American Fudge seems to be very different from the fudge we have here in South Africa. Ours doesn't have any chocolate, it's basically just really really sweet and creamy and delicious, and probably very bad for you.
Here's the recipe - Ingredients:
The maximum my stove plates go to is 8, so bear that in mind when i give heat settings.Instructions:
Put the kettle on. Pour the milk into a small pot, and put it on a plate set to 8. Put the butter into a big pot, set at 6. Once the kettle is boiled, pour a cup full of boiling water, and put the tablespoon into it for a few seconds. Now use the heated tablelspoon to spoon out the syrup, putting it back in the water after every scoop. Heating the spoon with the water makes the syrup come off in one big glob, instead of sticking to the spoon.
Anyway, by now the milk's almost boiling, so once it's almost bubbling over, pour it into the big pot. Now add the
sugar and
condensed milk, and stir with a wooden spoon. Small brown pieces may appear at this point, but just keep stirring and they'll go away.
Leave this on the stove for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, and it should start boiling. Once it starts boiling somewhat rapidly, put the heat down to 3. Now set a timer for 35 minutes, and go watch TV, coming back to still the mixture every few
ad breaks.
While you're waiting for that,
grease some
baking trays with butter, and line them with
Baking Paper. The butter is just to make the paper stick down on the tray(s). It's very important to use
Baking Paper, not
wax paper or anything,
Baking Paper.
Once the time's up, the mixture should have gone darker, and you can take it off the heat. Now, add the vanilla essence and beat it with a hand mixer. You have to beat it for a long time, otherwise it doesn't set. It's quite hard to tell when to stop beating. You've beaten it for long enough when it's really thick, and if you put a bit on a teaspoon, it sets fairly quickly. Don't underbeat! else it won't set. Once you've finished beating, pour it into the tray. You'll want it to be about 1-1.5cm thick, so you'll probably have to push it into the corners of the tray to get it spread out.
Put the trays in the fridge for a few minutes, then get a knife and cut blocks into it however big you want (I make 108 squares). Then put the trays back in the fridge, and in about an hour it will have set completely. Enjoy.
If it ends up being too hard for your tastes, cook it for a few less minutes (and vice versa).