My Mommy’s Fudge

Easy old-fashioned, rich, real candy

When you go gluten free, the first thing you should do is identify your recipes that are already free of wheat, barley, rye, malt and triticale. You’ll probably be surprised how many savory dishes you have: rice and potatoes are staples of American cuisine. What shocked me was how many desserts I was already making or buying that were safe for my daughter to eat: peanut brittle, most ice creams, my monster cookie recipe, kheer, no-bake cookies, grilled pineapple with maple syrup, fruit and chocolate fondue, but most of all: my mommy’s fudge.

You guys have not had good fudge until you’ve had this fudge. That stuff you buy at that cute candy shop run by old ladies on the beach? It has nothing on this. Even See’s Candies, the greatest mass-producer of candy in this nation, cannot touch this recipe. Enjoy.

My Mommy’s Fudge

A.K.A. The best fudge you’ll ever eat 

6 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 pound confectioner’s sugar*

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 Tbsp vanilla

4 Tbsp milk*

1/4 tsp table salt

Directions

A large loaf pan (8.5 x 4.5 x 2.5) is the perfect size mold for this candy, but a smaller one will work, too; your fudge will just be taller and take longer to set. Prep this pan with a little squirt of canola oil or a sheen of butter. Be light with this or your fudge will be oily. Set the pan aside.

If you have a double boiler, find it and wipe it out, since I’m sure it’s been — like — a year since you used it last. If not, grab a metal or glass mixing bowl and put all the ingredients in it. Then get a big frying pan that your mixing bowl will fit in with a little space, you don’t want to create a pressure cooker here, the steam needs to escape. (Cheaters: you can also use a microwave if you pause every 45 seconds to stir. It takes a long time, but it’s doable.)

Fill the fry pan with about an inch of water, place the mixing bowl full of goodness inside it and put it all over MEDIUM heat. Not medium high. Medium. Don’t let any water get in the mixing bowl, this will ruin your fudge. The water should simmer, not boil. Adjust the heat to get the simmering right, then stir every 30 seconds until the mixture is smooth.

Pull the bowl out and (without burning yourself) wipe the bottom off with a towel; you don’t want water to drip into the pan as you’re pouring it. Pour the liquid fudge into the pan and — this is the hardest part — wait. You can cool this stuff in the fridge, unlike most fudge, or if it’s a chilly day, leave it out on the counter. This will take 1 – 2 hours. Then grease up a butter knife slightly, cut into pieces and serve. Try not to die from ecstasy.

*A note about ingredients: the wholer the milk, the creamier the fudge, but skim will work in a pinch. Use 100% cane sugar; if you get confectioner’s sugar with part beet sugar, your fudge (and all your frosting and other stuff) will have a gritty texture. The better the cocoa powder, the richer the taste. My favorite for this recipe is Hershey’s Cocoa Natural Unsweetened .

Aaaaaand here’s a glamour shot of us circa 1985, just for yucks.