I've never tried it. When I take the fudge off the stove, I let it cool for a bit and then beat with a wooden spoon. Letting it cool slightly requires less beating. But I don't see why you couldn't try using a mixer on low speed. But you need to watch it closely. It goes from being perfect pouring texture to firming up quickly.

Ann

Thanks Ann. I always have unpredictable results when I beat fudge--I *think* it's the beating where I mess up.

I've never tried beating fudge with a mixer either, but I don't see why it wouldn't work.

fori, be sure to let us know how it turns out if you try it, I have an old "Jack Frost" fudge recipe of Grandma's that I haven't made in years because of the time it takes to beat it.

Annie

I have used my KA with the flat beater to beat fudge and it worked quite well. You do have to keep a close eye on it, and it is harder to see it clearly in the mixing bowl unless I stop beating and lower the bowl to check. I was surprised how long it took the first time I used my KA, I thought it would be faster, but it took almost as long as beating by hand. Of course, it was a lot easier on my wrist. I would not try a small hand mixer though, I'm not sure it would work the same.

Alright. I'm gonna do it. I have a new KA that needs breaking in!

I don't know why I've developed this need to destroy sugar by the pound, but I hope it passes after the holidays.

I made fudge yesterday at 7:00 in the morning, but I cheated. I had to be up at the school by 8:00 so I just made 6 minute fudge. It is adequite to fill out a candy platter, but not as good as the real thing! Good luck with your fudge.

Well, it turns out there's a lot I'm clueless about, and not just the beating...I decided not to use the mixer but when the goo cooled to 110 (yes, I measured the temp for cooling) I could barely get a spoon into the brown goo. After uselessly swishing the candy blob around in the butter (a lot in this recipe) a few times I gave up and glopped it into the mixer bowl. It managed to incorporate the butter pretty well.

I think I messed up earlier in the process. If step one is melt some sugar and step 3 is pour the melted sugar into the boiling cream/sugar from step 2, is it a bad sign when the melted sugar has solidified?

I think I'll try the mixer again. Or maybe I've gotten candymaking out of my system. That would be best...

Maybe you need to try a different recipe? I have used this one for years and never had a problem with it, my friends teenage daughter was also successful with it.

Chocolate Fudge

2 cups sugar
2/3 cup milk
2 TBSPs corn syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup cocoa (or 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate)
2 TBSPs butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup chopped nuts if desired

Butter 9X5X3 " loaf pan. Cook sugar, milk, corn syrup, salt and cocoa in 2-quart sauce pan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sugar is dissolved. Cook, stirring occasionally, to 234 on candy thermometer. Remove from heat. (If you are going to use the KA mixer to beat the fudge, transfer it to the bowl now.) Add butter. (I do not stir the butter in, I just drop it on top of the fudge and let it melt there as the fudge cools.)

Cool to 120 without stirring. Add vanilla. Beat vigorously (low speed on mixer) about 5 to 10 minutes or until candy is thick and no longer glossy. Quickly stir in nuts (by hand). Spread in pan, Cool until firm. Cut into 1" squares.

32 candies 75 Calories each

Betty Crocker's 40th Anniversary Edition Cookbook

Not sure what fudge recipe you are using. My recipe calls for all the ingredients to be cooked together except for the vanilla which gets added after the mixture comes off the stove, and the nuts which get added just before pouring the fudge into a buttered dish.

Here is my recipe:

Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table

Maple Cream Fudge
=================
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup cream
1/3 cup of butter
1/4 cup of maple syrup
pinch of salt
vanilla
. Add the two sugars, butter and cream maple syrup and salt into a sauce
pan. Place over medium heat. Stir while bringing to a boil. Lower the
heat and continue to stir slowly while the mixture cooks. After about
7 minutes, test by pouring a small amount into some cold water. You
want it to form a soft ball. You might need to cook it for another
minute or two. Remove from the heat, add a couple of teaspoons of
vanilla and start stirring. It takes about 14 or 15 minutes for the
fudge to cool and thicken. Pour into buttered dish.

Option: Replace the cream and cup of white sugar with one can of
Sweetened Condensed Milk and increase the maple syrup to 1 cup.

