1 cup cream
½ cup milk
½ cup corn syrup
¼ tsp teaspoon salt
4 ½ cups sugar
- Put cream and corn syrup in a heavy pan (I use an old pressure cooker pan); add salt and sugar and stir with a wooden spatula to combine.
- Cook to 228°-229° F (soft ball stage). Drop a bit of the hot liquid into a small bowl of cold water. When it is cooked sufficiently, you’ll be able to form the liquid into a small, soft, ball.
- Set the hot pan aside until the fondant cools to lukewarm. (for example, set the pan in a sink with enough cold water to extend up the sides of the pan two or three inches; takes about ½ an hour to cool.)
Tip: Once the fondant quits boiling, it is important not to jiggle or disturb it until it has cooled or it will sugar.
- Once cooled, beat with a wooden spoon until the fondant sets up and becomes kneadable – takes several minutes. Hold the spoon above the pan and let mixture stream back into the pan. When sufficiently set up, the liquid turns opaque and the stream “breaks” instead of flowing back into the pan in an unbroken stream.
- Knead in flavoring and/or coloring (for cherry cordials, about a ½ tsp of almond and a tsp of vanilla).
- Pour (or scrape) the candy into a buttered bowl or buttered pie plate and then knead it with your hands until it is smooth and pliable. At this point, you can place the fondant in a Ziploc bag and store it in the fridge until you are ready to dip chocolates or make nut rolls.
Troubleshooting:
- Fondant too firm – Wrap in plastic wrap and cover with warm towel for 15 minutes and knead with your hands. Still too stiff? Knead in 3 tablespoons of softened butter.
- Fondant is sugared or under or over-cooked – Re-cook the fondant. Place the fondant in the cooking pan and add 1 ½ cups water (or milk). Recook to soft ball stage and re-add any flavorings. The fondant will be darker due to the re-cooking.
Note: this fondant recipe is originally from Pauline Atkinson’s “little red candy book” The Art of Candy Making (no longer in print). However, some of Pauline’s original recipes are still available via the Utah State Extension Service (see URL below). Her daughter, Ruth Kendrick, has also published candy- making books that rely on Pauline’s originals.
See Pauline Atkinson’s instructions and methods and download a pdf file – The art of Candy Making – USU Extension – Utah State University –https://www.google.com/search?q=Atkinson+fondant&rlz=1C1GGRV_enUS775US775&oq=Atkinson+fondant&aqs=chrome..69i57.8399j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
Another fun read is a 1996 Desert News article about Ruth Kenrick and her acquisition of the marble slab she uses in her candy-making. Additional candy recipes are also included.
Deseret News article: https://www.google.com/search?q=ruth+kendrick-deseret+news&oq=ruth+kendrick-deseret+news&aqs=chrome..69i57.18455j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
