Ginger and Walnut Fudge

Recently, while staying at Mum’s house for the weekend, I was awoken early (and I mean EARLY – at 5.45am – a ridiculously early time of the morning!) by unusual sounds emanating from the kitchen. Since I was awake, I went to investigate what the noise was, and on entering the kitchen, I found Mum stomping on biscuits, crushing them underfoot in preparation for making fudge later that morning (and just so you don’t imagine Mum stomping on raw biscuits in her bare feet, I have to mention that they were protected inside multiple layers of plastic bags – and she probably had slippers on…). I rolled my eyes and went back to bed – typical!

Anyway, this is really nice fudge, which packs a real hit of ginger (…and you really don’t have to get up early in the morning to make it, because it is quick and simple to make). For the ginger, you can use either crystallised ginger or root ginger preserved in sugar syrup. I prefer this second option (the preserved ginger) as it adds a stronger flavour (and here I must give thanks to my friend for making this and giving me a jar of it). If you don’t want to make your own preserved root ginger, you can find it in supermarkets.

RECIPE: GINGER AND WALNUT FUDGE

250g packet malt biscuits

125g butter

1 cup brown sugar

½ cup condensed milk

1 teaspoon ground ginger

½ cup chopped walnuts

½ cup chopped crystallised ginger, or preserved root ginger

1. Crush biscuits.

2. Grease a slice tin (approx. 26 x 20 cm) and line with baking paper.

3. Melt butter (either in a pot or in the microwave), then add the sugar, condensed milk, and ginger powder and mix together. Add in the walnuts, preserved ginger and crushed biscuits and mix well.

4. Press mixture into the slice tin. (To make the surface look interesting, you can run a fork over the top to give it a bit of texture.) Chill, and then cut into slices.