Sometimes people surprise you in the best way possible. It’s even better when you least expect it. My blog is about three months old. I’d like to think it’s doing pretty well for the budding adventure it is, but I really have no idea. I only know I have a long way to go if it is going to become my career or help me turn my aspiring novelist status into published novelist status, particularly when a giveaway results in only a handful of entries. My days are filled with various tasks to help my dreams come true. One of the most fascinating and frustrating is Twitter.
I tweet celebrities a lot. Sometimes it’s to compliment them, ask them a question, ask for a retweet of my blog, or tell them an adaptation of one of their recipes has been posted here. Each one is sent with wishes and hopes that they’ll respond, but far more often than not, they don’t. I get it; they’re busy and get lots and lots of Tweets. Sometimes I do get a response, something that surprises and exhilarates me, as I’ve come to expect no response. Andrew Zimmern, Aida Mollenkamp, and Melissa D’Arabian have retweeted my blog; Gail Simmons and Kristen Chenoweth answered fashion questions; Sunny Anderson is great about responding, as is Momofuku Milk Bar; Susannah Collins followed me, and many companies respond quickly when Tweeted.
A fan of the Today show as long as I can remember, I follow Katie Couric, who recently Tweeted asking who to follow on Pinterest. Spur of the moment, I somehow found the courage inside me to Tweet her back saying she should follow me. I never expected her to, but what did I have to lose? One of my fifty some followers? And then something happened. I got an email from Pinterest saying Katie Couric was following me. That’s right. Katie Couric followed me.
It was a moment of pure joy and one of feeling like maybe one day soon someone would notice me, maybe one day soon my dreams might start coming true. Because that’s really what this blog is about. Yes, it’s about amazingly delicious sweets, with a few savory recipes thrown in for good measure. But it’s also about working toward a bigger goal, a dream, and hopefully watching as they become reality. I’m on a long road, and I’m not always sure where it’s going, but I hope this road leads me to published novels and a blog with more readers than my aunt and a few family friends. So for all of you out there who are reading this and have dreams of your own, and who doesn’t have a dream or two, keep fighting for it. And maybe you could pass this along to others to see if with your help maybe my dreams will come just a little closer. And if you’re on Pinterest or Twitter, go follow Katie Couric, because while what she did was probably just about the tiniest blip on her radar it was the star in mine.
Speaking of dreams, I dream about eating fudge a lot. Seriously, when you can’t have chocolate that means no fudge from a store because it either contains chocolate or is cross-contaminated with it, and it means a sad dessert life. There was the peanut butter fudge a couple weeks ago, but this is real deal fudge. Smooth, creamy, not too sweet, it made my fudge dreams come true. Now about those other dreams . . .
Vanilla Fudge
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 40 mins
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 64 pieces 1x
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, plus more for pan
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- 3 cups sugar
- ¼ cup light corn syrup
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment with enough overhang to pull the fudge out of the pan. Butter the parchment. Place a large bowl on a wire cooling rack and put the butter in the bowl.
- Put cream, sugar, corn syrup, and salt into a large saucepan and cook over medium-low to medium heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar has dissolved. This will take 10 minutes or more. Once the sugar has dissolved, attach a candy thermometer to the pan, raise the heat to medium or medium high, and bring the mixture to a boil without stirring. Continue to cook the mixture without stirring until it reaches 238 degrees F on the candy thermometer, about 10 to 15 minutes. Do not walk away from the mixture or rely on time to tell when it is done. Watch the candy thermometer. The mixture will bubble a lot. Make sure it does not bubble over the pan.
- Once the mixture has reached the desired temperature, immediately pour it into the bowl with butter on the cooling rack without scraping the bottom of the pan (that is still good for tasting once it has cooled slightly). Attach the candy thermometer to the bowl, and allow the mixture to cool to 110 degrees F, about 1 ½ hours. Do not stir in the butter while cooling.
- After the mixture has cooled, remove the thermometer and take the bowl off the rack. Using a wooden spoon, stir the mixture, increasing in speed until it thickens, lightens in color, and loses its sheen, about 10 minutes. (This is a workout, but just remember it’s burning off the calories for a piece or two!)
