So I realise that technically this is not baking but I have a cake planned for someone’s birthday at work (recipe coming shortly) and I’m planning to use some sweet treats in the decoration. I realised that actually I haven’t made fudge before and when doing a little research I began to question why, because it sounded easy enough and I love eating it!! This recipe is simple, quick and you don’t need any fancy equipment you can just use everyday equipment that you are sure to already have at home. Although you can use a sugar thermometer if you have one, I left mine back in England so I did this one by eye and it still turned out to be delicious! I have included a video for the ‘soft ball’ test that you can use to check that your mixture is ready to take off the heat if not using a thermometer (and you can always double check even if you are using one!). This test just calls for a bowl of cold water that I suggest you keep next to you whilst you are cooking. You simply drop a little of the mixture into the bowl and if it is ready it will turn solid and you can collect it into a ‘soft ball’ with your hands.
When you look around at different #fudge recipes there are quite a few variations on whether people use cream, evaporated milk, regular milk or a mix. My recipe calls for the sweetest and most delicious of all the milks….condensed milk! I will admit that I was going to try this recipe with evaporated milk, but the supermarket didn’t have any so by happy coincidence I ended up with this fabulous recipe instead. To me, the use of condensed milk makes it reminiscent of tablet. I will say however, that although it gives it the melt-in-the-mouth consistency of tablet, you still have a bit of a chew to it (i.e. you can see your teeth marks when you bite into it) so I decided to class it as a fudge. Also, as a person whose gran made the worlds best tablet, I can’t quite bring myself to call it that! If you would prefer a traditional #chewy fudge I would recommend trying this with evaporated milk rather than condensed milk.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with this tablet I'm going on about, it is a Scottish take on traditional fudge and I highly recommend you try it if you ever get the chance! The main difference is the texture. Tablet has a more crystallised structure to it that breaks when you bite it. It also dissolves in your mouth whereas fudge has a bit of a chew to it. Both recipes however usually consist of boiling together sugar, butter and some sort of milk or cream products.
When doing my research, another part of fudge recipes I found to be very variable is the sugar. Some people use granulated, some light brown and some muscovado, but the great thing about having this variation in two of the main ingredients is it leaves a lot of room for experimenting. I used a mix of granulated and brown sugar as I wanted that lovely fudgy colour and a slightly caramel taste however as I am just flavouring this with vanilla, I didn’t want the brown sugar to overpower it.
This recipe takes less than an hour plus a couple of hours chill time so is perfect for sweet bites when you have guests round or to put into hampers as little gifts. Its also great to experiment with different flavours. Why not try adding some fruit and nuts, cocoa powder or other flavourings instead of the vanilla? Just add them in after you’ve taken the mixture off the heat and have let it cool for a couple of minutes.
Equipment:
Large pan
Spatula/wooden spoon
Bowl of cold water
Lined tin
Recipe:
Makes: 30 squares Prep:10 min Cook: 20 min Cooling time: 2 hr
Ingredients:
200 mL milk
150 mL condensed milk
400 g granulated sugar
50 g brown sugar
75 g butter
1 tbsp liquid glucose (sometimes called glucose syrup)
2 tsp vanilla essence
Method:
1. Put your sugars, butter, milk. Condensed milk into a large pan (it needs to be bigger than you think as the sugar will rise when boiling).
2. Heat on a low heat until the sugar has dissolved and butter has melted.
3. Turn up to a medium heat and bring to a boil.
4. Boil for 15-20 mins (or until your mixture reaches 116°C if using a sugar thermometer).
5. Test your mixture is ready using the ‘soft ball’ method (see video)
6. Take off the heat and leave to cool for no more than 5 mins (until mixture is 110°C).
7. Add in the vanilla and beat with a wooden spoon until the mixture has thickened and is no longer shiny.
8. Pour into a tin, lined with lightly oiled baking parchment and leave to cool.
9. Try not to eat it all at once
Boil the ingredients together until thick (15-20 mins).
Carry out the 'soft ball test to see if your mixture is ready to be taken off the heat (see video below).
Beat in the vanilla flavouring once off the heat until the mixture thickens and loses its shine
Leave to set in a lightly oiled tin lined with baking parchment
Leave to cool for roughly 2 hours
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