Chapter XXIII: Sugar and Its Uses

=BOILING SUGAR AND MAKING CANDIES=

BOILING SUGAR

To boil sugar is one of the niceties of cooking, but as the uses of boiled sugar in fancy cooking are so various, it is worth some practice to acquire the requisite skill. With the ordinary ways of testing, it requires much experience to tell the exact point at which to arrest the cooking, and on this the success depends. The stages named "thread," "blow," "ball," etc., give the different degrees required for different purposes. It passes quickly from one to the other and needs careful watching and close attention. The professional cook's method of testing it by dipping in the fingers is not practicable for ordinary use. It is also difficult to judge by dropping it in water unless experienced, but with a sugar thermometer it can easily be determined with perfect exactness and much less trouble. A sugar thermometer costs $1.75 or $2.00, a syrup gauge costs fifty cents, and both should be considered as necessary cooking utensils as are molds, mortars, and other articles used in fancy cooking. For measuring syrups, the syrup gauge is used as explained below. Ice-creams and frozen fruits are much nicer when sweetened with syrup instead of sugar. Water-ices and compotes to be right must measure a certain density, and for this the syrup gauge is employed. Fondant, one of the very useful articles, candies, and spun sugar are easily made with the aid of the thermometer. Eleven stages of sugar are explained below, but it is not essential to learn exactly more than the four which are most used, namely: the "thread" for boiled icing, the "soft-ball" for fondant, the "crack" for glace fruit, and the "caramel."

1. Thermometer standing in saucepan of sugar on gas-stove.
2. Cup of water and brush for washing crystals from side of saucepan.
3. Wooden spatula for working sugar on marble slab to make fondant.
4. Wooden skewer for testing sugar when thermometer is not used.
5. Candy wire for dipping nuts or other things to be coated.]

GRANULATION

The tendency of sugar, when the water which holds it in solution is evaporated, is to resume its original form of crystals; to prevent this is the chief care: the liquid must not be jarred or stirred after the sugar is dissolved. The grains which form on the sides of the pan as the boiling proceeds must be wiped away; this is done by dipping a cloth or brush into water and passing it around the pan above the sugar. If these crystals are allowed to remain, the whole mass will become granular. Also the sugar has a great affinity for water, and care must be used to have a dry atmosphere. No steam from boiling kettles, etc., must be in the room, and it is useless to attempt confections requiring the ball or crack stages on a rainy or damp day. When the right degree is reached, place the sugar pan in one containing cold water, to prevent the cooking from proceeding any farther. The different stages follow very quickly after the thread; it is therefore well to have a moderate heat and give it undivided attention. A very little cream of tartar (a scant half saltspoonful to a pound of sugar) added at the beginning makes the sugar less liable to grain. If cream of tartar is not used, a few drops of lemon-juice should be added at the crack stage. If the sugar passes the degree desired, add a spoonful of water and continue the boiling. No sugar need ever be wasted unless it becomes burned. In working the sugar, if it begins to grain there is nothing to do but to add a little water and boil it again.

DEGREES OF BOILING SUGAR

[Sidenote: First and second degrees.]

Small Thread, 215 deg..
Large Thread, 217 deg..

Press a little of the syrup between the thumb and finger. A ring will form and a fine thread be drawn out which breaks at once and returns to the drop; for the second stage the thread draws a little farther than the first.

[Sidenote: Third and fourth.]

Little Pearl, 220 deg..
Large Pearl, 222 deg..

The sugar forms a thread between the fingers which stretches long, but breaks. For the fourth it stretches without breaking. The first four degrees are syrups.

[Sidenote: Fifth and sixth.]

The Blow, 230 deg.. }
The Feather, 232 deg.. } crystallization.

Dip in a broom-straw twisted to form a small loop at the end. A film will fill the loop, which will blow into a bubble.

At the sixth stage fine threads will fly from the bubble. The candy stages follow:

[Sidenote: Seventh and eighth.]

Small Ball, 236 deg.-238 deg..
Large Ball, 246 deg.-248 deg..

Drop a little into cold water; for the 7th a soft ball can be rolled between the fingers; for the 8th a hard ball.

