Fantabulous Fudge

I've always been a little wary of making sweets - homemade confectionery is, to me, the height of kitchen alchemy. But last weekend, I decided to overcome my fear of fudge and it turned out to be really rather simple. And addictive. And delicious.

Trying to be sensible, I gave away most of my fudge (you'll want to as well, after eating half of the mixture and knowing EXACTLY how much sugar goes into it) in charming little casserole dishes bought from B&M. Here's how to make your own...

Ingredients:
- 500g caster sugar
- 340ml evaporated milk (not to be confused or switched for condensed milk)
- 2tbsp double cream
- 100g butter
- 2 heaped tbsp crunchy peanut butter

Directions:
- Line a baking tray, about 20cm square and 4cm deep, with baking parchment.
- In a deep, heavy bottomed pan place the sugar, evaporated milk, double cream and butter. Stir on a gentle heat with a wooden spoon for about five minutes, until the sugar has dissolved.
- Turn up the heat! Place your sugar thermometer in the pan and bring the mixture to the boil. It will double in size, so this is when to check your pan's suitable!
- Bring the mixture up to 100C, stirring occasionally. Lower the heat to a gentle boil for a further 10 minutes. Take care if the thermometer reaches 115C, at this point the mixture burns easily. Remove from the heat.
- Beat the mixture with a wooden spoon for 10 minutes. Add the peanut butter and continue to stir, until the mixture starts to thicken and loses its shine.
- Pour into the baking tray and set aside to cool. After an hour, score the surface into rough squares. When cold and firm, break into squares.