I mentioned in my end-of-year post several years ago that I successfully made my gramma’s fudge recipe for the first time by myself. Soph and I made fudge on stream for her cooking show, and I learned a lot while using her induction cooktop.
Then, this past summer, I spent a week with my gramma. Just the two of us. My gramma lives about four hours from me, but the rest of my mom’s side of the family lives relatively close, so they take good care of her, as she doesn’t drive anymore but still lives alone in her home of close to 60 years. Well, it turned out that everyone had accidentally planned their vacations for the same week — leaving Gramma without anyone close by in case she needed anything. Now, the matriarch of my mother’s family is an extremely independent 87 years old, but as stated, she doesn’t drive, and she has a hard time walking distances (she uses a cane and walker). So the family asked if I could come down for the week to hang out.
Spoiler alert: It was honestly one of the best ways I could think to spend a week of vacation time.
When I told my gramma I’d be coming down to spend time with her, she immediately said: “Oh, good. We can make fudge.”
My mom’s family has been using the same fudge recipe for eons. My grandpa got this recipe from the back of a Hershey’s cocoa box decades ago. Not only that, but the spoon pictured is the only acceptable spoon to use — his old spoon. My grandpa has been gone for almost forty years, but my gramma still uses his old spoon to make fudge. It’s her way of inviting his memory home, I think.
Spending this time with my gramma — and, in spirit, my grandpa, who I never met — was really, really nice. It helped me take several deep breaths — something that has seemed in short supply of late. Seeing her so happy that she could make this sweet treat, the same treat that her late husband made so popular among the family, was healing for me. Making fudge is her love language, and maybe it’s mine too.
I do hope I have at least a couple more years of making fudge with her. I called her a few days ago to wish her a happy birthday: 88 years! The first thing she said to me: “Yep, I’m almost 90!” I love her, and I hope I can keep this fudge tradition going for years and years even after she leaves.
And, of course, I can’t finish this post without sharing the recipe, so here you go:
Grandpa’s Cocoa Fudge
1/2 cup Hershey's cocoa
3 cups white sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter (4 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon vanilla
Combine cocoa, sugar, and salt in pan. Add milk and mix thoroughly. Bring to a bubbly boil on high heat (cook til 'soft ball stage,' testing in cool water). Add butter and let stand. After - add vanilla and beat til ready to pour. Pour into buttered pan.
Note: You can make this peanut butter fudge by adding 1 cup of peanut butter and no cocoa.
Note 2: I believe you let it sit for ten minutes after adding the butter (but do NOT stir the butter in). After the ten minutes are up, THEN you can add the vanilla and stir.
(I have fixed some of the typographical errors here and inserted the back instructions into the main paragraph, but this is the recipe as shown on the cards.)
Liz Cultivates | L.M. Fern 
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