Fudge really isn’t that difficult, however does take a little practice and you do need to follow the rules with regards to heating and when to stir.  I have ended up with toffee instead of fudge and fudge that hard crumbly to – it still makes an excellent ice cream topping if it does go wrong!

The trick is to heat it to the correct temperature and to stir it long enough – but not too long.

Fudge that hasn’t reached the optimum temperature will be sticky and runny and be like a sauce rather than fudge.  Fudge that has been over heated or beaten for too long will be harder and more crumbly, which is still yummy of course!

Personally I just love fudge, so whether it is creamy and soft or a bit harder and crumbly it is delicious and I’ll eat it!

It is important to use a cooking thermometer to achieve the correct temperature, the use of a flexible spatula and uninterrupted time during the boiling and stirring process is essential.

This gets really hot so take care at all times!

You will need:

• Your largest saucepan.
• A cooking thermometer. I use both the thermometers that clip onto the side of the sauce pan and a thermometer spatula, both are good and it’s up to you which you prefer.
• 445g Granulated Sugar
• 300ml Water
• 140g Tube of Liquid Glucose
• 140g Butter
• 397g Can of Condensed Milk
• 55g Dark Chocolate

Method:

• Line a 20cm x20cm square tin with greased greaseproof paper and put to one side.
• Heat the water and the sugar gently to dissolve the sugar.
• Add the glucose and stir VERY slightly to blend, then put the spatula down.
• Turn up the heat and boil until the syrup is 116C/240F. DO NOT STIR during this part of the heating process. A clip on thermometer it useful here to keep an eye on the temperature.
• Meanwhile gently warm the condensed milk and butter until the butter has melted (don’t over heat the milk and butter or it will burn!), keep this warm until the correct temperature of the water and sugars has been reached.
• Turn down the heat of the water and sugar syrup and add the milk and butter to it.
• The mixture will expand, this is why you need your largest sauce pan – one that is bigger than you think you are going to need.
• Turn the heat up whilst stirring gently constantly. If you do not stir constantly then the fudge will burn on the bottom of the pan and spoil.  This is where a thermometer spatula is good.
• The fudge mixture should now start to turn a golden brown.
• Continue to heat and stir gently until the temperature is back up to 116C/240F the soft ball stage.
• Remove from the heat and add the chocolate, the heat of the fudge will melt the chocolate.
• Beat until graining occurs. By beating I have found you do not need to wear yourself out, you need to keep the fudge moving while it cools. Knowing how long to ‘beat’ for is a fine art – not long enough and you will get caramel/toffee and too long and you get hard crumbly fudge.  You will need to stir until the fudge mixture thickens and looses its gloss becoming cloudy.  If you are not very confident about how long to ‘beat’ for add a table spoon of sieved icing sugar – this will encourage the fudge to ‘grain’ resulting in perfect fudge, adding icing sugar is not a substitute for beating, beating still needs to be done!!
• Pour into your prepared tin, the fudge is still really hot so take care.
• Leave to cool completely and cut into squares and eat.
• This will keep in the fridge for about 3 days if it’s not eaten before then!