How to Make Fudge Harden

Fudge will harden easily with the right cooking techniques.

The trick to making fudge with the right consistency involves careful attention to temperature and timing. After adding the ingredients and mixing everything according to your recipe, the fudge batter should cooperate by hardening quickly and easily in the pan. If it does not begin to harden almost immediately, you may have made mistakes in your baking process. Follow a few well timed steps and you can have a batch of thick, rich fudge everytime.

Things You'll Need

• Loaf pan
• Parchment paper
• Fudge ingredients
• 2-quart saucepan
• Candy thermometer
• Wooden spoon
• Plastic wrap

Instructions

1. Line the loaf pan with parchment paper. Extend the edges of the parchment paper so that you will be able to lift out the hard fudge by the parchment paper.

2. Mix the fudge ingredients in the saucepan over medium heat. Stir gently until the ingredients are smooth.

3. Insert the candy thermometer into the hot fudge mixture and stir until it reaches 236 degrees Fahrenheit -- soft ball stage.

4. Remove the pan carefully after the temperature reaches this point. Leave the thermometer in the pan and set it gently down on the counter.

5. Add the butter called for in the recipe and allow it to melt undisturbed without stirring.

6. Allow the temperature to fall to 110 degrees Fahrenheit.

7. Add the vanilla called for in the recipe. Beat the fudge by hand using a wooden spoon. Continue beating until the fudge gets extremely thick and starts to lose some of its glossiness.

8. Turn the fudge into the prepared pan and press it down evenly. The fudge will be very thick and almost set by this time.

9. Set the fudge on the counter for about 15 minutes to let it continue to harden.

10. Cut the fudge into squares and remove the hard squares from the pan. Wrap the squares individually in plastic wrap and store for up to three days at room temperature. Alternatively, freeze the wrapped fudge for up to six months.

Tips & Warnings

• If fudge has not become hard by the end of the 15-minute hardening time, it likely will not. Either use it as it is or reheat it and use it as a topping for ice cream or other desserts.

References

• "Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts"; Maida Heatter and Toni Evins; 2006