The origins of Fudge Day are unknown, but it cannot be denied that celebrating this favourite treat is a great way to spend the day. Fudge is soft and smooth. It’s made by heating and mixing milk, butter and sugar. A variety of other ingredients can then be added to create various flavours of fudge such as chocolate and peanut butter fudge.
The earliest mention of fudge can be found in a letter written by Emelyn Hartridge, who was studying at Vassar College, in Poughkeepsie, New York. The letter said fudge was made and sold in Baltimore, Maryland, also in the US, in 1886.
And it seems to have stuck! Mackinac Island Fudge ice cream – vanilla ice cream blended with small chunks of fudge – is still sold to customers in the summer on Mackinac Island, Michigan, in the US, as well as surrounding areas.
While the basic fudge recipe is mostly unchanged, you can make your own fudge in a microwave oven!
- Melt three cups (700g) of chocolate chips along with 400g of sweetened condensed milk and ¼ cup (30g) of butter or margarine in a large bowl in the microwave.
- Cook on medium heat for about four minutes, or until the chocolate chips have melted. Stir a couple of times during cooking.
- Add in any extra ingredients such as nuts, fruit, biscuits, marshmallows or others by stirring well. Pour fudge mix into a greased a 1,8-litre square glass dish. Leave in fridge until set. Simple, easy and tasty!
