Fudge Is The Original Old Time Family Favorite Chocolate Sweet Treat

2007-09-08 Word Count: 534 Category: Food & Beverage

In contrast with other sweets that can be traced back thousands of years, fudge is a relative new comer. Early fudge flavors were vanilla, chocolate and brown sugar penuche. Mackinac Island, Michigan is the fudge capital of the U.S. Now, the mixtures of ingredients or flavors are just about endless. Some of them are: chocolate cappuccino, maple walnut, lemon butter, vanilla caramel, vanilla cherry chocolate chip, raspberry coffee, dark chocolate, chocolate caramel pecan, chocolate cheesecake and peanut butter.

Although the word fudge has multiple meanings, none are equal to the old fashioned, family favorite, premium chocolate fudge. In America, the word fudge nearly always means the rich and creamy, heavenly chocolate confection. Sometimes you'll find the word fudge used on boxes of brownies and cakes, but all it means is that they have added a little extra chocolate flavor in the mix.

While often argued, according to history, fudge was accidentally developed by a failed batch of candy; likely caramels, sometime around the year 1886. From this fouled up candy batch came the cooks' exclamation of or the term 'oh, fudge!' The earliest evidence of fudge was in a letter from New York. A student from Vassar, Emelyn Battersby Hartidge, stated that the cousin of a friend made fudge. In Baltimore in 1886, the candy was sold for 40 cents per pound. Emelyn procured the recipe a few years later and made 30 pounds for a Vassar Senior Auction. Other colleges like Smith and Wellesley then developed fudge recipes themselves.

Everybody loves eating delicious, creamy fudge, but it is often thought to be hard to make. The earliest fudge recipes were really difficult and kind of unclear. Difficulty largely depended on which recipe was used, the type of ingredients, the quality of equipment and the patience taken in order to make it right. Also, continual stirring and being aware of the cooking time, and accurate measurements were critical in order to get the perfect fudge. Heating the ingredients to the right temperature, and stirring for the proper amount of time are important as well to make the fudge smooth and creamy and not gritty. Moreover it is quite easy to under or over cook this confectionery treat, which can result in the candy not setting up or tasting scorched.

If you were to define it, fudge is a confectionery treat that is rich and creamy. A soft confection, ordinarily very smooth and made using sweet cream, sugar, fresh butter, corn syrup and often some different delicious flavorings. Flavorings may be vanilla, white chocolate, butterscotch, chocolate, flavored gelatin, peanut butter, buttermilk, Kahlua, kool aid, bourbon, maple, pumpkin or even mint. Fudge may have nuts, such as pistachios, walnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, roasted macadamia nuts, and almonds. Additional ingredients found in decadent or unusual fudge might be: popcorn, crushed candy canes, cheese, crackers, coconut, pineapple chunks, candy bars, lime peel, espresso beans, caramel, chocolate chips, cookies, chunks of chocolate, marshmallows, or cherries and other dried or candied fruit.

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Anna McAnthony is a content writer at www.chocolategourmetcandy.com, and has been doing research on and writing about caramels and chocolate candy for several years.