[Sidenote: Ninth and Tenth.]

Small Crack, 290 deg..
Crack, 310 deg..

At the 9th a little, dropped into water, will break when cooled. At 300 deg. it begins to assume a light color, and a few drops of lemon-juice should be added (four drops to a pound of sugar). At 310 deg. it breaks off sharp and crisp, and crackles when chewed.

[Sidenote: Eleventh.]

The Caramel, 345 deg.-350 deg.

It now assumes a yellow color, and great care must be used or it will burn. The cooking must be arrested as soon as it is taken from the fire by holding the pan in cold water for a minute or so. A skewer or stick is the best thing to use for testing, as the little sugar that adheres to it will cool quickly. Dip the stick first into water, then into the sugar, and again into water.

SYRUPS

[Sidenote: Syrup kept in stock.]

To use a syrup gauge have a glass deep enough to allow the gauge to float. A small cylindrical glass like the one shown in illustration is best, as it requires so little syrup that removing and pouring it back does not arrest the boiling. Syrups can be prepared and kept in air-tight preserve jars until needed for use. It is well to have in stock syrup at 34 deg. for softening fondant when used for icing cakes, eclairs, etc. Water-ices should register 18 deg.-20 deg. on the gauge when ready to freeze. Fruits to be frozen are better when sweetened with syrup at 32 deg. than when sugar is used.

[Sidenote: Making syrup without a gauge.]

To prepare syrup without a gauge the following method can be employed: Put into a saucepan three and one half cupfuls of sugar and two and one half cupfuls of water. Stir it over the fire until the sugar is dissolved. After it has boiled five minutes, counting from the time it is actually boiling, it will register 28 deg.; every five minutes' additional boiling will thicken it one degree.

At the end of 15 minutes it is 30 deg..

At the end of 25 minutes it is 32 deg..

At the end of 35 minutes it is 34 deg..

FONDANT

[Sidenote: The uses of fondant.]

Fondant is the basis of all French cream candies. It can be kept any length of time in air-tight preserve jars, and used as needed for the various purposes which it serves. A great variety of bonbons can be made of it by using different flavors, colors, and nuts in various forms and combinations. Some of these are given under "Candies," but each one's taste may suggest something different. Fondant makes the nicest icing for small cakes; strawberries with the hulls on dipped into fondant make a delicious fruit glace. It will be found easy to make fondant if the directions given below are strictly followed.

TO MAKE FONDANT

[Sidenote: Testing.]

[Sidenote: Cooling.]

[Sidenote: Working.]

Place in a copper or a graniteware saucepan two cupfuls of granulated sugar, one cupful of water, and a scant half saltspoonful of cream of tartar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved, but not a minute longer. As it boils, a thin scum of crystals will form around the edge of the pan. These must be wiped away by wetting a cloth or brush in water and passing it around the dish without touching the boiling sugar. This must be done frequently, or as often as the crystals form, or the whole mass will become granular. When large bubbles rise it must be carefully watched and tested, as from this time it quickly passes from one stage to another. Have a cup of ice-water and a skewer or small stick; dip it into the water, then into the sugar, and again into the water. If the sugar which adheres to it can be rolled into a soft ball, it is done. This is the stage of small-ball, and the thermometer registers 236 deg.-238 deg. (see page 512). Have ready a marble slab, very lightly but evenly rubbed over with sweet-oil. If a slab is not at hand, a large platter will serve the purpose. The moment the sugar is done, pour it over the slab and let it cool a few minutes, or until, pressing it with the finger, it leaves a dent on the surface. If stirred while too warm it will grain. If a crust forms, every particle of it must be taken off, or else the boiling must be done again, as it shows it has cooked a little too long. When it will dent, work it with a wooden spatula, keeping the mass in the center as much as possible. Continue to stir until it becomes a very smooth, fine, white, creamy paste, which is soft and not brittle and can be worked in the hands like a thick paste. If the results are not right and the mass becomes grained, the sugar need not be wasted, but can be put in the saucepan with a spoonful of water and boiled again. In stirring the fondant do not mix in the scrapings unless the whole is still very soft. They can be worked by themselves afterward. Confectioners use one part of glucose to ten of sugar and boil to 240 deg..

