SC - Oh Fudge! OOP

[Bonne of Traquair]

>
> > Mix together the sugar and maple syrup in a heavy saucepan on a
> > medium flame.  Heat until it reaches 280F (soft crack stage).  Add
> > walnuts, extract, and oil, and continue to cook, stirring
> > continuously, until it reaches 300F (hard crack stage).  Remove
> > from heat, and stir in baking soda.  When it foams up, pour onto
> > oiled marble board, etc.
>

>temperature was getting close to 280, about 265 or so, so I added in the
>maple extract. I decided not to wait for exactly 280 because the way it was
>climbing I figured it would overshoot before I got everything added.
>Suddenly, and I mean very suddenly, what had been a pretty liquid mass
>started crystalizing into thick clumps of crystals surrounded by some
>liquid. And the temperature had dropped into the 240s. I kept heating it
>but it didn't seem to want to liquify again. I was afraid it might burn,
>so added a substatial amount of maple syrup which made it more liquid but
>with lots of crystals floating in it. I cooked this for a while longer,
>added the walnuts and the baking soda and spread the crumbly paste in
>the oiled cake pan.

Next time, put all the ingredients you have to add into one small bowl (or 
one bowl for the wet and one for the dry ingredients) ready by the side of 
the stove.  That way you can add them quickly as soon as the temp hits the 
mark.

I suspect that your maple syrup had alcohol in it, which doesn't boil up in 
the same range as the sugar, and which evaporates and cools quickly.  It was 
probably a tiny amount of extract, I wouldn't have expected such a dramatic 
result.  Great chemistry experiment to share with a kid who will be just as 
happy with failed candy as with succesful anyway.

The store I was at did have the kind of digital thermometer with a probe 
meant for testing meat, but like my instant read, the temp range wasn't high 
enough.  When I first saw it, I almost bought it without checking the box, 
because surely it can't be that much trouble/expense to make it read a large 
range?  But I did read the box and found the range didn't go up into the 
candy temps.



Bonne
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