Sunday's Plate...Homemade Candy

Every year we make candy at school, and every year it's a hit. Now, I'm not crazy, but I am crafty, and when you put those two things together, you get: "I never do anything hard..."

The key to perfect candy is a good candy thermometer. Buy one.

The second trick is to use dairy products and not field products.

When it says butter...use butter, cream, and milk.

When I make candy, I make it so that not only do I look like Martha in the kitchen, but it looks like M is wearing her Superwoman shirt as well.

Here's how to:

Truffles:

Using a food processor, use a box of powdered sugar and two sticks of butter...process and remove. Do that twice.

Divide the mix into six cereal bowls.

Into every bowl add a flavor. Here are some suggestions: fresh ground coffee, mini chocolate chips, toasted coconut, walnuts, pecans, peanuts, lemon, orange rind, peanut butter, ground fresh cranberries, chopped apricots, jams of any kind, but only add a teaspoon.

Mix plain candy dough with your flavors and put the bowls into the freezer. Taking one bowl at a time, divide the dough into the size truffle you want, roll into a ball, and put a tooth pick into the ball. Line the balls up on a cookie tin and freeze. You might want to label your flavors.

Once the candy balls are frozen, you can divide by flavors and put each into its own ziplock bag. Keep until you want a plate of fresh candies - for company, party, to take with you, or just impress a friend.

When it's time to complete the truffles by dipping them, take as many frozen balls from the freezer as you think you will need. In a very very small pan, heat slowly a half package of your favorite chips like milk chocolate, or mint, or dark chocolate, or butterscotch or peanut butter. Add a tablespoon of oil, and a half block of paraffin wax that you get in the canning department of your supermarket.

Dip your candy balls in the chocolate wax combination, let drip to avoid a candy collar, and then place gall on wax paper to try. You only have to do a dozen at a time, and the rest can stay in the freezer for the next time you need to look like Super Martha. When you are done dipping, twist the toothpick out of the candy, and dip the hole into the hot dipping chocolate and decorate with non parielles, or nuts or unmelted chips.

If you make larger truffles, it goes quicker and it is easier, and they are like eating a whole candy bar.


Now, just for fun, here's a recipe for about the absolute best caramel:

In a heavy bottomed pan, heat to 250 degrees on a candy thermometer:

2 cups white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup karo syrup
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup whole milk
2 sticks of butter

When the thermometer reaches 240 stir to avoid scorch.

Take candy off stove and add 4 teaspoons of vanilla. Stir.

At this point, you can do anything with this mix. Add nuts, pour on a bed of chocolate, drop chocolate candy into the setting caramel or nothing. Leave it out. It does not need to be refrigerated.

Caramel can be reheated to use as drizzle. It makes great individual candies and will taste great for ten days or more. It will take the shape of any container.

Have fun, and look like Supermartha any time you want!

Anyone want the absolute best nut brittle recipes? Let me know!