Woman's Institute Library of Cookery Volume V Part 25

76. METHODS OF TREATING TAFFY.--Taffy may be poured out in a pan, allowed to become entirely cold, and then broken into irregular pieces for serving, or it may be pulled and then cut in small pieces with a pair of scissors. If it is to be pulled, it should be poured from the pan in which it is cooked into flat pans or plates and set aside to cool. As soon as it is cool enough to handle, it may be taken from the pans and pulled. It will be found that the edges will cool and harden first. These should be pulled toward the center and folded so that they will warm against the center and form a new edge. If this is done two or three times during the cooling, the candy will cool evenly and be ready to take up into the hands. The pulling may then begin at once. If it has been cooked enough, it will not stick to the hands during the pulling.

It is usually wise, however, to take the precaution of dusting the hands with corn starch before starting to pull the candy. Grease should never be used for this purpose. When taffy is made in quant.i.ties, the work of pulling it is greatly lessened by stretching it over a large hook fastened securely to a wall.

RECIPES FOR TAFFY

77. VANILLA TAFFY.--The taffy explained in the accompanying recipe is flavored with vanilla and when pulled is white in color. However, it may be made in different colors and flavors by merely subst.i.tuting the desired flavor for the vanilla and using the coloring preferred. This recipe may also be used for chocolate taffy by adding melted chocolate just before the taffy has finished boiling.

VANILLA TAFFY

4 c. sugar 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar 1 Tb. vinegar 1 c. boiling water 2 Tb. b.u.t.ter 1 tsp. vanilla

To the sugar, add the cream of tartar, vinegar, and boiling water. Place over the fire and boil until it will form a brittle ball when tested in cold water or will register at least 260 degrees on a thermometer. Just before the boiling is completed, add the b.u.t.ter. Remove from the fire, add the vanilla, pour in a shallow layer in a b.u.t.tered pan or plate.

Cool and pull. When the taffy has been pulled until it is perfectly white and is hard enough to retain its shape, twist it into a long, thin rope and cut with a pair of scissors into inch lengths.

78. b.u.t.tER TAFFY.--Another variety of taffy flavored with vanilla is the one given in the accompanying recipe. It is called b.u.t.ter taffy because b.u.t.ter is used in a rather large amount for flavoring. It will be noted, also, that brown sugar and corn sirup are two of the ingredients. These, with the b.u.t.ter, give the taffy a very delightful flavor.

b.u.t.tER TAFFY

2 c. light-brown sugar 1 c. white sugar 1/2 c. corn sirup 1 Tb. vinegar 3/4 c. boiling water 1/4 b.u.t.ter 1 tsp. vanilla

Mix all the ingredients except the b.u.t.ter and vanilla. Place over the fire and boil until a brittle ball will form in cold water or a temperature of 260 degrees is reached. Just before the boiling has been completed, add the b.u.t.ter. Remove from the fire, add the vanilla, and pour in a thin layer into greased pans or plates. Cool, pull, and cut.

79. MOLa.s.sES TAFFY.--Of all the taffies, that made with mola.s.ses is nearly always the favorite. A light cane mola.s.ses that is not very strong in flavor is the preferred kind for this candy. When cut into round flat pieces and wrapped in waxed paper, mola.s.ses taffy appeals to both old and young.

MOLa.s.sES TAFFY

2 c. light cane mola.s.ses 1 c. sugar 2 Tb. vinegar 1/2 c. boiling water 2 Tb. b.u.t.ter

Mix all the ingredients except the b.u.t.ter. Cook until a brittle ball will form or a temperature of 264 degrees is reached on the thermometer.

Add the b.u.t.ter just before the boiling is completed. Remove from the fire, pour into greased pans or plates, and allow it to become cool enough to handle. Then pull and cut.

80. CHEWING TAFFY.--A taffy that is hard enough not to be sticky and still soft enough to chew easily is often desired. Chewing taffy, which is explained in the accompanying recipe, is a candy of this kind. After being pulled, it may be cut as other taffy is cut or it may be piled in a ma.s.s and chopped into pieces.

