COOKING IN THE DARK WITH COCHRAN & CHRISTIE

 

Oh, fudge, Christie, I think I messed up another batch!  Do you practically have to be a candy scientist to get this right?  Christie and I are making peanut butter fudge today, but I don’t think I let it cool long enough before stirring in the other ingredients.  Oh, great – the “peanut gallery” is here!  Hey, guys, don't turn your back on me now!

The term "fudge" is often used in the United Kingdom for a softer variant of the “tablet,” a recipe made in the 1700s.  American-style fudge was popular in women’s colleges around 1888.  Students at Wellesley College were not allowed to eat sweets, as the founder of Wellesley College held that, “pies, lies, and doughnuts should never have a place in Wellesley College.”  The students, however, were having secret fudge-making parties in their dorm rooms and selling the candy to raise money. 

Fudge is basically made by boiling sugar with milk or cream to the soft-ball stage, (224-238°F) and then beating the mixture while it cools so that it acquires a smooth, creamy texture.  It is easy to undercook or overcook a batch (if you don’t have a candy thermometer) and to end up with “crystallized” fudge through insufficient stirring.  As a result, “foolproof” recipes were developed for the home cook that included corn syrup, which prevents crystallization and produces smooth fudge.  Maybe we should have added corn syrup, Christie!  Christie, Christie, has she left me, too?  Where can I find a friend when I need one?  I think I need to play with a soft ball instead of soft-ball!

Let me take over, Cochran, before this peanut post goes right in the toilet (too late).  We need to give our readers the history of peanut butter in a "nutshell."  Early versions of peanut butter were just roasted peanut paste.  It was not until George Washington Carver added molasses and sugar that it tasted more like the version we enjoy today.  Vegetable oil was added later to make it spread better. 

The first patent for milling roasted peanuts into a paste was issued in 1884 to Marcellus Gilmore Edson of Canada.  J.H. Kellogg (of breakfast cereal fame) and his brother, W.K. Kellogg, were issued a patent for their early version of peanut butter in 1895 and 1897, what they called nut-butter!  Dr. Ambrose Straub, a physician in St. Louis, Missouri, was issued a patent for his peanut butter-making machine in 1903, after he pursued a method for providing protein to his elderly toothless patients in the 1890s. 

Plumpy'nut is a high-protein, high-energy peanut-based food for use in famine relief, formulated in 1997 by Andre Briend, a French pediatric nutritionist.  Plumpy’nut requires no water, preparation, or refrigeration and has a 2-year shelf life.  It helps with rapid weight gain, which can make the difference between life and death for a young child with severe malnutrition. 

Project Peanut Butter, a revolutionary therapeutic program founded by Dr. Mark Manary, is the most effective method to treat severely malnourished kids all over the world.  Project Peanut Butter uses Plumpy’nut, also referred to as Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) and Chiponde by the locals.  Chiponde is a mix of peanuts, powdered milk, oil, sugar, and vitamins and minerals.  Most of the ingredients are supplied by local farmers, except for the powdered milk (the most expensive ingredient).  

Visit projectpeanutbutter.org to learn more about this amazing effort started by one doctor, Dr. Mark Manary, after he moved to Malawi in 1999.  From 2000 to 2004, Dr. Manary collaborated with a team of doctors and organizations to test various formulas and perform clinical trials with RUTFs.  In 2007, Dr. Manary’s approach was commended as the most effective way to treat severely malnourished children by the United Nations, the World Health Organization, and UNICEF. 

Next time, I think Cochran and Christie will eat a bowl of Cap'n Crunch Peanut Butter cereal or maybe munch on some celery or apple with peanut butter!  We definitely need something "fool" proof!  Please leave comments on your favorite fudge or how we can improve on ours!

PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE

4 cups white sugar

1 cup evaporated  milk

1/2 cup butter
1 cup peanut butter (we used Jif Natural Creamy)

1 cup marshallow creme 

• Line a 9x13-inch pan with foil or parchment paper. 
• In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, evaporated milk, and butter. Cook over medium heat, sirring frequently until mixture comes to a boil.  Boil for 10 minutes (temperature should be at soft-ball stage). 
• Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter and marshamallow creme.  Pour into the prepared pan and chill until set.  Cut into squares and serve.