Oh, Fudge!

Fudge always takes me back to childhood. Whether it was buying it at the school bazaar or tucking into a freshly made batch my grand mother made. Sweet, innocent, wicked, decadent morsels of pleasures.


These pieces of heaven are so easy to make and whether you use a recipe that states the exact amount of minutes you have to boil it or use a candy thermometer or old style pour in water to gage that its reached soft ball stage, you'll quickly get the hang of it.


Fudge is so versatile and can be adapted to tickle anyone's fancy. 


The fudge I used this weekend, I must confess I got from the café, our equivalent of a corner store, partly because it was a verge of the moment idea and greatly, because I know that my son will most likely eat himself sick and polish the whole batch in a couple of days.


For you that want to try your hand at fudge making, here is a basic fudge recipe. 


This recipe is from a recipe in my Grandmother's old dog eared hand written recipe book, where she jotted down recipes she just have to try herself after trying someone's baked goodies.


Fudge (From Mrs Botha - Umtata)


Ingredients

6 Cups Granulated Sugar
1 Cup Water
1 Can Condense Milk
3 Tablespoons Golden Syrup
Vanilla Essence - it does not state amount, but I would guess 1/2 - 1 teaspoon
1/4 Pound Butter


Method

• Slowly bring sugar, water & butter to the boil at low heat. (Cleaning the sides with a wet brush)
• Add syrup and bring up to the boil again
• Add the condense milk. Stir every now and then for +- 20 minutes till it reaches soft ball stage
• Remove from the stove and let cool. Once it's cooled, add the vanilla and whisk till it thickens
• Pour mixture into greased pan
• Cut into squares when it hardens completely

To test softball stage without a thermometer, pour a bit of the boiling mixture into ice water. If it forms a soft ball, you've reached the right temperature. Apparently seasoned sweet makers, can tell by the size and texture of the bubbles that it has reached the desired consistency.


Give it a go and maybe even put your own spin on it. Let me know how it turned out!