Basic fondant

---------- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.05
  
       Title: BASIC FONDANT
  Categories: Candies
       Yield: 1 Servings
  
     3/4 c  Boiling water
       2 c  Sugar
     1/8 ts Cream of tartar
  
   Recipe by: Los Angeles Times Heat water to boiling in 2- or 3-quart
   saucepan and remove from heat. Add sugar and cream of tartar. Stir with
   wooden spoon until all sugar dissolves, 6 to 8 minutes, taking care not to
   splash mixture on sides of pan. Place syrup mixture over medium-high heat.
   Heat almost to boiling. Cover pan tightly with lid and remove from heat.
   Let stand 3 minutes. Uncover, return to heat and boil briskly. Do not move
   pan or stir during this time. While syrup cooks, wash any crystals that
   form on sides of pan by wrapping damp cloth around tines of fork and wiping
   crystals out with upward motion so that no crystals fall back into syrup.
   Continue cooking until syrup reaches soft-ball stage, exactly 238 degrees
   on candy thermometer, about 35 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand very
   few minutes, or just until bubbles disappear. At once, pour onto marble
   slab or large, shallow platter. Do not scrape pan. Let cool undisturbed
   until slab or bottom of platter feels comfortably cool to palm of hand
   (about 105 degrees), about 50 minutes. Now start turning edges of candy in
   toward center, using spatula or wooden spoon. As candy turns creamy and
   crumbly, gather mixture up in your hands and knead as you would for bread
   until you get smooth, white ball of fondant. Wrap fondant in plastic and
   store in glass jar covered with tight lid. Let fondant mellow 24 hours to 3
   days. Remove fondant ball from jar and form into small balls. Makes about
   3/4 pound.
   
   Adapted from ZaSu Pitts'"Candy Hits" Copyright Los Angeles Times
  
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