To make Carmels instead of fudge,

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup white
1/2 cup white corn syrup
1 cup butter
1 cup cream
pinch of salt
vanilla

Cook to almost hard ball stage.
Let cool slightly, stir and then pour into butter pan or mini muffin
tins.

Thanks! I'll have to try those. No fair posting pictures. And I'll definitely follow the mixer technique!

I've made this stuff before successfully years ago--it's "burnt sugar fudge" so it has the oddball melting sugar step. Long enough that I don't remember what I did. I'm sure there was some beating in front of the TV though.

I was going to try to caramel coat it for pecan logs. I should get up and see what it's doing now...If nothing else, I bet microwaved it'll be some pretty nice ice cream topping.

I checked my goo and it has in fact fudgified. It actually worked!

So, to summarize my experiment with the mixer, it worked very well. In fact, it saved my fudge from certain doom because it was entirely unbeatable (not in a good way). It looked so bad after mixing, though, I would have trashed it anyway had I not already gotten the pan dirty by buttering it. I'm such a n00b!

(It also chopped the pecans pretty well--I only had halves. I guess if having "clear" candy is important, the nuts would get worked in by hand.)

Congrats! Is it as tasty as it sounds?

It's good! Extremely sweet...a little goes a long way. Obviously I had some problems and I don't know if I know why.

I'm not sure why my melted sugar solidified so quickly. Well, because that's what melted sugar does. I just don't know why the recipe seemed to think it would be pourable. I had to remelt it. Would overcooked sugar make the stuff unbeatable?

I may have cooled it too long, too. I used a thermometer but the pot I cooked in is very wide so maybe it just went too fast.

But, it bounced back and anything that can go through all my errors and still be recognizable gets 5 stars from me! And if I don't get around to caramel-coating it, it's still good eatin'.

Burnt Sugar Fudge

6 c. sugar
2 c. half and half or light cream
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 c. butter
1 tsp vanilla
2 c. chopped pecans

Put 2 c. sugar in heavy skillet; melt over low heat until sugar liquefies and turns a light golden brown (don't scorch).

Combine 4 c. sugar with half and half in 3-qt. heavy saucepan. Bring to boil stirring constantly. Then slowly pour the melted sugar into saucepan mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, to softball (238).

Remove from heat and vigorously stir in baking soda. Mixture will foam. Add butter without stirring. Let stand until lukewarm (110). Add vanilla and beat until mixture loses its gloss. Stir in nuts, beat until mixture thickens. Pour into buttered 13x9x2" pan. (from Homemade Candy, Farm Journal, Ed. Nell B. Nichols, 1970.)

Fudgified! LOL, fori, I like that word. Fudgified.

That does it, tonight I have to try Ann T's maple fudge. I love maple and the only thing that's kept me from it is my blasted carpal tunnel which makes it impossible to beat fudge without substantial pain.

Nancy, that Kitchenaid of yours is gonna get a workout tonight!!!

Annie

I think I'll try the KA route too..
It's had a serious work out of late with marshmallows and royal icing....so it's in a better mode of mixing than me!

It's hard work! And if there's no reason NOT to use the KA, you'd almost have to be crazy to do it by hand. And there goes my last excuse to not make fudge more often. I guess it's still fattening.

I made my caramel goop, coated and rolled the pieces, and now know why they do it in big logs. It's a lot of work! And as you go you get stickier and clumsier...I won't be able to even LOOK at caramel pecan candy for...oh...a good half hour.

I made the Maple Fudge and used my mixer to stir and cool...
Worked great..Now if I could stay out of it!!!

Just had another nibble....ugh!

I just tried using my KA and it worked beautifully. I’m 74 and was doing a brown sugar cooked icing. Knew I’d never get it beaten. Was supposed to take 20 minutes to cool to 110 and it took at least 45. It was already too thick to beat. I tried, came here to look and went to my KA. I used the lowest speed, then upped one speed and then another. Very quick, very easy. Used a tiny flashlight to watch for color to change. Directions said “pour” and I did. Looks perfect and tastes scrumptious!

"My recipe calls for all the ingredients to be cooked together except for the vanilla which gets added after the mixture comes off the stove, and the nuts which get added just before pouring the fudge into a buttered dish."

Yes, a very old thread, but that's exactly what I do, too.