixed and mixed it...I'm guessing I mixed it for at least 20 minutes until it lost its sheen! I kept going because I could tell that as it cooled it was thickening. The second time was much softer, and not as good as the first at all. But still worth the effort. I make mine on an electric flat top stove with a thermometer and the cold water test-no stirring after it comes to a boil. I just wanted to list both of my experiences in case somebody was tempted to throw out your fudge if it didn't seem to be setting.
• As others have stated, you must leave it to cool to 110°F before adding butter and vanilla and then beating.
• This is that old recipe I've been looking for! From start to finish (i.e., eating it), it took an hour and a half. Be patient, and note that the times aren't given in the recipe. Expect to spend about 10 minutes getting to a boil while stirring, about 20-30 minutes of simmering to get to 238°F, another 20 minutes to cool down, and another 5-10 minutes of stirring. It didn't lose a lot of sheen, but it got so thick and I just got so tired of stirring that I poured it in the pan. It set immediately. I think the times will differ for everyone depending on several variables i.e., the stove temp, the weather, etc. Just be patient. It's worth it to have REAL fudge again. I think even vendors that pride themselves on "homemade" fudge are using the marshmallow/chip recipe. It is so nice to go back to basics. Thank you for posting this recipe!
• This fudge is delicious and not too difficult to make. The instructions are, however, a bit misleading. Step 2 tells you to "reduce heat and simmer." This will not work. You can't reach the temperature of 238°F while simmering. I went online after 20 minutes without a temperature change and found others calling for a "boil" during the heating process. Once I upped the heat, I had the temperature in 10 additional minutes. You should not need to cook the fudge longer than 15 minutes to get it to 238°F. Would be nice, too, if there was a bit more description on what "loses its sheen" means. Mine barely changed at all after 20 minutes of beating the daylights out of it and I poured it onto the pan. Set up fine and turned out perfect. There should also be an instruction not to start the beating until the temperature of the fudge drops to about 115°F.
• Wonderful recipe, I love that it can be made with just a few ingredients that even a beginner usually has. Just need to re-emphasize a few things. Combine the sugar, cocoa and milk before heating the mixture. This not only saves time and vigilance watching the mixture boil but brakes down the sugar crystals (to an extent) before they can threaten to transform into chocolate toffee but also makes the initial stirring easier and less necessary. Using this method the second time, I attempted this recipe. The fudge almost boiled out of the pot, and would have if not for quick reflexes and a bigger pot handy. Now I use the rising process to indicate when to turn down the heat. Testing the consistency without a thermometer can be tricky but an easier way to gain a visual indication is to drip a bit in a glass/bowl of water and rather than testing its buoyancy, if it does not go cloudy it is usually fine, however I wait until the drop floats for the best consistency. To re-emphasis what other members have stated, wait until the pot cools before adding the butter and vanilla. Again not using a thermometer, a good indication is when you can touch the pot without immediately removing your hand. Quick work is needed for the final mixing and poring ready to set. There is no real difference with brown or white sugar. The result is defiantly worth the sore hand. 1.So again, Mix before heating. 2.If its cloudy, it’s not ready. 3.Let it cool before adding the final ingredients.
I know this is the wrong area for this but wanted to make sure all of you saw it so you could teach me how to make real fudge!!!
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