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Dessert

Italian Cream Fudge

A fudge made with brown and granulated sugar, milk, butter, egg, and lemon juice.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Warren, Pa. Presbyterian church. Second auxiliary missionary society. [from old catalog] · From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 7 ingredients
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Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓

Italian Cream Fudge

Ingredients

Directions

Make the fudge base

  1. Combine 2 cups light brown sugar, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1 cup milk, and 1 kitchen spoon butter; cook until it forms a soft ball in water.

  2. Remove from fire and beat until it becomes creamy.

  3. Add the lemon juice.

Finish the fudge

  1. Dissolve 1½ pounds of loaf sugar in ½ pint of water.

  2. Add the white of 1 egg.

  3. When it is boiled sufficiently to snap in cold water, add 1 teacup strained lemon juice.

  4. Boil quickly again until it snaps in cold water.

  5. Pour on buttered plates and cut in even squares.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

390Calories
15 gProtein
25 gFat
29 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By Warren, Pa. Presbyterian church. Second auxiliary missionary society. [from old catalog]. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together81,283 recipes

    Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).

  2. Milk + lemontop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together19,053 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  3. Butter + lemontop 16% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together41,227 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  4. Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together118,967 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

  5. Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together98,233 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Light brown sugar
Adds sweetness and deep flavour, and its sugar concentration helps set the fudge.
Granulated sugar
Adds sweetness and forms the sugar structure that sets as the mixture cools.
Milk
Adds moisture and creaminess, softening the texture of the cooked sugar.
Butter
Adds fat for a smooth, rich texture and helps prevent sticking.
Lemon juice
Adds acidity that softens the sugar crystals, keeping the fudge smooth.

The step that matters

Cook to the soft-ball and snap stages. The sugar concentration reached during boiling sets the final texture. Stopping early leaves the fudge soft and runny, while cooking too long makes it hard and grainy. Testing in cold water shows when the right stage is reached.

Swap the lemon

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, milk, butter, egg):

  1. Vanillafits better
  2. Figfits about as well
  3. Coconutfits about as well
  4. Lemonthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, milk, butter, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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