Chocolate Fudge for Fudge Tuesdays

This fudge comes with a story, a story I'm going to share with you today.

When I first started getting really into baking, when I was in sixth form, I came across a recipe for peanut butter fudge. I tried it, it was glorious, and I took it into school the next day for everyone to share. I took it into school on a Tuesday. And so fudge Tuesdays were born. Every couple of weeks or so, we'd have fudge Tuesday. I'd bring in some variation on the recipe, pop it on a table in our corner of the common room and everyone would help themselves.

A strange but wonderful memory, and something I was reminiscing over with a few of my friends on twitter a few weeks ago. And so of course, I had to revive the recipe. I plumped for the chocolate fudge, rather than the peanut butter, but all you have to do is switch the chocolate spread in the recipe for peanut butter if you fancy that version.

Chocolate Fudge
125g Butter
150g Dark Brown Sugar
350g Caster Sugar
120ml Milk
250g Chocolate Spread (I would encourage use of Nutella in general, but sadly Ben is allergic to nuts)
320g Icing Sugar

1. Melt the butter then pour in the milk. Add the sugar and bring to the boil. Boil for around three minutes, then take off the heat.

2. Stir in the chocolate spread and set aside.

3. Sieve! Sieve the icing sugar into a large bowl! It's so important you sieve, else you'll end up with lumps of icing sugar in your fudge and it will be sad. Pour the chocolatey sugary buttery goodness mixture into the icing sugar and mix thoroughly.

4. When the icing sugar is completely combined pour into a 11" by 7" tin and sprinkle something pretty on top. Then leave to cool - over night is best although it is complete torture! Cut into chunks and share with friends - on a Tuesday!

Week 17

Monday - Ahh. The Forth Road Bridge. Usually very busy, but bank holiday Monday seemed to lighten its load.

Tuesday - Upon unpacking it became clear my family clearly doesn't think we eat, and stocked us up on naughties for the foreseeable future.

Wednesday - Panic panic panic to get the magazine to the printers on time. Have you seen the magazine I edit? Why not take a peek over at our website...

Thursday - Time to break into the chocolate stash!

Friday - Treats from my friend who went home to Sweden for the holidays.

 Saturday - Fudge making, recipe to follow!

Sunday - Garden centre wandering...

What did you all get up to this week? Hum drum normality or something a bit special?

The Holier Land

It's not really the Holier Land to be fair, just more of the Holy Land. But hey - fun title! We started day two in Nazareth, where, I can confirm, there is a McDonald's. I know this isn't what I should have taken away from the visit, and I shouldn't be that surprised - it's the largest city in the North of Israel. I just wasn't expecting it. But anyway, on to the culture!

We had a nose around two churches built on the supposed sites of Mary's house and Joseph's house respectively. I had a bit of a to-do with an Egyptian pilgrim who swore at me after I shouted at her for moving someone from our group (who I think was saying a prayer) to take a picture with a statue. I probably should have held back, but her behavior was so unnecessary!

After a quick wander through the streets of Nazareth we jumped on the coach to the Sea of Galilee and, much to my delight, lunch! Delicious cold roasted vegetables were served with hot potatoes and chicken or fish, all washed down with refreshingly zingy homemade lemonade.

After lunch we made the short journey to the banks of the River Jordan, which were jam packed by people renewing their baptismal promises. We didn't have time to go in, there was quite the queue, but if I'm honest I'm not sure if I could have got in the water. There were two metre long catfish just swimming round peoples legs!

We had a short stop at Capernaum, the town where most of Jesus' disciples came from, that is now a beautifully displayed archaeological site. You could still really see the structure of the town, unlike most of the other places we visited, so it felt a bit more real.

It may look a dull grey day, but it was around 30°C, and we were all absolutely melting! Our next stop was the church built to remember the miracle of the loaves and the fishes. Appropriately, there was a little pond of fish in the quadrangle.

Our final stop for the day, and our final stop in Israel, was the Mount of Beatitudes, the hill where Jesus was believed to have delivered the Sermon on the Mount. It was a beautiful place to end the day. The current church there is run by the Fransiscan order of Catholicism, and is set in a botanical garden where you are not allowed dogs, shorts, eating, talking, smoking, or, funnily enough, guns. The disruption we sometimes hear about on the news isn't apparent when you travel in Israel, but every now and then you see a little reminder, like this sign.

I would recommend visiting Israel to everyone, religious or not. It's a nation packed to the rafters with history, kind people and good food. I'll be returning as soon as I can, to take in a bit more of it at a slightly more leisurely pace. 

I hope you've enjoyed reading these two posts, I've certainly enjoyed sharing my experience with you. I love reading other peoples travel posts, so let me know if you've been writing any recently!

The Holy Land

I was lucky enough to spend a few days in the Holy Land last week. The weather was glorious and the atmosphere was electric, filled with the spirit of Holy Week. It was slightly surreal visiting places I heard so much about growing up, and my small taste has left me wanting more. I'll definitely be looking for any excuse to go back for a week or so, because we definitely only touched the tip of the iceberg.

We started our day at the Garden of Gethsemane, a beautifully maintained garden of olive trees with a spectacular church in the middle.

We the drove through Jerusalem to the Israel-Palestine border, through the security checks at the wall and into Bethlehem.

Modern Bethlehem is a bustling city, a far cry from the sleepy village pictured on Christmas cards. There was a KFC, that was the only real chain I saw, but you can't say the locals aren't trying...

Talking to our guide, it was clear that the conflicts we hear about on the news so often don't reflect the opinions of the everyday citizens - he was good friends with our Israeli guide. We were taken to the Church of the Nativity, built on the site of the stable where it's said Jesus was born. To enter you have to stoop down through low door. The door is low for two reasons - to show respect as you enter, and to stop camels wandering in! Unfortunately the church is undergoing conservation work at the moment, so I don't have any photographs of the inside to share.

We headed back through to Israel, making a stop at the Western, or Wailing Wall. It's generally accepted to be one of the mot sacred places in the Jewish faith.

We then walked through the Old City of Jerusalem, up the Via Dolorosa, the road it's thought Jesus walked with the cross to the place he was crucified. The metal marker on the wall shows the Station of the Cross you're up to. The road itself now is a busy market place, filled with tiny shops packed to the rafters and stalls selling food in crazy colours but giving off the most delicious smells.

We ended the day at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the church built on the place Jesus was thought to be crucified. I have to be honest, it was so busy I didn't feel any sense of wonder, or anything I thought I probably should have been feeling, even from just a historical viewpoint. But it was a fascinating site, and despite the queues by all accounts we were visiting on a quiet day. The church is so important to so many denominations of Christianity that it is split into sections, so each denomination has it's own little area. It's so jam packed though, that some share the roof! 

At the end of my first day in Israel, I was completely exhausted, but so ready to go back for more the next day. Tomorrow I'll show you the wonders of Lake Galilee. But today I leave you with candles, lit in thanks for a wonderful day.