SPUN SUGAR

[Sidenote: Three requisites.]

Although spinning sugar has been called the climax of the art of sugar work, one need not be deterred from trying it; for with a dry atmosphere, the sugar boiled to the right degree, and care given to prevent graining, it can be accomplished. It is upon these three things alone that success depends. Spun sugar makes a beautiful decoration for ice-creams, glace fruits, and other cold desserts. The expense of making it is only nominal, but it commands a fancy price.

DIRECTIONS FOR SPINNING SUGAR

[Sidenote: Keeping.]

Put in a copper or a graniteware saucepan two cupfuls (one pound) of sugar; one half cupful of water, and one half saltspoonful of cream of tartar. Boil the sugar as directed for fondant above, letting it attain the degree of crack, or 310 deg.. This is the degree just before caramel, and care must be used. When it has reached the crack, place the sugar pan in cold water a moment to arrest the cooking, for the heat of the pan and sugar may advance it one degree. For spinning, two forks may be used, but a few wires drawn through a cork are better, as they give more points. Have also two iron bars or rods of any kind (pieces of broom handle will do), placed on a table or over chairs so the ends project a little way; spread some papers on the floor under them. Take the pan of sugar in the left hand, the forks or wires in the right; dip them into the sugar and shake them quickly back and forth over the rods; fine threads of sugar will fly off the points and drop on the rods. If the sugar gets too cold it can be heated again. Take the spun sugar carefully off the rods from time to time and fold it around molds, or roll it into nests or other forms desired. Place the spun sugar under a glass globe as soon as made. Under an air-tight globe with a small piece of lime it may keep crisp for a day or two, but it readily gathers moisture, and it is safer to make it the day it is to be used. Do not attempt to make it on a damp or rainy day, and have no boiling kettles in the room (see general directions for boiling sugar, page 513).

GLACE ORANGES AND GRAPES

[Sidenote: Causes of failure.]

Divide an orange into sections; do not break the inside skin, for if the juice escapes in ever so small a quantity the section must be discarded. Let them stand several hours until the surface has become very dry. Remove grapes from the bunch, leaving a short stem attached to each one. Boil some sugar to 340 deg., or the point just before the caramel stage (see directions for boiling sugar, page 512). Remove the pan from the fire and place it for a moment in water to arrest the cooking. Drop the orange sections into the sugar, one at a time, and remove them with a candy wire or with two forks, and place them on an oiled slab to dry. With a pair of pincers take each grape by the small stem and dip it into the sugar, and be sure it is entirely coated. Place each separately on the slab to dry. If the day is damp, the sugar not sufficiently boiled, or the fruit at all moist, the sugar will all drain off; therefore the work must be done only under the right conditions. Candied cherries may be treated in this way: first wash them to remove the sugar; let them dry, then pierce them with an artificial stem and dip them carefully so as not to deface the stem.

CANDIES

[Sidenote: To prevent granulation.]

[Sidenote: Greasing.]

When making candies observe carefully the rules for boiling sugar. When sugar reaches the candy stage, the water has evaporated, and the tendency is to return to the original state of crystals. If it is jarred, or is stirred, or if the thin line of crystals formed around the pan by the sugar rising while boiling is allowed to remain, the whole mass will granulate, hence, for success, it is necessary to avoid these things. To keep the sides of the pan washed free of crystals dip a brush in water and pass it around the pan close to the edge of the sugar as often as is necessary; a sponge or a small piece of cloth may be used, but with these there is danger of burning the fingers. A very little acid added at the crack stage also prevents graining; this is termed "Greasing." If too much acid is used it prevents the sugar advancing to the caramel stage, and also may cause granulation. A few drops, only, of lemon-juice, of vinegar, or a little cream of tartar are the acids used.

[Sidenote: Making candies.]