CHEWING TAFFY

1/2 Tb. unflavored gelatine 2 c. sugar 1-1/2 c. corn sirup 1-1/4 c. milk 2 Tb. b.u.t.ter Vanilla and lemon

Put the gelatine to soak in a few tablespoonfuls of cold water. Cook the sugar, sirup, and milk until the mixture will form a hard ball that may be dented with the fingers or it reaches a temperature of 252 degrees.

Stir the mixture gently to prevent burning. Remove from the fire and add the b.u.t.ter. Take the gelatine from the water, squeeze it as dry as possible, and add it to the hot mixture, stirring until it is entirely dissolved. Pour on a greased surface, cool, and pull until it is a light-cream color. While pulling, flavor with vanilla and a few drops of lemon. Stretch into a long thin rope and cut into inch lengths or pile in a ma.s.s and chop into pieces.

81. b.u.t.tER SCOTCH.--Closely related to taffies so far as ingredients are concerned is candy known as b.u.t.ter scotch. This variety, however, is not pulled as are the taffies, but is allowed to become cool and then marked in squares which are broken apart when the candy is entirely cold.

b.u.t.tER SCOTCH

2 c. white sugar 2 c. brown sugar 1/4 c. corn sirup 1 Tb. vinegar 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar 1/4 c. b.u.t.ter 1 tsp. lemon extract

Mix all the ingredients except the b.u.t.ter and the lemon extract. Boil until a hard ball will form or 256 degrees register on the thermometer.

Just before the boiling is completed, add the b.u.t.ter, and when the mixture has been removed from the fire, add the lemon extract. Pour into a greased pan, and before it has entirely cooled, cut into squares with a knife. When cold and desired for serving, remove from the pan and break the squares apart. If desired, candy of this kind may be allowed to become entirely cold without cutting and then broken into irregular pieces just before being served.

82. MARSHMALLOWS COATED WITH b.u.t.tER SCOTCH.--A delightful confection may be made by covering marshmallows with hot b.u.t.ter scotch. To accomplish this, drop the marshmallows with a coating fork or an ordinary table fork into hot b.u.t.ter scotch that has just finished cooking. Remove them quickly, but see that the marshmallows are entirely covered. Drop on a b.u.t.tered pan or plate and set aside to cool.

83. GLACe NUTS AND FRUITS.--Nuts and fruits covered with a clear, hard candy are known as glace nuts and fruits. These are a very delightful confection, and can easily be made if the accompanying directions are carefully followed. Nuts of any variety may be used for this purpose, and such nuts as almonds need not be blanched. Candied cherries, candied pineapple, pressed figs, dates, and raisins are the fruits that are usually glaced. Confections of this kind should be eaten while fresh or kept in a closed receptacle in a dry place.

GLACe NUTS AND FRUITS

Fruits and nuts 2 c. granulated sugar 1/8 tsp. cream of tartar 3/4 c. water 1 tsp. vanilla

Prepare the nuts by sh.e.l.ling them and, if necessary, roasting them, and the fruits by cutting them into small strips or cubes. Mix the sugar and cream of tartar and add the water. Cook until it will form a very brittle ball in water, will spin hair-like threads when drops of it fall from the spoon, or registers 290 degrees on the thermometer. Remove from the fire and put in a convenient place for the dipping of the fruit and nuts. Drop these into the hot sirup, one at a time, with a coating fork or an ordinary table fork. When entirely covered with the sirup, remove and drop on greased plates or pans.

84. PEANUT BRITTLE.--Peanuts are often used in confection making and are very much liked by the majority of persons. They come in two general varieties, which may be roasted before use or used unroasted, and it is well for the housewife to understand the difference between them. One variety is the large, oblong peanut generally sold at peanut stands and used for the salted peanuts sold in confectionery stores. The other is the variety known as Spanish peanuts, which are small and round. For some candies, it is necessary that the peanuts be roasted and the skins removed, while for others unroasted peanuts with the skins on are desirable. To remove the skins from unroasted peanuts, they must be blanched by immersing them in boiling water until the skins will slip off easily, but in the case of roasted peanuts, the skins may be removed without blanching.

85. Peanut brittle is one of the candies in which peanuts are used. As its name implies, it is very thin and brittle and it usually contains a great many peanuts. Two recipes for candy of this kind are here given, one requiring peanuts that are roasted and blanched and the other, peanuts that are unroasted and not blanched.

