A crumbly melt-in-the-mouth chocolate delight! Making fudge is easy as long as you keep an eye on it, and the results are well worth it. Here is my grandmother’s basic recipe.
550g caster sugar
350ml evaporated milk
110g dark chocolate, grated or chopped into small pieces
60g butter
Butter a square tin (about 20cm)
Melt the butter in a heavy based saucepan, then add remaining ingredients and allow to dissolve over a low heat, stirring continually.
Turn up the heat and bring to the boil quickly. The mixture will bubble up inside the pan, so keep stirring in case it catches on the bottom.
If you have a sugar thermometer (I don’t), keep boiling until the temperature reaches 115ºC. Or you can use the ‘soft ball test’ which is to drop a teaspoonful into cold water and if it forms a soft ball, it’s ready. Check after about 10 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and beat with a wooden spoon until ‘granulated’. This takes about five minutes and you will notice it changing consistency. Now you can customise it by adding nuts or dried fruits, or just leave it plain.
Pour into the greased tin and when nearly set, mark into cubes. When it's completely cool, remove from the tin and the marks you made will allow you to cut it into squares without it breaking. This makes a lovely gift wrapped in tissue paper or cellophane.
If you have mastered this, try the famous fudge recipe from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ... Monsieur Bon Bon's Secret Fooj