The success of candy-making depends entirely upon boiling sugar to just the right degree. The candy will not harden if boiled too little. Another stage, where it hardens but sticks to the teeth, means the boiling was arrested at the hard-ball instead of the crack stage. Unless a thermometer is used, a little practice seems necessary before one recognizes the small differences upon which success depends; but the experience once gained, it is easy to make a pound or more of candy at slight expense. In the country, where it is often impossible to get fresh candies, it is desirable to be able to make them. Where fondant is already prepared and kept in preserve jars, the cream bonbons can be quickly made. Carameled nuts are perhaps the least trouble to make of any candies.

[Sidenote: Marble slab and iron bars.]

A marble slab is almost requisite in making candy, though greased papers and tins can be used. Candy poured upon a slab cools quickly, has an even surface, and can be easily removed. Four square iron bars are useful to confine the sugar. These can be placed so as to form bays of the size suitable to the amount of sugar used and the thickness required.

=NOUGAT No. 1 (For Bonbons)=

Blanch one cupful of almonds. Chop them and place them in the oven to dry. They must be watched that they do not brown. Put into a saucepan two and a half cupfuls of powdered sugar and a tablespoonful of lemon-juice. Place it on the fire and stir with a wooden spoon until it is melted and slightly colored. Let it stand a few minutes so it will be thoroughly melted and not grainy, then turn in the hot almonds, mix them together quickly, not stirring long enough to grain the sugar, and turn it onto an oiled slab. Spread it out in an even sheet, one eighth of an inch thick, using a half lemon to press it with. While it is still warm, mark it off into squares or diamonds. Break it into pieces when cold. These sheets of nougat can be lifted and pressed into molds, but it hardens quickly and is not as easy to work as the receipt No. 2.

=NOUGAT No. 2 (For Molding)=

Put two cupfuls of granulated sugar into a saucepan with a half cupful of water. Let it boil to the crack (310 deg.) without stirring (see boiling sugar, page 511), add a few drops of lemon-juice, and then turn in a half cupful of hot chopped blanched almonds which have been dried in the oven. Mix them together, stirring only enough to mix them and not grain the sugar. Pour it on an oiled marble slab, and press it as thin as an eighth of an inch or less. Cut the sheet of nougat into pieces of the right size and press them into oiled molds. Do this while the nougat is only just cool enough to handle, so it will be pliable. Loosen the form from the mold while it is still warm, but keep it in the mold until cold. The work has to be done quickly, as the nougat hardens in a few minutes. Perhaps the first trial to make nougat forms will be a failure, but a few trials will enable one to accomplish it.

If any pieces get broken off the molded forms, they can be stuck on again with liquid sugar or with royal icing. Horns of plenty are favorite forms for nougat. The molds come of different sizes. These pieces filled with glace fruits make very ornamental pieces. The horns are molded in halves. When the nougat has hardened, the two pieces are tied together, rested on a muffin ring, and royal icing pressed through a pastry-tube into any ornamental shape along the edges. This quickly hardens and binds the horn together. A support for the form is made from nougat cut into strips and formed into a box-shape, open at one end.

=NOUGAT No. 3 (Soft White Nougat)=

Put into a saucepan the whites of three eggs whipped to a stiff froth; beat into them one pound of heated strained honey, then add a pound of sugar cooked to the ball, 236 deg.. Continue beating until it attains 290 deg.. A little of the mixture cooled in water will then crumble between the fingers. At this stage add a pound of sugar cooked to the crack, 310 deg., a pound of whole blanched almonds, and a few pistachio nuts. Pour the mixture into a dish lined with wafers, making the nougat one inch thick. Cover the top with wafers, and when cold cut it into pieces three inches long and one inch wide. To make wafers, see receipt for gauffres (page 479); but instead of baking them in the gauffre-iron, spread the mixture as thinly as possible on an oiled paper and dry in a slow oven without coloring.

=NOUGAT No. 4 (Bonbons)=

Blanch, chop, and dry without coloring one cupful of almonds. Melt one cupful of powdered sugar with one teaspoonful of lemon-juice, stirring all the time. When it is thoroughly melted and a delicate color, turn in the hot almonds. Mix them together and turn into an oiled tin. Press down the nougat evenly, leaving it an inch thick. Cut it in inch squares before it becomes hard. This nougat has only enough sugar to bind the nuts together.

