You all seem to be such proficient chefs. Well here is a place to share some of that cooking knowledge. Or do you have a cooking problem? Ask away. Jams and chutneys go here too.
But all I'm doing is burning the bottom of my pans!
I'm using the old-fashioned recipe which involves burning - sorry - boiling - milk, sugar and butter together for 15 minutes or until a drop in cold water will form a ball. I'm only getting about 6 minutes into the process before the tell-tale flecks of burn start floating to that top and then it smells of cheese!
Not really suitable for sending Mummy Dearest for Mother's Day...
Can anyone tell me where I'm going wrong - or does anyone have an idiot-proof recipe that even I can't balls-up?
Fanking you!
I took my dog to play frisbee. She was useless. I think I need a flatter dog.
You need to bring it to the boil slowly, it ought to just be boiling.
Not that I have ever been successfull at it, but only because it didn't quite get hot enough (I reckon I was only a few degrees off) I have since bought a sugar thermometer.
Ann Pan
"Some days you're the dog,
some days you're the lamp-post"
I find it best to use a medium heat - not a full on boil and stir quite often, while you're stirring there comes a point when the texture aginst the edge of the pan changes from syrupy to fudgy - take it off the heat, put on a cold surface (or a wet cloth) and beat the living wotsit out of it.
I've previously made fudge with just milk and sugar (often evaporated milk from a tin) and I think that recipe said to beat in the butter when the soft ball (*aka living wotsit beating) stage was reached , not sure if this way round is better or not.
these days it doesnt have to 'look' good cos its mainly for me so I just chuck some sugar into a pan add whatever milk (even oat 'milk') and butter or cooking margerine -if those brown bits turn up I beat 'em in and it just looks like dark fudge
Say what you mean and be who you are, Those who mind don't matter, and those that matter don't mind
Thanks folks, knew I could rely on you lot for great advice!
I think I'm going to have another bash at it whilst the wee man is having a kip this afternoon (as mountaineering toddlers and hot fudge do not mix) so I'll try it on a much lower heat.
I took my dog to play frisbee. She was useless. I think I need a flatter dog.
I do find when I make it (admittedly condensed not fresh milk) that brown bits come up fomr teh bottom of the pan but the recipe assures me this is normal and is what gives the fudge its colour. Certailnly works for me, but I agree with bringing it slowly to the boil then again wiht an electric hob that's really all you can do!
whenever I make fudge I always seem to get the timing wrong, and always make sticky toffee stuff... then i always put it back in the pan, heat it some more and its fudge. Himself now thinks this is the correct way to make fudge!
Red
I like like minded people... a bit like minded anyway.. well people with bits of their minds that are like the bits of my mind that I like...
Well, sprog wouldn't settle so I thought we'd make some cookies instead. Mixed together all the ingredients in the bowl, then nice man from council came round to look at our dilapidated fence, we got talking....cookie mix started to get thicker and thicker.....
And turned into fudge!!
Wouldn't eat it though, tastes a bit floury (unsurprisingly!)....made the cookies and THEY'VE GONE WRONG TOO!!! They've gone completely flat and crispy.
Urgh. Not a good week for cooking. First marmalade like concrete, then cheesy-smelling burnt fudge, now flat and brittle cookies. I'm blaming the cooker, personally.
I took my dog to play frisbee. She was useless. I think I need a flatter dog.
http://southernfood.about.com/od/fudger ... 40214h.htm is the closest recipe I can find to the one i have in my head......
only instead of marshmallow foam or fluff I use bags of marshies, and I tend to leave out the nuts.
oh how I love my tea, tea in the afternoon. I can't do without it, and I think I'll have another cup very
ve-he-he-he-heryyyyyyy soooooooooooon!!!!
I used a sugar thermometer and slowly brought it up to boiling to avoid burning. It seemed to need quite a bit of heat to get it up to the soft ball point (my thermometer actually has soft ball, firm ball etc marked on it!) but it suddenly went a lot thicker and so then I poured it out into a lined tin. It worked really well but is very crumbly rather than smooth, still tastes fantastic though.
I tried doing the drop in water thing while I was doing it, and I'm glad I had the thermometer - it didn't seem a straight forward as people say to me.
have always used the water method rather than the thermometer. you do have to check it frequently though otherwise you wil go past soft ball and get toffee goo.
