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Candies and Candy Making: Boil

Boil 14 pounds of sugar with pint of water to the fine thread, for small crystals, or to the great thread for larger crystals. Remove from the fire and let stand until nearly cold. Sprinkle over the top a little water to dissolve the film which gathers gathers on it. Lay the sweetmeats to be crystallized in shallow pie tins inclined at a slight angle, and pour over them sirup from a ladle until they are covered. Lay on the top of the sweetmeats two or three folds of damp cloth, to pre- CANDIES AND CANDY MAKING vent a crust from forming, and let stand until the sirup crystallizes, which may require several hours.

Drain off the sirup, which may be done by laying on top of the cloth another pan of similar size to keep the candies in place, and tilting the vessel to let the sirup escape at the edge. Lay away the candies to dry, leaving the cloth over them, and sprinkling it with water until it is quite damp. The remaining sirup may be preserved and used again for other sweetmeats.

When the candies are dry, hold a cloth tightly to the edges of the pan, turn it upside down on a smooth surface, and the candies will drop out on the cloth. They may then be separated and wrapped in paper boxed. They must be kept in a cool, dry place.

CREAM OR FONDANT or To prepare fondant or cream, which is the foundation of the justly celebrated French creams and bonbons, the sirup must be removed from the fire at the soft-ball degree, or just before it is ready to produce taffy or hard candy.

The sure way to determine the right state is by means of the sugar thermometer. The "soft ball" occurs at 238 degrees. The beginner who has mastered the art of making good cream or fondant is in possession of the principal secret of professional candy making, and may turn his or her skill to good account by making saleable sweetmeats. There are, of course, many recipes for making fondant both with and without glucose. The latter makes a somewhat cheaper candy, and if it is readily obtainable, of good quality, its use in homemade candy is not objectionable. - To Boil Fondant. - To prepare fondant in general, boil the sirup rapidly over a quick fire to the softball degree. Do not stir the sirup while boiling, as this would cause it to grain. When a drop of the sirup cooled in cold water can be rolled into a soft creamy, but not sticky, ball it is done and should be removed immediately from the fire. If on rubbing a little of the sirup with a wooden spoon against the sides of the pan it seems soft and creamy it should be allowed to stand until lukewarm and then creamed, but if by chance it has been boiled too hard, add a little boiling water, return to the fire, and make a new test.

Cautions on Making Fondant.- Never attempt to make fondant when the air is humid, as in rain or foggy weather, or when there is a high wind. Select a clear day with a cloudless sky and still air or a gentle breeze. Sirup tends to grain in windy weather, and fondant cannot be worked properly in wet weather, since the slightest moisture affects it.

Do not add more moisture to the fondant in the form of flavoring matter or otherwise than is absolutely necessary.

After mixing the sugar and water for fondant, stir until the sugar is thoroughly dissolved, but do not stir after it is placed on the stove to boil, otherwise the fondant will grain and it will be necessary to melt it over again. Do not be discouraged if you do not at first succeed.

If the sirup grains or is too soft, add boiling water, stir until it is dissolved, place it back on the stove and boil as before. This may be done a dozen times if necessary. Thus experiment with your first batch of fondant until you acquire the necessary skill or knack. After that the art of candy making will come more easily.

Oil slightly with pure olive oil the marble slab, or other surface on which you work. But use as little oil as possible.

Do not let the fondant become too cold or hard before commencing to work it. Pour it out on the slab in a rather thin layer so that it will settle in uniform thickness. As soon as it hardens enough on the edges to be lifted and rolled, commence to work from the edges in toward the center of the mass. Do not give the fondant time to harden, but work very briskly, turning the edges in with the scraper or spatula, or working the hoes back and forth until the whole gathers into a solid mass which cannot be readily divided. Then knead with the hands like bread. Work hard until the fondant acquires the proper consistency.

Store fondant in tightly sealed glass fruit jars. Thus it may be kept indefinitely. Or to keep it for a few days only, place in an earthenware bowl and cover with two or three layers of cloths wrung out so as to be moist but not wet.

Let fondant stand twenty-four hours or more before making centers for creams or bonbons and let the centers themselves stand for twentyfour hours or more before dipping. Otherwise they will be melted when dipping into the hot chocolate or other fondant. Again, let the candies stand a day or two to set before they are packed for use or sale.

Do not use more coloring or flavoring matter than is necessary-just enough so that the tint or flavor can be readily distinguished, is a good rule. Do not add flavoring matter to fondant until it has been removed from the fire and is nearly cool.