PEANUT BRITTLE NO. 1

2 c. sugar 1/2 lb. sh.e.l.led, roasted peanuts

Put the sugar in a saucepan without any water. Place it over a slow fire and allow it to melt gradually until a clear, reddish-brown liquid is formed, taking care not to allow it to burn. Have a pan greased and covered with a thick layer of a large variety of roasted peanuts. Pour the melted sugar over them and allow it to become hard. Then break into pieces and serve.

PEANUT BRITTLE NO. 2

3 c. sugar 1 c. corn sirup 1 c. water 1/4 c. b.u.t.ter 1 lb. raw Spanish peanuts 1 tsp. vanilla 1 Tb. soda

Mix the sugar, sirup, and water and place it over the fire. Boil until a hard ball will form or a temperature of 250 degrees is reached on the thermometer. Add the b.u.t.ter and the peanuts without removing their brown skins. Allow to cook, stirring all the time, until the mixture begins to turn a light brown and the skins of the peanuts pop open, showing that the peanuts are roasted. Remove from the fire, add the vanilla and the soda and stir rapidly. Then pour the mixture, which will become thick upon the addition of the soda, on a flat, greased surface. A slab is better for this purpose than anything else, but if this cannot be obtained a metal or other hard table top may be used. When the candy begins to get stiff, loosen it from the surface on which it was poured, cut it into two pieces, and turn each over; or, if it can be handled without cutting, turn the entire piece over. Then stretch the candy until it is just as thin as possible, beginning around the edge. As it becomes colder, stretch even thinner. When entirely cool, break into pieces and serve.

86. NUT BARS.--Another excellent nut candy can be made by pouring a sirup made of sugar, corn sirup, and water over a thick layer of nuts.

Such fruits as dates and figs or coconut, or a combination of these, may be used with the nuts, if desired.

NUT BARS

2 c. sugar 3/4 c. corn sirup 1/4 c. water 1-1/2 c. sh.e.l.led nuts

Put the sugar, sirup, and water over the fire and stir until it boils.

Cover and cook until a hard ball will form or a temperature of 254 or 256 degrees is reached. Spread the nuts on a b.u.t.tered slab or pan, and to them add fruit or coconut if it is desired to use either of these.

Pour the hot sirup over this until it is about 1 inch in thickness. When sufficiently cool, cut in pieces of any desirable size, using a quick, sliding motion of the knife and pressing down at the same time. Break into pieces when entirely cold and serve.

CARAMELS

87. NATURE OF CARAMELS.--Caramels are included among the popular candies, and they may be made in many varieties. To plain vanilla caramels, which are the simplest kind to make, may be added any desirable color or flavor at the time they are removed from the fire. To keep caramels from crystallizing after they are boiled, glucose in some form must be used, and the most convenient kind to secure is corn sirup.

Then, too, caramels will cut more easily and will have less of a sticky consistency if a small piece of paraffin is boiled with the mixture. The addition of this material or any wax that is not a food is contrary to the pure-food laws, and such candy cannot be sold. However, paraffin is not harmful, but is merely a substance that is not digested, so that the small amount taken by eating candy in which it is used cannot possibly cause any injury.

88. In the making of caramels, it should be remembered that good results depend on boiling the mixture to just the right point. If they are not boiled enough, they will be too soft to retain their shape when cut, and if they are cooked too long, they will be brittle. Neither of these conditions is the proper consistency for caramels. To be right, they must be boiled until a temperature of 246 to 248 degrees is reached.

However, chocolate caramels need not be boiled so long, as the chocolate helps to harden them.

89. PLAIN CARAMELS.--The accompanying recipe for plain caramels may be made just as it is given, or to it may be added any flavoring or coloring desired. A pink color and strawberry flavor are very often found in caramels and are considered to be a delicious combination. As will be noted, white sugar is called for, but if more of a caramel flavor is preferred, brown sugar may be used instead of white. Maple sugar may also be used in candy of this kind. Nuts, fruits, or coconut, or any mixture of these materials, improves plain caramels wonderfully.

If they are used, they should be stirred into the mixture at the time it is removed from the fire.