Mother's Peanut Butter Fudge

 

Every Christmas my mother would make us the most delicious Peanut Butter Fudge. Mom was not one to make us a lot of treats throughout the rest of the year, but at Christmas time she would always make us our favourites.

One of those was this Peanut Butter Fudge.  It was rich and creamy and a real taste treat for each of us. We all loved it.

 

Our mother had been quite chubby during a period in her childhood, and she had an obese mother. I think controlling weight was a really important thing to her.  For the life of me, I cannot remember her ever sitting down at the table to eat a  meal with us.

My sister and I spoke about this one day and she could not remember mom eating with us at the table either, although she did remember her standing at the counter eating leftovers from the day before.

 

It was  not something I ever thought about while my mother was alive, so I will never ever know what motivated her.  She was a very tiny woman.  Short and petite.

I remember thinking throughout her last years of her life that I must have been a huge disappointment to her with my size and weight problems.  All that effort she went to while we were growing up to help to keep us thin had all gone to waste!

 

Oh well, we are who we are.  My father has always struggled with his weight, and my last thirty-five years of life have been a huge struggle with my own.  I have decided though that I am simply not going to worry about it anymore.

I will eat healthy, with the occasional treat and let what be, be.  I think that is the healthiest attitude to take. I  will indulge and partake of treats every now and then like Mom's Peanut Butter Fudge.  And I will enjoy them, for all of their delicious taste and the wonderful memories that they bring into to my heart and soul.

I truly believe that good food nourishes the soul as well as the body.

 

One thing my mother always made at least once during the holidays was peanut butter fudge. It was never chocolate or any other kind . . . always peanut butter, but we didn't mind because we loved it so very much. It was a real treat for us!  WE never got candy as a rule! 

She always made her fudge in the same pot. It was an old aluminum one that she had gotten in her original set of Wearever cookware back in 1955. 

 

 I think the set of pans cost almost as much as a house, but here we are 2020 and we are still using them. Money well spent, I'd say!

 

Mom never measured anything. She didn't need to. It was all done by memory, and she knew exactly how much of each thing she needed to add by sight alone . . . and it always worked like a charm, every time. 

 

Me . . . I made fudge sometimes for my children when they were growing up, but,  9 times out of 10 they'd end up having to eat it with a spoon. They ate and enjoyed it anyways.

 We'd watch our mother as it went together . . . as if by magic . . . and then sometimes she would let us beat it when it was ready, with her big old wooden spoon.

If we'd been very good . . .we'd be given the pot and spoon to lick clean. We always did a pretty good job of that, coz it would always be as clean as a whistle by the time we were done.

 The beaten fudge would be poured into the same pan each time. It was an old aluminium tin, blackened through use . . . it's bottom engraved in a swirly pattern of raised tin. 

Some how those little traced swirls on the bottom of each piece only added to it's flavour.  Every sweet and cake of my childhood used to come with that swirly pattern on the bottom as well. We never minded.  What I wouldn't give to have that tin now! 

But even more I would love to have my mother here.  One year, when I was all grown up and had a family of my own, she let me watch and take measurments while she made it. This delicious recipe is the result.  Enjoy!

Mother's Peanut Butter Fudge

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Yield: Makes one 8-inch square pan

Author: Marie Rayner

It just wouldn't be Christmas without a pan of this to munch on! Creamy and peanut buttery. If you don't like peanut butter, look away now!

Ingredients

• 3 cups (585g) of white finely granulated sugar
• 3 TBS smooth peanut butter
• 1 cup (240ml) of whole milk
• 1/4 cup (60g) butter
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Butter an 8 inch square pan. Set aside.
2. Place the sugar, peanut butter and milk into a LARGE saucepan. (You will need a really big one as it really increases in volume when it is boiling. Trust me on this.)
3. Heat, whisking, until the peanut butter is completely melted into the mixture. Increase the heat slightly and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce the heat to a medium boil and continue to boil, stirring occasionally to help prevent it from catching. You will want to boil it to the soft ball stage, (115*C/235*F) This should take between 18 to 25 minutes or so. Once this happens, remove from the heat immediately.
4. Stir in the butter and vanilla. Beat with a wooden spoon until it begins to look creamy and begins to lose it's gloss.
5. Pour into the prepared pan immediately. (Don't wait too long or it will harden in the pot and you won't be able to pour it into the prepared pan. You just want it to begin losing it's gloss.)
6. Allow to set for about an hour at room temperature, before cutting into squares to serve.
7. Store in an airtight container. This also freezes well.

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What favourite treat created for the holidays reminds you most of your childhood? I really would love to know!  

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