=BURNT ALMONDS=

Put a cupful of brown sugar into a saucepan with a very little water. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Let it boil a minute, then throw in a half cupful of almonds and stir over the fire until the sugar granulates and is a little browned. When the nuts are well coated, and before they get into one mass, turn them out and separate any that have stuck together.

=SUGARED ALMONDS=

Put a cupful of granulated sugar in a saucepan with a little water. Stir until it is dissolved, then let it cook to the ball stage without touching except to test. Turn in a half cupful of blanched almonds and stir off the fire until the nuts are well covered with the granulated sugar, but turn them out before they become one mass. Boil another cupful of sugar to the ball, turn in the coated almonds and stir again in the same way, giving them a second coating of sugar, but not leaving them in the pan until they are all stuck together. The nuts may be given a third coating in the same way, if a larger size is wanted.

For pink almonds, add a little carmine to the sugar just before putting in the almonds for the last coating. Any flavoring desired may also be added at this time.

=MARRONS GLACE (Candied Chestnuts)=

Remove the shells from a dozen or more French chestnuts. Cover them with boiling water and let them stand a few minutes until the skins can be removed. Put them again in hot water and simmer slowly until the nuts are tender, but not soft.

Put a cupful of sugar and a cupful of water in a saucepan and stir until dissolved. Add the boiled chestnuts and let them cook in the syrup until they look clear, then turn them onto a sieve, using care not to break the nuts, and let them cool. Return the strained syrup to the saucepan and cook it to the hard-ball stage. Remove it from the fire, add a few drops of lemon-juice and a half teaspoonful of vanilla extract. Drop the chestnuts into it, one at a time, turn until thinly coated, and remove with a candy wire to an oiled paper or slab; or, when the sugar has reached the ball stage, add a few drops of lemon-juice, let it cool a few minutes, and then stir until it begins to whiten; then immediately place in a pan of hot water, flavor with vanilla and stir until it again becomes liquid, and dip the nuts as directed above.

=MARSHMALLOWS=

Soak four ounces of gum arabic in a cupful of water until it is dissolved. Strain it to take out any black specks that may be in the gum. Put the dissolved gum arabic into a saucepan with a half pound of powdered sugar. Place the saucepan in a second pan containing boiling water. Stir until the mixture becomes thick and white. When it begins to thicken, test it by dropping a little into cold water. When it will form a firm ball remove it from the fire, and stir into it the whites of three eggs whipped to a stiff froth. This will give it a spongy texture. Lastly, flavor it with two teaspoonfuls of orange-flower water. Turn the paste into a pan covered thick with corn-starch. The layer of paste should be one inch thick. Too large a pan must not be used, or it will spread and make a thin layer. After the paste has stood twelve hours, turn it onto a slab and cut it into inch squares, dust them well with corn-starch or with confectioner's sugar, and pack in boxes. As the paste is more or less cooked, it will be more or less stiff. Marshmallows become harder the longer they are kept, but are best when as soft as they can be handled.

CARAMELS

=CHOCOLATE=

Put into a saucepan a half cupful each of molasses, of white sugar and of brown sugar, a cupful of grated chocolate, and a cupful of cream or milk. Stir the mixture constantly over the fire until it reaches the hard-ball stage, then add a teaspoonful of vanilla and turn it onto an oiled slab between iron bars, or into a greased tin, having the paste an inch thick. Mark it in inch squares and cut before it is quite cold. Wrap each piece in paraffin paper.

=VANILLA, COFFEE, MAPLE=

Put into a saucepan one cupful of sugar and three quarters of a cupful of cream. Stir constantly over a hot fire until it reaches the hard-ball stage; remove from the fire, add a teaspoonful of vanilla, and turn it onto an oiled slab between iron bars, or into greased tins, the same as directed for chocolate caramels. For coffee caramels use a half cupful of cream and a quarter of a cupful of strong coffee. For maple caramels use a cupful of maple syrup in place of sugar, and omit the vanilla.

