CANDY MAKING GUIDE Winnebago County 4-H Mmmmmm… Let’s Make Candies “Candy Can Be More Than Calories” Everyone likes a tasty treat to satisfy their “sweet tooth”, and most often it will be a food containing a large proportion of sugar. Candy is the most concentrated sweet food, but it doesn’t have to provide only “empty”, non- nutritious calories. Many candies that you can make very easily contain ingredients that provide protein, calcium, and other nutrients. Candy should not be a major source of nutrients, as you would have to eat too much of it, but it can be a useful supplement if nutritious recipes are chosen. Watch for such ingredients as peanut butter, oatmeal, nuts, milk, gelatin, and fruit. CANDIES Candies are usually divided into two basic classes: crystalline and non-crystalline. We will also be using three additional classes of candy and candy treats. They are uncooked candies, cereal candies, and microwave candies. Uncooked & Semi-cooked .............................Candies that are uncooked or semi-cooked. Cereal .............................................................Candies that include cereal in the recipe. Crystalline or creamy .....................................Candies that have a distinct crystalline structure such as fondants, fudges, penuche, divinity. Non-crystalline or amorphous .......................Caramels, peanut brittle, butterscotch, hard candy, lollipops, marshmallows, gum drops. Microwave .....................................................Candies that fall in one of the above classes, but are also prepared using a microwave oven. The type of candy made is determined by the ingredients used, the degree of cooking, and the manipulation after cooking. 2 EQUIPMENT No equipment is necessary other than that usually found in the kitchen. Candy-making can become even easier by using certain special equipment, most of which can be obtained at reasonable cost. Equipment generally needed for candy-making is as follows: 1. Candy thermometer (Fahrenheit) 2. Marble slab, approximately 2’ x 2’ x 1” (optional) 3. Electric mixer or beater 4. Standard measuring cups and measuring spoons 5. Heavy saucepans with straight sides (deep saucepans are desirable because liquid evaporates to fast in shallow pans). 6. Double boiler 7. Bowls of various size 8. Wooden spoons with long handles 9. Spatulas, at least one broad spatula with steel blade that does not bend easily. 10. Knives for cutting candy and chopping nuts 11. Food grinder and grater 12. Various size pans and baking sheets 13. Airtight containers for storing candy Note – Along with the above equipment you will need waxed paper, aluminum foil and plastic wrap. Note – A porcelain table, shallow pan, or large platter can be used instead of the marble slab, although the marble is better. Most of the necessary equipment is readily available. We do not, however, recommend a large investment in equipment unless one intends to make candy commercially. Major Ingredients Quality ingredients are important in candy-making. Sugar or some substance high in sugar is the basis of all common candies. Syrup is the supporting player to sugar in candy-making. Give syrups credit for the creamy smoothness of fudge, divinity and penuche. Here’s how sugar and syrup work together: it’s natural for sugar, combined with a liquid like milk or water, to be grainy or sugary after cooking. Sugar is sucrose, which dries out and re- crystallizes. Corn syrup, on the other hand, is an invert sugar. Instead of drying out, candies that contain sufficient amount of invert sugars absorb moisture from the air and do not re- crystallize. Also during cooking they invert some of the sucrose. What corn syrup does is help prevent the formation of large sugar crystals. Other food substances, such as lemon juice, cream of tartar and vinegar also keep candy from becoming sugary, but they’re not as dependable as corn syrup. 3 Other ingredients such as butter or margarine, cream, canned milk, flavorings and extracts, chocolate, nuts, fruits, marshmallows and marshmallow crème, and gelatin alter the flavor and may also alter the texture. Table of Weights and Measures 1 lb. granulated sugar = 2 cups 1 pint granulated sugar = 2 cups 3 teaspoons granulated sugar = 1 tablespoon Tips On Making Perfect Candy 1. Choose a heavy cooking pan large enough to let sugar syrup boil freely. 2. Prevent formation of sugar crystals. If recipe calls for butter, use it to grease sides of pan before adding other ingredients. Stir sugar thoroughly before placing the mixture over heat. During cooling do not stir or agitate unless recipes calls for stirring. 3. Measure ingredients accurately using standard measuring cups and spoons. 4. Watch candy closely. 5. Test candy carefully. A dependable candy thermometer takes the guess-work out of testing. To get an accurate reading be sure candy is bubbling all around the bulb, and bulb is not resting against metal pan. Use cold water if you don’t have thermometer. Drop a small amount of candy from spoon into very cold water in a cup. Be sure to remove candy from heat as you test. Use clean spoon for each test. See chart. 