Experiments with Ffffudge
ARRRRRGh!I am generally considered to be a reasonably accomplished woman. I sew, I embroider, I bake, I cook, I work, I write...
And yet, for some reason, fudge eludes me.
I've made fudge before, but I don't like my old recipe. It pale in comparison to the texture achieved by the fudge goddess (that's you, TP) and I aspire to do better.
I started by trying Alton Brown's fudge recipe because where I don't know fudge, I do know toffee and the key to toffee is process, process, process. So, I figured a guy who concentrated on the science and process would be the right place to start. Despite following the instruction very closely, my results were...not great. It resembled fudge in a general sense. The chocolate was in evidence, but the texture was both too grainy and too hard to be what I was aiming for. Oh, and did I mention it tasted burnt? Not good for the fudge lover.
So, I threw out that recipe and regrouped. I tried a two pounds of fudge recipe that featured marshallow cream, 5 cups of sugar, and a five minute boil. How could I go wrong?
The phone rang...and I forgot to let it boil. Natch. But, I figured, what the hell? I moved it back to the pan, warmed it back up, and boiled it until the time had run its course. Then, I poured into 2 prepared pans and let it cool down. When it was cool enough to move to the fridge, I did so.
It appears that last step may have been a HUMONGOUS mistake. Because, when I removed it from the fridge this morning to test my product...I couldn't slice through the stuff without considerable effort. What I have is more like tootsie roll than fudge. The flavor is better, but it clings to the teeth like you wouldn't believe. Basically, it isn't fudge.
I'm going to give it one more try tonight. This time, I'm going with the exact recipe on the back of the jar. And if I still fail?
I shall prostrate myself before the altar of the Fudge Goddess and beg her to take pity on me and give me lessons.
Nutty. Just nutty (though I prefer w/o nuts :) )