BONBONS OF FONDANT

=HARLEQUIN BALLS=

Take several small portions of fondant and color each one a different shade Do this by dipping a wooden toothpick into the coloring matter and then touching it to the paste. The colors are strong, and care must be used not to get too much on the fondant, for the candies should be delicate in color. For orange balls, color and flavor with orange-juice; for pistachio, color green and flavor with orange-flower water and then with bitter almond (see page 391); for pink, color with carmine and flavor with maraschino or with rose-water; for chocolate, mix in cocoa powder and flavor with vanilla; for white, flavor with noyau, peach, or anything preferred. When liquid flavors are used, if the fondant becomes too soft, mix in a little confectioner's sugar; use as little as possible, as too much gives a raw taste. Work in the flavorings and colors by hand, and wash the hands between each different color. After the fondant is prepared, roll it into balls the size of filberts, then roll them in almonds chopped fine. The nuts improve them, but may be omitted if desired. Let the balls stand for two or more hours to harden before putting them together. If the balls are wanted of one color on the outside, omit the nuts and dip them in liquid fondant colored as desired.

=NEAPOLITAN SQUARES=

Color and flavor fondant in three colors as directed above; roll it into layers one quarter inch thick, and place the layers one on the other; press them together lightly and cut into inch squares.

=NUT CREAMS=

Mix chopped nuts of any kind into flavored fondant, then roll into a layer three quarters of an inch thick, and cut into squares.

=SUGAR-PLUMS=

Take small pieces of fondant, flavored and colored to taste; form it into olive-shaped balls. Hold one in the palm of the hand, cut it half through and press into it an almond; form the fondant around it, leaving a narrow strip of the nut uncovered, giving the appearance of a shell cracked open, showing the kernel. If chocolate color is used the almond should be blanched, but with light colors the skin is left on to give contrast. When green color is used it represents a green almond.

=CHOCOLATE CREAMS=

Roll fondant flavored with vanilla into small balls; let them stand a few hours to harden. Melt an ounce of unsweetened chocolate, add to it two tablespoonfuls of milk, two tablespoonfuls of sugar, and a quarter teaspoonful of butter. Stir till smooth; drop the balls into it and remove with a fork or candy wire. If the chocolate becomes too stiff, add a few drops of syrup and heat it again.

=CREAMED NUTS AND CREAMED FRUITS=

Put one or two tablespoonfuls of fondant into a cup. Place the cup in a basin of hot water and stir constantly until the fondant becomes soft like cream or molasses. If it is not stirred it will go back to clear syrup; flavor and color the liquid fondant as desired. Drop the nuts in one at a time, turn them until well covered with fondant, lift them out with a candy-spoon, and place them on an oiled paper, or on an oiled slab. English walnuts, cherries, strawberries, and grapes are very good creamed in this way. The hulls are left on strawberries, the stems on cherries and grapes. Brandied cherries may also be creamed in the same way. If the fondant becomes too stiff, melt it again. After it has been melted twice it no longer works well. A few drops of syrup at 34 deg. can then be added. It is well to have some syrup prepared to keep in stock for this purpose. A drop or two of liquid is sufficient to soften fondant, and unless care is used it will be diluted too much, in which case confectioner's sugar can be mixed in; but this gives a raw taste to the fondant, and should be avoided if possible.

=COCOANUT CREAMS=

Grate some cocoanut fine. Mix it with as much liquid fondant as will bind it well, and flavor with a little vanilla. Spread it in a layer one inch thick and cut into one inch squares, or roll it into balls, and dip the balls into melted chocolate, the same as directed for chocolate creams, or into liquid fondant, flavored and colored as desired.

=COCOANUT CAKES=

Moisten a cupful of sugar with the milk of a cocoanut; boil it to the soft-ball; then stir in as much grated cocoanut as the boiled sugar will moisten; stir it only enough to mix and not granulate. Drop a spoonful at a time on an oiled slab, making flat round cakes about two inches in diameter. If the sugar granulates before the cakes are all spread, add a little water and cook it again to the soft-ball.

