Delays, delays, delays. So much for being able to post the results of my candy experiments on Sunday. Work and life, shameful things that they are, always getting in the way of my fun! But now I’m back and ready to record the fruits of my labor. My goal was to try out a few candy recipes well in advance of the holiday season, since I love the idea of giving homemade (and edible) gifts, but wanted to give ample time to come up with alternatives or make changes in case any of these were a bust. Also, until last weekend, the only candy I’d made successfully were caramels and toffee. I can bake and do other desserts just fine, but something about candy really digs up the self-doubt (and I know I’m not alone here, right?). In past attempts, I’ve been burned both literally and metaphorically…so it was an exercise in trust to put my faith in the little thermometer once more.
My biggest fear when making candy is not injury, though…it’s the anxious waiting and worrying that it will never set up. I recall once trying to make an enormous batch of besan barfee (by the way, isn’t barfee a fantastic name for a dessert?), and waiting hours upon hours for it to set. It never became more than a molasses-like, oily mass, and as you can see, I was scarred for life. Later on, I realized the power of thermometer accuracy over totally subjective criteria like “soft-ball stage”. So, armed with this knowledge, I was ready to settle the score. Besides, if I want to give some variety to my edible gifts, candy is one thing that has more of a shelf life than cookies or other baked goodies.
Two out of the three ideas for sweets came from the book Sweet Miniatures by Flo Braker. It’s a charming book, full of gorgeous, labor-intensive bites of joy, all individually-sized. I’d opened it many times but only managed to make one or two recipes from it thus far. Her Five-Spice Marshmallows and Raspberry Jellies are among the simpler ones and looked pretty interesting. I also made some standard chewy caramels.
These pics are not very representative, but forgive me, as the day was hot, and I was cranky…
Although I was planning to make the marshmallows vegetarian by using agar (a sea vegetable which is usually a handy standby for gelatine), I chickened out at the last minute and used the Knox anyway. I figured that my maiden marshmallow voyage should be done without fiddling too much with the recipe, and if it turned out well, I would experiment with the agar later. I’m proud to say that there will indeed be a next time, as the marshmallows were surprisingly easy and terrifically good. I actually never felt too strongly about marshmallows before (except when roasted over fire, preferably in a dark, frosted wood), but having made them from scratch, I have to say that the homemade version is definitely worth trying. I love the idea that they can be spiced in different ways, rolled or dipped in flavorings, and cut into whatever size or shape you desire. The five-spice powder made them pleasantly unique, although I will probably stick to more conservative flavors for gift-giving. While the idea of adding five-spice powder came from Sweet Miniatures, the final recipe I used was this one from Brownie Points. I am pleased to say that there were no hitches whatsoever, and also, even a half-recipe makes a very abundant quantity of marshmallows.
The second recipe, Raspberry Jellies, was followed to the T except for substituting blackberry purée instead of raspberry. In my mind, the blackberry jellies would be sort of like grown-up gummy bears: firm yet chewy, bursting with fresh fruit flavor and a slight tartness. In reality, I think these were very much a dud. First of all, they were way, way too sugary… and that was before taking them on their required roll in sugar after drying and cutting. Because of the sugar overload, there was no refinement to the flavor and it just made me want to brush my teeth. They were also softer than I expected…not so much gummy bear but rather only slightly more firm than the jelly you would put on toast - kind of like Jello, really. Finally, they did not keep well. After a couple of days, they began to excrete a tacky purplish blood all over the container, and my kitchen was suddenly host to a large gang of fruit flies, buzzing frantically to get in on the action. I’m very glad to have tried them now instead of in December! If there was any way to make them considerably less sweet and more firm, I might give it another try, but for now, there will be a clear DO NOT USE note on this recipe. Needless to say, I won’t post it.
Finally, just to get myself back into the swing of things, I made a batch of caramels. Caramels are not terribly complex, as long as you have a reliable thermometer and don’t try to make them in a dark pan (where it’s more difficult to see the color changes of the sugar). The base had a hint of salt and I sprinkled chopped cashews and a few pink peppercorns over the hot caramel while it cooled. I really love the flavor of pink peppercorns, which aren’t really a pepper at all, but a pungent relative of the rose. The little explosion of peppery spice, followed by creamy sweetness from the caramel is a lovely contrast. For gift-giving, I may also dip some in bittersweet chocolate or top with fleur de sel.
There are a million recipes for caramel out there, so I will only note that I think 250°F is the best temperature for caramels that are chewy and reasonably soft, but that don’t need to be kept in the refrigerator until serving. Some recipes suggest 245°F or even lower temperatures, but it’s worth noting that, while the resulting candies will be nicely soft, they will not hold well at room temperature and will melt easily. Even at 250°F, caramels will lose shape in when sitting in hot sun (actually, no caramel should be exposed to hot sun).
And that concludes my candy experiment! 2 good results out of 3 isn’t a completely discouraging outcome, you know (and I really do understand how scientists can stay up to all hours in the lab, supported by these illusory promises). I will make a few more in the weeks to come, but this was good to get my feet wet. I’m also pretty sure that it was my expectations rather than error that made the jellies so disagreeable, and fortunately they required very little effort…so I don’t feel too badly about how they ended. Having had such success with the marshmallows and my good old standby, caramel, my confidence has definitely been buoyed. I wonder what to try next?
