Creamy Chocolate Fudge

By carvalhohm

Ingredients

• 4 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 cups whipping cream
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup
• 6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
• 6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup (1/8 lb.) butter, cut into chunks
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from americanfamily.com

Preparation

Step 1

Notes: You will need candy thermometer to make this fudge. Be sure to read "Candy Basics" and "Fudge Pointers" below before beginning.

Makes about 3 pounds

1. In 3 to 4-quart heavy-bottomed pan over medium-low heat, stir sugar, cream, and corn syrup, continually scraping bottom of pan with heatproof flexible spatula, until sugar is completely dissolved, about 15 minutes. Stir in unsweetened and bittersweet chocolate until melted. Increase heat to medium and bring mixture to simmer.

2. Cook, occasionally stirring mixture and brushing down sides of pan with wet pastry brush, until mixture reaches 235° on candy thermometer. Remove from heat and pour into bowl of standing mixer or another large bowl. Add butter and vanilla but do not stir; insert candy thermometer and let mixture stand undisturbed until cooled to 110°, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

3. Line 9-inch square pan with foil; lightly butter foil. With paddle attachment of standing mixer or sturdy wooden spoon, beat chocolate mixture vigorously (on high speed if using mixer; reduce speed if motor starts to labor) until mixture thickens and loses its glossy sheen, about 5 minutes with mixer, about 10 minutes by hand. Scrape into pan, smooth top, and chill until firm to touch, at least 2 hours, or up to 1 day.

Choose right pans. Heavy-bottomed stainless steel pans are best for cooking sugar mixtures. Thin, lightweight pans tend to conduct heat--and cook sugar syrup--unevenly.

Submerge bottom of thermometer completely in sugar syrup to get an accurate reading. Using narrow pan with tall sides makes mixture deeper, but, if necessary, you can gently tilt shallower pan to submerge thermometer bottom.

Melt chocolate gently for best results. If chocolate gets too hot, it may not set properly and will develop "bloom" (white streaks) on surface when stored. Stirring chopped chocolate in pan or bowl over hot, not simmering, water maintains an even, low temperature, resulting in glossy, firmly set chocolate.

Dissolve sugar completely over low heat (step 1) before bringing mixture to simmer. Using superfine sugar, also sold as "baker's sugar," makes this easier. To check whether sugar has dissolved, scrape pan bottom with heatproof spatula, pull spatula up, let syrup on it cool for few seconds, then rub drop between your fingers. If you can feel grains of sugar, it hasn't dissolved yet.

Let mixture cool to lukewarm (exactly 110°) before beating it (step 3); otherwise, fudge may stiffen and become grainy. Pouring it into large, shallow bowl helps it cool faster, but don't stir it too early.

Beat fudge well once it has cooled to 110°. Chocolate fudge thickens more than maple fudge at this stage, but both dull slightly and take on lighter color after beating; that's when they're ready to pour into pan.