Classic Candy - Candy Recipes

The very best candy in the world can be made in your own kitchen. And, your kids will never forget you making candy for them - or letting them help you.

One of my favorite memories as a child is of an old fashioned taffy pull. My mom, Lauren Cunningham, would make a big kettle of taffee. All the friends we could think of were there. We would each get a buttered plate with a cup full of the taffee in the middle. After smearing butter on our hands, we would take the taffee onto the front porch and start pulling it.

Grabbing the taffee with our finger tips, we would pull it out as far as we could and then double it over. The taffee was hot, so mom would always do this when there was snow outside. So, as soon as our hands got too hot, we would put down our plates and put our hands in the snow.

The taffee started out a dark brown, but when it had turned a blonde color, we know it was done. Then we put our plates out in the snow - where the dogs couldn't get it. And we would go play games until it was cool. Then we got to try our creations. If we had done it right, we could break off small bites of taffee that would be chewy but soft enough so you wouldn't break a tooth.

You can make the same kind of memories in your home with some of these recipes:

Cream Candy (Panocha)

One cup of coarsely chopped walnuts, 2 cups of light-brown sugar, 1 cup of pulverized sugar, 1 cup of sweet milk, 1 tablespoonful butter. Cook until it will form a little ball by testing it in a shallow dish of water, then remove from fire, and add the walnuts, and flavor with teaspoonful of vanilla; beat until it is creamy and turn out in buttered platter; cut in squares. This is a delicious cream candy.

Pull Toffee

Combine 3 cups corn syrup; or 2 cups corn syrup and 1 cup molasses; or 2 cups corn syrup and 1 cup honey. Place either syrup combination in a saucepan with 3/4 teaspoon salt. Butter the inside upper edge of the pan to prevent boiling over. Cook until the mixture forms a hard ball, when dropped in cold water. Pour candy mixture into a buttered, shallow pan. Let it stand to cool until it can be handled. When cool, butter the hands and pull. Cut into sticks when done and wrap in waxed paper.

For Vanilla Candies, use white corn syrup, and add 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla before pouring candy in the pan.

For Peppermint, add a few drops of oil of peppermint while pulling.

For Chocolate, add 3 squares chocolate to syrup.

For Nut Candy, add 3/4 cup chopped nuts to either vanilla or chocolate as it is cooling, fold in toward center as it cools and pull.

Chocolate Walnut Fudge Two cups of white sugar, butter size of an egg, 1 cup of milk, 1 square of chocolate; boil this until it thickens in cold water; then take it off the stove and stir until it becomes thickened, stir in a cupful of chopped walnuts and pour out on greased tin. Flavor with vanilla.

And you might want to try this old historic recipe as well:

"Hickory Nut Creams 3 cups brown sugar 1 cup cream or evaporated milk 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1 tablespoon butter 2 cups hickory nuts Stir sugar and cream together until sugar dissolves. Boil to 234 degrees F. or until a little of the mixture forms a soft ball when dropped into cold water. Cool to lukewarm. Add vanilla, butter, and nuts, and beat until creamy. Drop from spoon on waxed paper. makes 3 dozen creams." ---Foods from the Founding Fathers, Helen Newbury Burke [Exposition Press:Hicksville NY] 1978 (p. 316) [Philadelphia]

Plan a candy making party sometime soon!

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