Dee Randall wrote:
> "Mr Libido Incognito" > wrote in message
> ...
> > zxcvbob wrote:
> >> Nancy1 wrote:
> >>
> >>> Phred wrote:
> >>>
> >>>> G'day Bob,
> >>>>
> >>>> This "Old Fashioned Fudge" you mention sounds more like a trendy,
> >>>> yuppie fudge to me. My mum would *never* have put friggin' *nuts* in
> >>>> a fudge, and her recipe (which, unfortunately, I don't have to hand,
> >>>> but *may* be able to dig up from one or another of my female rellies)
> >>>> dates back to *her* mum, who would be 132 this year, if still alive.
> >>>> I might add that her fudge was crisp and crunchy even in the humid wet
> >>>> tropics of the so-called "pristine" World Heritage areas around here.
> >>>> (Not far from the tourist ghetto of Cairns -- I rest my case. .
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> Well, let's see - BH & G's fudge recipe appears in my 1962 cookbook,
> >>> and even then, they call it "old fashion" to differentiate from all the
> >>> quick 'n easy condensed milk and/or marshmallow type recipes. So, for
> >>> most purposes, it IS old-fashion fudge; that is, made with the help of
> >>> a candy thermometer and cooked to the proper temperature, and beaten to
> >>> within an inch of its life, before pouring it into a pan to cool.
> >>>
> >>> Fudge isn't crisp and crunchy. Fudge should be smooth-textured and
> >>> fairly solid (the above recipe, which I use all the time, creates a
> >>> fudge that if you take a 2 inch square of it, you can break it in half
> >>> with no messy drips/strings or other appearances of being squishy, and
> >>> you can easily pick it up without getting your fingers messy), and
> >>> doesn't get soft if it's not refrigerated (unless it's left out in 90
> >>> deg. F. or above temps).
> >>>
> >>> Why don't you post your mum's recipe, so we can see what the
> >>> differences are between Aussie fudge and USA fudge.
> >>>
> >>> N.
> >>>
> >>
> >> Phred has an offbeat sense of humor, so I dunno how much of his post was
> >> serious and how much was in jest (I suspect some of each.) "Even Older
> >> Fashioned" fudge wouldn't have the little bit of corn syrup, but it
> >> might have a tsp of vinegar or (guessing now) some light tasting honey.
> >> If there was nothing like that added to retard crystalization, the
> >> fudge would probably turn of grainy most of the time -- which could be
> >> construed as crisp and crunchy, I guess.
> >>
> >> Bob
>
> Fudge on the woodburning stove in the 30's and 40's never was made with corn
> syrup at our house. Corn syrup was for city-folks. I've read many times
> that to keep fudge from turning grainy is not to stir while cooking, and
> never scoot down the granules on the side of the pan into the fudge; and
> particularly do not beat until it is cool. Our method of testing to see if
> it was ready was dropping a drop of it into a glass of water. Sometimes we
> had a failure,not often. My grandmother would not make fudge on a rainy
> day, nor any other day but Saturday.
> Dee Dee
>
>
> It was made with Hershey's cocoa.

When fudge turns grainy, it's because some undissolved sugar crystals
got into the body of the cooked stuff - that's why one butters the
entire inside of the saucepan first, and why one doesn't scrape down
the sides once it starts to get to its proper temp. Not beating long
enough will make it stringy/chewy and it won't set.

N.