I had never tried to make my own candy up until three weeks ago, and now, hot diggity, I’m an expert!
I was scared of the candy thermometer.
No need to be scared of it people- it is surprisingly easy! You can get away with NOT using a candy thermometer, and using the “cold water test” but I found that way unreliable.
To make your own candy you need very few ingredients- sugar, corn syrup, candy flavouring and water. You can skip the flavouring if you want, but that’s the best part! I found all of my flavours, and many more, at Bulk Barn. I know you can also find them at many online sources, while Amazon and ebay will have lots of choices for you.
The only difficulty that making homemade candy presents, is the act of patience. The liquid seems to heat up fairly quickly to 200F, and then . . . nothing. Wait, and wait, and wait while the thermometer ever so slowly climbs past 200F on it’s way to 300F! I didn’t want to leave the candy on the stove unattended, so I each time I made it, I patiently sat stirring, and watching each. and. every. notch. on. the. thermometer. rise. Once it’s up to temperature, you have to work quickly. The candy will start to harden as soon as you remove it from the heat, so you want to add your flavour and colour, and get it into the molds, or onto the pan quickly. Be careful not to touch the syrup though, as it is HOT!
Once the candy is cooled in the molds, you can easily pop them out. If you have chosen to pour it onto a pan, you can smash it up, or cut it up quite easily. Coming up at the end of this week, we will be releasing our MUCH requested Frozen cake! In order to make the Frozen cake, you need to know how to make hard candy.
