7 Tips for Hard Candy Making Success
1. Recipe Round-Up
Determine whether you will be following the 1-Dram Hard Candy Recipe or the Large (Double) Batch Hard Candy Recipe.
2. Be in Great Shape
If
planning to make molded candy, be sure to have plenty of heat-resistant
hard candy molds (at least 5 sheet molds per regular batch of candy).
Candy can also be simply poured onto prepared cookie sheets (avoid
non-stick) or a marble surface and broken into pieces once cooled.
Another technique is to pour the hot syrup in long ribbons into
powdered sugar. When the candy is cool enough to handle, it can be cut
into small pillow-like pieces with oiled scissors.
3. Organization is Key
How
many batches of candy will you be making? Allow at least 30 minutes per
batch. Once the target number of candy batches is determined, you can
calculate how much sugar, corn syrup, and flavoring you will need. To
keep things moving it’s also advisable to have two cooking pans
available – one to use while the pan from the last batch is being
cleaned.
4. Get it Down to a Science
The process of
turning sugar into a hard, smooth, transparent confection involves
heating a sugar/corn syrup/water solution to 300 – 310° F. {150 - 155°
C.}, or what is known as the hard crack stage of sugar. The use of a
candy thermometer is not essential, but highly recommended and accuracy
is critical.
Test a thermometer’s accuracy by inserting it in a pan
boiling water. After about five minutes, it should read 212° F or 100°
C. If the reading is higher or lower, take the difference into account
when testing the temperature of your sugar syrup.
For
granulated sugar to transform into sugar glass (yes, hard candy is
technically a glass) the sugar/corn syrup mixture needs to be heated to
the proper temperature and cooled properly. If uncooked sugar crystals
are reintroduced to the candy syrup, the mixture will revert back to its
original large crystal state!
To prevent this, after your
mixture comes to a boil, wash down the sides of the pan with a wet
pastry brush to wash away any sugar granules clinging to the sides of
the pan. Also, use only clean, dry utensils when stirring the sugar
syrup.
5. An Ounce of Prevention
Before you begin, read over the hard candy recipe
thoroughly and have all of the necessary ingredients, pans, measuring
cups, molds, utensils, and supplies on hand and ready to go. Hard
candy making is easy, but does involve high temperatures. Caution
should be used at all times when cooking and handling the hot sugar.
Have a bowl of ice water on hand just in case of accidental exposure.
Children can help prep the molds, measure ingredients and package the
candy, but should not be involved in the cooking or pouring of the sugar
syrup.
Note: Our super-strength flavoring oils are very
concentrated. We recommend using metal utensils and be sure to wipe-up
spills promptly.
We also recommend making candy in a well air-conditioned kitchen during the summer months. Heat and humidity are the enemies of hard candy!
6. Flavor Factor
Peppermint,
spearmint, cherry and cinnamon are classics, but why stop there? Banana
cream, blueberry, black cherry, and bubble gum are terrific too – and
those are just the flavors that start with a “B.” Another twist is to
combine flavors to create your own personal creation: lime + strawberry
= strawberry margarita. The possibilities are endless. Creating sour
flavors are another option; either by adding a liquid flavor enhancer,
such as Tart & Sour or by coating the finished candy in a mixture of
sugar and citric acid granules for real pucker power.
7. Presentation is Key
Now
that your candy is made, it’s time to package your bounty to look as
good as it tastes! Lollipops can be wrapped in sucker bags and secured
with a twist tie or ribbon. Piece candy can be packaged in decorative
boxes or tins or unexpected containers like mason jars or Chinese
take-out containers adorned with decorative ribbon. Add a pretty label
to display the candy flavor for a special touch. For storage, keep hard
candy at room temperature, in a dry place – never in the refrigerator.
Properly kept, candy should last for weeks.
