Fabulous

Personal Commentary:
Cut the batch in half instead of into thirds.

Fudge
The heating times were too short and it was
really hectic doing everything.

Ingredient:
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2/3 cup evaporated milk (not fat-free)

2 Tbsp butter

1/4 tsp (heaping) salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips (or

semi-sweet)

1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

(I divided the recipe into thirds so I could heat

each batch at different temperatures.)
Ready in: 2:20 minutes

Serves: 20 people
Preparation:
169 Calories per serving
Line an 8 by 8-inch baking dish with
aluminum foil (no buttering necessary)
leaving a 2-inch overhang of foil on two sides,
set aside.

In a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan,

combine sugar, evaporated milk, butter, and
salt.

Bring mixture to a rolling boil over medium

heat, stirring constantly. Allow to boil for 4
minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat, stir in vanilla, then add

chocolate chips, and stir until well blended.
Stir in pecans.
Pour mixture into the prepared baking dish
and spread into an even layer. Transfer to the
refrigerator and chill for 2 hours. Lift fudge
out using the foil overhang.
Tips:
Get your vanilla extract, chocolate chips, and
walnuts/pecans ready before you heat the
sugar mixture.
Experiment:
Testable Question: How does stirring fudge
at different temperatures affect a fudge
recipe’s texture?
Hypothesis: If I stir the fudge at a high
temperature the sugar crystals will be large, if
I stir it when it has cooled some the crystals
will be significantly smaller. The smaller the
crystals the creamier the fudge will be.
Manipulation: I heated each batch for
different amounts of time.
Batch 1: 30 seconds. - Was very fudgy. Most
like what I envisioned the unaltered batch to
be. Even though two was the unaltered batch.
Batch 2: 1:00 minute. - Was like a grainy
chocolate bar.
Batch 3: 2:00 minutes - Heating the batch for
more than recommended made it very dry and
powdery (like wet hot cocoa powder). I think
it was so dry and clumpy because the sugar
crystals became t
Since I divide the recipe into thirds I heated
each batch for a short amount of time. I think
making smaller batches made it much harder
to manipulate the experiment exactly how I
wanted to.
Image from:
https://www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/candy/sugar.html#:~:te
xt=The%20white%20stuff%20we%20know,elements%2C
%20sugar%20is%20a%20carbohydrate.
Why it Works:
When fudge is hot and a sugar crystal or “seed
crystal” is dropped into it, it attracts sugar
molecules that are dissolved in the fudge. If
you wait till it’s cooled to stir it the molecules
will have been slowed down enough to only
form tiny crystals. The more you stir the
smaller the crystals get because all the sugar
molecules are being used up.
As you stir and all the crystals are forming
you’re using all the molecules up. The more
you stir the more crystals form and since all
the molecules are getting used up the crystals
get smaller so the molecules can
accommodate for all of them.
Sugar crystals reform from a seed crystal
because the candy is oversaturated with
sugar. The candy has had more sugar
dissolved into it than it can handle and all the
water is gone. The crystals want to cluster
back into a solid and that will happen with the
least bit of provocation.
 %20and%20start%20forming
%20crystals.

● Jaclyn, Author: et al. “Fudge.” Cooking

Classy, 11 Mar. 2020,
www.cookingclassy.com/fudge/.

Work Cited

● “Science of Candy: What Is Sugar?”

Exploratorium,
www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/cand
y/sugar.html#:~:text=The%20white
%20stuff%20we%20know,elements
%2C%20sugar%20is%20a
%20carbohydrate.

● “Learn How to Control Crystallization

for Successful Sweets - How-To.”
FineCooking, 1 Dec. 1999,
www.finecooking.com/article/learn-
how-to-control-crystallization-for-
successful-sweets#:~:text=When%20a
%20mixture%20is%20hot,texture
%20of%20the%20final%20candy.

● “Science of Candy: What's Special

About Fudge?” Exploratorium,
www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/cand
y/fudge-story.html#:~:text=A%20lot
%20of%20big%20crystals,another