- Pour the stirred mixture into the pan with buttered parchment, quickly spreading it to the sides of the pan and smoothing the top. Let the fudge cool on the wire rack for one hour before refrigerating, covered with plastic, until set, at least 5 hours, but 8 is better. Gently loose the fudge from the parchment before cutting into 64 pieces for serving. It will be very soft, so take your time when cutting.
- Store at room temperature for 1 day in a zipper bag, in the refrigerator for 1 week in a zipper bag, or in the freezer, wrapped in parchment and foil and placed in a zipper bag for up to 4 months. Thaw at room temperature for about an hour for a few pieces, longer for the whole pan.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart
Keep following yr dream, ma’am. Can’t nothing or nobody keep it from happening if it is written 🙂
Thanks for the kind words. I am definitely going to keep following my dream!
Great fudge just melts in your mouth..
★★★★★
This fudge is very creamy.
The fudge was very good. I had an idea while eating. Pecans would have great in those too! Thanks for the treat!
★★★★★
This was a really great post and had so many bits of happiness in it. How cool that Katie is following you!
We loved the fudge, thank you so much for thinking of us again 🙂 Aria thought we had more and was upset to find it was gone so it looks as if I will have to try my hand at this recipe.
★★★★★
thought is was good,but the peanut butter was great.
★★
Cant wait to try this recipe! I had my first piece of vanilla fudge this weekend at the county fair and it was so good that I dont think I will ever go back to chocolate again! So happy to have found this recipe!!
I love this fudge and I know you will too, Monica! Please let me know how it turns out 🙂
There is no Vanilla in your vanilla fudge?
Hi Candace! There isn’t. I don’t know why, but it is a Martha Stewart recipe and I definitely trust her when it comes to fab recipes 🙂
No vanilla or marshmallow added?? What makes it creamy? I never use a thermometer for fudge. Can I do the cold water testing for soft ball stage? I’m very curious about this recipe as I had vanilla fudge about 50 years ago and haven’t found any recipe that compares with it. Thanks!
Hi Dianna! The cream and butter make it creamy. You could definitely add some vanilla extract or the beans from one vanilla pod. The cold water test would work, but I’ve never done it that way. I don’t like fudge recipes with marshmallow or condensed milk, as they aren’t true fudge. This is an old fashioned, classic fudge recipe, and it’s amazing. Let me know if you try it and how it turns out 🙂
I tried this recipe and the taste was.exactly how I remember vanilla fudge tasting when I was younger. However, my fudge was rock hard. Can you tell me what I possible did wrong? I want to try again because the taste is just like my childhood. Thank you.
Hi Davina! It sounds like you overcooked the fudge. Perhaps your candy thermometer is not working properly. I hope it works out better for you next time.
How is this vanilla fudge when there is no vanilla?
Hi Noneya! It does have a vanilla flavor even though it doesn’t have actual vanilla in it. You could definitely add some vanilla bean paste or the seeds of one vanilla bean. Hope this helps!
Laura , I have been making candy for 30 years . This fudge taste wonderful but it isn’t setting up very firm . I followed directions exactly . I’m wondering if I didn’t stir long enough to lose its sheen . I stirred for approximately 15 min the color lightened to white but it never lost its sheen .
Fudge can be super temperamental. It definitely has to lose its sheen which can take different amount of time depending on different factors like how hard you are stirring. It can also be affected by the weather. I recently made a fudge that wouldn’t set up at all. I am sorry you are having trouble, Lisa. I would recommend refrigerating or freezing it in hopes it will set up. Also, this isn’t a super firm fudge, but you should be able to cut it into pieces.
One thing my grandma told me when she was making fudge, or any candy, never to make it on a humid, rainy , hot or damp day because it will not set up correctly.
My question is, can I use the paddle on my Kitchen Aide mixer to beat the fudge?
Hi Pat! Yes, candy is very finicky. I think you can use the mixer to beat the fudge, but I would keep an eye on it, as the mixer will be faster and more steady than a person. Enjoy!