PB fudge went horribly wrong

[mj1]

I have never made fudge before but found an easy looking recipe and decided to give it a shot. What I ended up with is a gooey substance that must be eaten with a spoon. It does not resemble fudge at all.

I think the problem is with the lack of information given in the recipe. Could someone please take a look at this recipe and tell me what went wrong?

Peanut Butter Fudge

1 cup brown sugar
2 cups sugar
4 T corn syrup
3/4 cup milk

Directions: Add all ingredients into a saucepan. Cook to soft ball stage.

Add:
3/4 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup butter
1 tsp. vanilla

Directions:
Beat well by hand until slightly thick. Pour into buttered pan. Cool. Cut into squares.



So I have quadruple checked the recipe and ingredients and can confirm that all my measurements were accurate. The problem I had is that this fudge never made it to the soft ball stage, I'm not even sure what that means. I assume it means that it's thick enough (or almost thick enough) to shape into a ball. What I had was almost the consistency of Jello Cook & Serve Pudding, but not quite as thick. I cooked this fudge for well over 30 minutes with no change to the consistency. I tried different temperatures, I tried boiling it, I tried stirring it constantly but there was no change.

Then I thought that maybe it would thicken up after I added the remaining ingredients. It only thickened slightly but was still on the runny side. I beat it for well over five minutes with no change in thickness. So I decided to go ahead and pour it into the pan. It only thickened slightly overnight. It's now thicker than pudding, but not as thick as fudge since it's still gooey and runny enough that it must be eaten with a spoon. Also, the color is dark and it looks more like caramel, but it tastes ok. I now have it sitting in the refrigerator with hopes that it will thicken even more.

Where did things go wrong? If this recipe can be fixed, I'd like to try it again, I think.

 

[squeaker]

So I have quadruple checked the recipe and ingredients and can confirm that all my measurements were accurate. The problem I had is that this fudge never made it to the soft ball stage, I'm not even sure what that means. I assume it means that it's thick enough (or almost thick enough) to shape into a ball. What I had was almost the consistency of Jello Cook & Serve Pudding, but not quite as thick. I cooked this fudge for well over 30 minutes with no change to the consistency. I tried different temperatures, I tried boiling it, I tried stirring it constantly but there was no change.
Where did things go wrong? If this recipe can be fixed, I'd like to try it again, I think.

you have to cook it till it reached the soft ball stage, and for me most of the time that's longer than a half hour,
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=-1]Soft-Ball Stage
235° F–240° F[/SIZE][/FONT] - a candy thermometer

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=-1] the “soft-ball” stage. That means that when you drop a bit of it into cold water to cool it down, it will form a soft ball.


here is a page that might help
Science of Candy: The Cold Water Test
[/SIZE][/FONT]

 

[JamesS]

Quick, bake a chocolate cake and use your fudge as frosting!....then say you planned it that way all along.

 

[mj1]

you have to cook it till it reached the soft ball stage, and for me most of the time that's longer than a half hour,
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=-1]Soft-Ball Stage
235° F–240° F[/SIZE][/FONT] - a candy thermometer

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=-1] the “soft-ball” stage. That means that when you drop a bit of it into cold water to cool it down, it will form a soft ball.

[/SIZE][/FONT]

Thanks. I guess the recipe should have stated that. I probably should've looked up what soft ball stage meant before trying to make it.

What level of heat should it be cooked on? Should I cook it on medium and stir constantly until it boils? Then should I let it cook (without stirring) until it reaches the soft ball stage? Then when it reaches the soft ball stage should I go ahead and add the remaining ingredients or let it cool first?

I'm gonna half the recipe and try again Thursday. I hope it tastes better than it does now.

Quick, bake a chocolate cake and use your fudge as frosting!....then say you planned it that way all along.

 

[squeaker]

cook it on medium and stir every 10 to 15 minutes until it reaches the soft ball stage Then when it reaches the soft ball stage add the remaining ingredients

 

[KAYLINDA]

Here is my microwave recipe if you would like to try it. It is so much faster.

PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE

IN A TWO QUART MICROWAVE BOWL
MIX TOGETHER
¾ CUP (1 1/2 STICKS) SOFTENED BUTTER OR MARGARINE
3 CUPS WHITE SUGAR
2/3 CUP EVAPORATED MILK
BRING TO A BOIL IN THE MICROWAVE (ABOUT 3-5 MINUTES) STIR
COOK AN ADDITIONAL 4-5 MINUTES TO BRING TO SOFT BALL STAGE (234 DEGREES)
ADD
1 (7) OUNCE JAR MARSHMALLOW CRÈME OR
(4 OUNCES MINI MARSHMALLOWS AND 1/3 CUP CORN SYRUP)

1 1/2 CUPS PEANUT BUTTER
1 TABLESPOON VANILLA
STIR UNTIL SMOOTH

I scoop this into my silicone mini muffin pan. They will pop right out when they are cool, and all be uniform pieces of candy.

There's only a couple tricks..one is open the microwave door quickly to see if it is boiling yet between the 3 and 5 minutes...and shut quickly again.

The second is..I always use a candy thermometer...but I don't remove the bowl from the microwave. Just open the door after about 3 1/2minutes...check temperature, close quickly then do about a minute at a time until it gets to 234.

I love making candies in the microwave! We do several different ones here for our dessert bar. They freeze very nicely!

 

[Silversage]

I'm not sure where you live, but there's an old rule that says never make fudge on a humid day. I live on the Gulf of Mexico, and in the summer it's almost impossible to get fudge to set up.

There are a number of tricks that can help. Cook if about 2 degrees higher if the humidity is up to help it set up. Add 1 tablespoon corn syrup to keep it from becoming grainy. Never use high heat. Make sure it cools to 110 degrees before you begin to beat it, or it can get grainy.

Recipes that use marshmallows, sweetened condensed milk, melted chocolate chips, or corn syrup are much more forgiving and will almost always work, no matter what the weather or the skill level of the cook.

Make sure you use a thermometer. There is no way to fix undercooked fudge. Once you have started beating it, you can't go back. Just put it in a jar and use it as a delicious topping over ice cream!

 

[babetoo]

i always use the recipe using sweetened condensed milk. made some last month with mint choco chips, yummy, always works, is very creamy and fast to makel.

 

[MoodyBlueFoodie]

I think you have too much corn syrup.

 

[expatgirl]

what a bohiney pain........because it's just not 3 or 4 that are affected it's the whole lot......and if you're lazy like me you sure as shootin don't want to do a statistical analylis and it dig into the trenches and make the whole silly thing again.......you want a culprit quartered and dissected..............and then move on with a recipe that works again........truly I understand.......so many reasons and so few people around wilingly and without recompsense to clean up our "gaffes" and "follies".......well, if this receipe has worked before and you know you got all the ingredients right then wait..... for a sunny day with low humidity and make it again..........and the best of luck .........