This is my family's recipe for chocolate fudge. My father used to make it for me when I was a little girl. It is labor-intensive but well worth the work because of the superb caramelized, deep chocolate flavor achieved during the long, slow cooking.

Old Fashioned Chocolate Fudge

2 cups of sugar
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons white corn syrup
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3 tablespoons unsweetened butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Combine the sugar, cocoa, milk, salt and corn syrup in a saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly until the sugar is dissolved. Cook gently, stirring only occasionally to 238 degrees F (the soft ball stage).

Remove from heat and do not stir. Drop butter onto top surface of mixture. Again, do not stir. Cool completely at room temperature without disturbing.

Add vanilla and beat until mixture loses its gloss. Having two people to trade off the beating is helpful. At the point where the mixture loses its gloss, you must work quickly for the next step.

Turn the fudge out into a buttered 8x8-inch square baking dish. If mixture begins to harden too quickly at this point, you may press down on the surface with a piece of waxed paper or plactic wrap to smooth it out.

This hardening or "fudging" process is actually the formation of a tiny crystal that grows and spreads throughout the mixture. The result is a smooth, creamy, slightly chewy fudge. Yummm!

I truly hope that anyone who tries it loves it as much as we do.