Sweets for the Sweet

Photo: Aunt Selema (center) with her sisters Aunt Dolores (left) and my mom Toni (right) knew the way to a man's heart was through his stomach.

This time of year, one's thoughts turn to romance --- and chocolate. They go together so well.

Aunt Selema thought so the year she developed a crush on the paper boy. Since we all know the way to a growing boy's heart is through his bottomless pit of a stomach, she declared her tender feelings with a pan of homemade fudge.

Trouble was she was a tomboy, more accustomed to shooting marbles and beating up bullies than girly stuff like Valentines and candy-making.

But she had it bad. And bad is exactly how that fudge turned out. I heard you could have broken a tooth on it.

Nonetheless, the object of her affection, a nice local boy whose mama obviously raised him right, called on her personally to thank her for the "chocolate suckers" -- adding that just one piece lasted him his entire paper route and he figured that she had made enough to last him the rest of the month.

Perhaps he was being gallant. Then again maybe he was just scared of her. Most boys on the Point were.

Her fudge, as it turned out, lasted longer than her crush did. But then Paper Boy couldn't possibly have been better looking than Uncle Russ, the man she eventually married. Her female friends and relatives swooned as they begged her to hurry up and kick the bucket so they could fight over him.

By this time, Selema had become an accomplished maker of fudge and all other manner of sweets, so she wasn't too worried about the competition.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure she could have taken them all down in a fight.

Old Fashioned Fudge

2 cups sugar

2/3 cups milk

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Stir together first five ingredients in a heavy 2-quart saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil over medium high heat and cook until a candy thermometer registers 240 degrees (soft ball stage). Remove from heat, add butter and let it melt without stirring. Cool for 10-15 minutes. Pan should be cool to touch. Stir in vanilla.

Beat mixture at medium-low sped with an electric mixer 2-3 minutes or until the mixture isn't as glossy. Immediately pour fudge onto a buttered 11 x 7 inch platter. Cool 15 minutes. Cut into 1-inch pieces.