6. Be patient about cooling. Don’t beat the candy before it has cooled to 110o F. or when the saucepan feels lukewarm. 7. Beat steadily, not furiously. If possible, have a second person to help beat. 8. When it rains or humidity is high, cook a degree or so higher than recipe calls for. 4 Table of Temperatures and Tests in Sugar Cookery Product or Use Temperature Stage Conclusion Behavior Stage Syrup 230 - 234o F Thread Spins 2” thread when dropped. Frosting 236 – 238o F Thread Fondant 234 – 240o F Soft Ball Syrup when dropped into cold water Fudge, Penuche forms soft ball that flattens. Caramels 244 – 248 o F Firm Ball Syrup when dropped into cold water will form firm ball, which doesn’t flatten. Divinity 250 – 265 o F Hard Ball Syrup dropped into cold water forms a hard ball that is plastic, yet holds its shape. Marsh, Toffee, 270 – 290o F Soft Crack Syrup dropped into cold water separates Popcorn balls, into threads that are hard but not brittle. Butterscotch Taffy Brittle, Glace 300 – 310o F Hard Crack Syrup dropped into cold water separates into hard threads and is brittle (cracking sound). Barley Sugar 320 – 338o F Clear Liquid Sugar liquefies. Caramelized Sugar 310 – 338o F Brown Sugar Sugar turns dark golden but will blacken at 350o F. 5 Uncooked, Semi-Cooked and Cereal Candies Confectioner’s sugar can be used as the main ingredient to make uncooked candies similar to fondant and fudge. The sugar is combined with table fat and ingredients such as corn syrup, concentrated milk products, cream, water, fruit juice, melted chocolate, coconut, peanut butter, chopped nuts or other foods and a variety of flavorings. Cereal is often used as another main ingredient. Recipes for candies that might be called semi-cooked are also available. Granulated sugar, table fat and evaporated milk can be boiled for a definite period such as four to six minutes and then poured over cold ingredients such as cereal, chocolate, marshmallow crème, and nuts. Such methods may be more convenient, especially for beginners than traditional candy recipes. Crystalline Candies Many of the finest crystalline candies can be made at home inexpensively. There are many possible variations of the three basic crystalline sugar products: - Fondants ..................made from sugar and water. - Fudges ......................made from sugar, milk and usually butter, plus other flavoring ingredients. - Divinities ..................made from sugar, water and egg whites. To make any of the basic crystalline sugar products you will follow three main steps: 1. Dissolve sugar in liquid. 2. Concentrate the solution by boiling off part of the liquid. 3. Re-crystallize the sugar from the concentrated liquid. The quality of the final candy is determined by the size of the new crystals formed in step 3. They should be small and numerous that they cannot be detected as the product is eaten. The candy should be smooth, creamy and velvety. Poor quality products are coarse, grainy, sugary or gritty. You can control the size of sugar crystals if you understand some of the factors affecting crystal formation and observe a few simple precautions at each step. The sample principles apply when your goal is to prevent re-crystallization of dissolved sugar as in jellies and non-crystalline candies such as caramels, taffies, brittle’s, etc. 6 I. HOW CRYSTALS FORM Crystals form when materials from a solution begin to collect on small particles called nuclei. When there are many small nuclei present the resulting crystals are numerous and small. Crystals build on large nuclei in preference to small nuclei. Even a few large nuclei, such as two to three grains of undissolved sugar can result in coarse crystals. Crystals are smallest when crystallization is completed rapidly. Conditions should be controlled to assure rapid and complete crystallization in sugar products. II. CONTROLLING SIZE AND NUMBER OF CRYSTALS A. Step 1 – Dissolving Sugar 1. Ingredients A good tested recipe will have sugar, liquid and other ingredients in the best proportion for small crystal formation as well as for good flavor. Sugar (sucrose) and liquid are the two essential ingredients for crystalline sugar products. During cooking, some of the sucrose is changed to invert sugar which is a mixture of sucrose, glucose and fructose. The glucose and fructose sugars do not crystallize as easily as sucrose, and the crystals are small. These smaller crystals help ensure a smooth creamy product. If too much inversion takes place the product may be soft and sticky, or crystallization may be prevented. Ingredients other than sugar and liquid are used in recipes in relatively small amounts. Most of these other ingredients not only add distinctive flavor and texture to the products, but also help control crystal formation.