My recent (constant) (perpetual) cravings for sugar and butter resulted in a very nice cinnamon roll batch, which Grandma Rodgers would have been proud of, and a decent though not perfect batch of Fudge, which is about all Grandma ever hoped for, I guess. And I brought MOST (not all) of the Fudge to Marisa's for the Superbowl -- so I only ate a huge amount, not every single bit of it...
Making fudge is more like science than cooking. You can't make fudge on a rainy day. There are very precise directions that you MUST FOLLOW, to keep it from getting grainy. I remember Gram used to go crazy, complaining that the fudge didn't set, or it was too grainy, almost every time. Part of it was only Gram being Gram. She was self-depracating, is that the word? I think I spelled it wrong.
But I looked up the science of fudge, and it turns out that there is alot about the right kind of crystal formation to make fudge become fudge and not grainy. Even one small grain of sugar, dropped into the pot at the wrong time of the process, or even one fleck of dust, can give the sugar in fudge a nucleus for the wrong kind of crystal to form. So it's no wonder that it comes out too grainy a lot of time.
This fudge didn't seem like it wanted to set. It finally did, kind of, but it was a little too soft. But it wasn't too grainy (I didn't think -- but if Gram had made it, she would have thought it was too grainy.)
I have to look for pictures of microscopic fudge crystals. I'm gonna check Google images.
3 comments:
What I would like to know, is how Gram Rodgers in her late 80's and early 90's could beat the fudge by hand. He wouldn't use a mixer, she said the fudge would set to fast. I am no where near that age and can't do it. Did you use a mixer? or by hand?
Mom
Hey Sue....
"Chemistry
Fudge is a drier variant of fondant.
In forming a fondant, it is not easy to keep all vibrations and seed crystals from causing rapid crystallisation to large crystals. Consequently, milk fat and corn syrup are often added. The corn syrup contains glucose, fructose (monosaccharides) and maltose (disaccharide). These sugars interact with the sucrose molecules. They help prevent premature crystallization by inhibiting sucrose crystal contact. The fat also helps inhibit rapid crystallisation. Controlling the crystallization of the supersaturated sugar solution is the key to smooth fudge. Initiation of crystals before the desired time will result in fudge with fewer, larger sugar grains. The final texture will have a grainy mouth-feel rather than the smooth texture of quality fudge.
One of the most important parts of any candy making is the correct temperature. The temperature is what separates hard caramel from fudge. The higher the peak temperature, the more sugar is dissolved, more water is evaporated; resulting in a higher sugar to water ratio. Before the availability of cheap and accurate thermometers, cooks would use the ice water test to determine the saturation of the candy. Fudge is made at the Soft Ball stage which varies by altitude and ambient humidity from 235-240 °F or 113-116 °C.
Some recipes call for making fudge with prepared marshmallows as the sweetener. This allows the finished confection to use the structure of the marshmallow for support instead of relying on the crystallization of the sucrose."
This was found on this web page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fudge#Chemistry
Hope you liked the info
Love,
Your evil sister
OK, I admit it. I started out by hand -- but I ended up using a mixer after what felt like HOURS. (Frank even took a turn!)
And yes, Sandi, thank you for the chemistry info! I thought fondant was easier, because the only recipe I ever had for fondant was not cooked. So I guess it's not fondant.
And I NEVER use marshmallows in my fudge...
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