Maple Nut Fudge / Fudge med Lønnesirup og Nøtter

A sweet recipe found in “Condenced Milk
and its use in Good Cookery” published by
Borden’s Condenced Milk Company in 1927

Fudge is a type of confectionery which is made by mixing sugar, butter and milk, heating it to the soft-ball stage at 238° F (116° C), and then beating the mixture while it cools so that it acquires a smooth, creamy consistency. Fruits, nuts, chocolate, caramel, candies, and other flavors are sometimes added either inside or on top. It is often bought as a gift from a gift shop in tourist areas and attractions.

Scotish Tablet / Skotske Tablett

A classic Scotish sweet recipe found on goodtoknow.co.uk

This very sweet traditional Scottish confectionery is very similar to fudge but has a more sugary and crumbly texture. It will keep well for up to 6 weeks and so makes an ideal gift wrapped in cellophane bags or boxes and tied with a pretty ribbon. It is easier to make if you use a sugar thermometer and cook the mixture until it reaches the soft ball stage – 240°F/118°C but can be made without so long as you cook it until the mixture is really thick, and on the point of setting.

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Old Fashioned Chocolate Fudge / Gammeldags Amerikansk Sjokoladefudge

A sweet recipe found in “Hershey Favourite Recipes”
published in 1937

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Origin of Fudge

American-style fudge (containing chocolate) is found in a letter written by Emelyn Battersby Hartridge, a student at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. She wrote that her schoolmate’s cousin made fudge in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1886 and sold it for 40 cents a pound. Hartridge obtained the fudge recipe and, in 1888, made 30 lb (14 kg) of fudge for the Vassar College Senior Auction. This Vassar fudge recipe became quite popular at the school for years to come.

Word of this popular confectionery spread to other women’s colleges. For example, Wellesley College and Smith College have their own versions of a fudge recipe dating from the late 19th or early 20th century.

In the late 19th century, shops on Mackinac Island in Michigan began to produce similar products for summer vacationers. Fudge is still produced in some of the original shops on Mackinac Island and the surrounding area. Mackinac Island Fudge ice cream, a vanilla ice cream with chunks of fudge blended in, is also very common in this region and across the United States.