Chocolate Fudge

This fudge is only for special people. People you love dearly. People you love dearly with a sweet tooth - because this fudge, though incredibly simple, is also incredibly sweet.

 



You need:
700g chocolate
(I used a mixture of milk and dark cooking chocolate, but I think I'll try dark chocolate only the next time)
1 x 390ml (approx 14 oz) tin of condensed milk
50g butter

 

(I would like to point out at this juncture that my chocolate was German, my condensed milk Russian and my butter Irish. That's globalisation for ya.)

Put some hot water in a saucepan and allow it to simmer. Then put all your ingredients into a heatproof bowl and place it on top of the saucepan. It doesn't look very appetising at this point, but as you stir, all the ingredients melt and form a gooey, chocolatey mix. 

While the mixture is slowly melting, prepare a shallow tray by lining it with lightly buttered/greased  baking paper or foil.

When the mixture has turned into a smooth, flowing mixture, pour it into the baking tray and smooth it out with a knife.

 

When the fudge has cooled, use a sharp knife to cut it into squares. I got nine bags of fudge from this quantity, all of which were gratefully received by my guinea pigs friends. The flavour improves after a day but it hasn't lasted long enough to give a definitive best-before date. Because it's so quick to make (it's the cooling time that takes the longest), it can be made a day or two in advance of gifting.

The Simplest Scarf

 

Regardless of whether you're a complete beginner or an old hand, this scarf is not only very simple and straightforward, it's also very, very fast: you can easily finish it in an evening (yes, photographic evidence follows.)

You need:
Approximately 100g yarn (about 3.5 ozs)
This will vary according to the width and length of the scarf!
An appropriate hook
Mine was made with half a 7oz-skein of Vanna's choice and an 'I' hook

Abbreviations:
ss – slip stitch / chain stitch
dc – double crochet [tr - treble - in British English]


Start by chaining the amount of stitches necessary to get your scarf's desired width. This should be a number that you can divide by three and it should be an uneven number (why? I'll show you later.)


Chain 27. Mark the 27th stitch with a piece of yarn or stitch marker.

Round 1
Then chain six more stitches. Crochet 1 dc [tr] in the fourth chain from the stitch marker (here my piece of green yarn) and 1 dc [tr] each of the next two chain stitches in the foundation chain, 3 ss (skipping the three stitches in the foundation chain below them,) then 1 dc [tr] in each of the next three chain stitches. Continue from * to just before the end of the row. You should have three chain at the end: chain 2 and then do 1 dc [tr] in the last stitch of the foundation chain. Turn.


Round 2
Chain 3, then 1 dc [tr] in the space created by the 3 chain in the previous row. Chain 3, then 3 dc [tr] in the space created by the 3 chain below. Continue to just before the end of the row. Do 2 dc [tr] in the space created by the last 3 chain in the previous row, then do the last dc [tr ] in the 'corner' (probably third or fourth chain) of the six of the previous row. Turn.





Repeat rows 1 and 2 till the scarf is long enough, finishing with row 1. This is my scarf after ten minutes (18 cm - 7 inches - long)

And, after one episode of House (43 mins, fact fans), the scarf is more than 60 cm (2 foot) long. 

 Keep going till the scarf is the desired length, and finish with a Round 1. Then add a fringe or tassels by looping the yarn through the spaces created by the 3 chain. We started with an uneven number of chains so we have a 3 ch space at the beginning and end of the first and last row.

Coming soon!

A selection of ideas for a crafty Christmas!