=PEPPERMINT CREAMS=

Melt fondant as directed for creamed nuts; flavor it with essence of peppermint. With a spoon drop the liquid fondant in even amounts upon an oiled slab, making lozenges; or, better, turn it into starch molds (see starch molds, below).

=CHOCOLATE PEPPERMINTS=

Dip the peppermint lozenges into liquid chocolate, as directed for chocolate creams.

=TO MAKE STARCH MOLDS AND CAST CANDIES=

Fill a box-cover with corn-starch, having it very light and dry; shake it down even. Press into it a die of any shape desired, making the indentations carefully. Plaster casts are made for this purpose, but buttons make very good dies. A smooth flat button one half inch in diameter makes a good shape for peppermints. Molds are used for cream drops, chocolates, or any of the flavored clear candies.

The liquid candy is dropped carefully into the molds and removed when cold and the starch dusted off. The starch can then be stirred light and again pressed into molds.

CANDIES MADE FROM SUGAR BOILED TO THE CRACK OR THE CARAMEL

=PEPPERMINT DROPS=

Boil a cupful of sugar to the hard-ball. Remove it from the fire; add a half teaspoonful of essence of peppermint and stir it just enough to mix in the flavoring and cloud the sugar. Drop it into starch molds or upon an oiled slab, letting four drops of the candy fall in exactly the same spot; it will then spread round and even.

These drops should be translucent or a little white. Unless care is used the candy will grain before the drops are molded; therefore it is better to pour it from the spout of the pan than to dip it out with a spoon.

=CARAMELED NUTS=

Boil a cupful of sugar to the crack or to the caramel, as preferred; add a few drops of lemon-juice. Blanch a few almonds and dry without coloring them. Drop one at a time into the sugar; turn it until well covered without stirring the sugar; lift it out with the candy-spoon, and place it on an oiled slab. Do not drain the nuts when lifting them out, and enough sugar will remain to form a clear ring of candy around each one. English walnuts, filberts, or any other nuts may be used in the same way. They should be warmed so as not to chill the candy. The work should be done quickly. If the sugar becomes hard before the nuts are all done, return it to the fire to heat. Add a teaspoonful of water if necessary, and boil it to the right degree again. If the sugar is boiled to the crack, the candy will be without color; if boiled to the caramel, it will be yellow.

=ALMOND HARDBAKE=

Blanch some almonds and split them in two. Dry them in a moderate heat without coloring them. Lay them with the flat side down on an oiled layer-cake tin, entirely covering it. Pour over the nuts enough sugar boiled to the crack to entirely cover them. The almonds may be laid in regular order like wreaths, or in groups like rosettes, if desired. Mark off squares or circles on the candy while it is warm, and it can then be broken in regular pieces when cold.

=PEANUT CANDY=

Fill a small square tin a half inch deep with shelled peanuts, leaving the skins on. Boil some sugar to the crack or to the caramel, and pour it over the nuts, just covering them. Cut it into two-inch squares before it becomes quite cold.

=TAFFY=

Put into a saucepan two and a half cupfuls of sugar and a half cupful of water; stir until it dissolves; then wash the sides of the pan, and let it boil without touching until it reaches the soft-ball stage; add a tablespoonful of butter and a half teaspoonful of lemon-juice, and let it boil to the crack; add a teaspoonful of vanilla, and turn it onto an oiled slab or a tin to cool. Mark it off into squares before it becomes cold.

=MOLASSES CANDY=

Put into a large saucepan a cupful of brown sugar, two cupfuls of New Orleans molasses, and a tablespoonful each of butter and vinegar. Mix them well and boil until it will harden when dropped in water. Then stir in a teaspoonful of baking-soda, which will whiten it, and turn it into a greased tin to cool. When it can be handled pull it until white and firm; draw it into sticks and cut it into inch lengths.

=CANDIED ORANGE OR LEMON PEEL=

Keep the peel of the fruit, as it is used, in a weak brine until enough has collected to preserve. Wash it thoroughly in several waters. Let it boil in plenty of water until tender, changing the water several times. If the peels are fresh they need be boiled in one water only. When they can be pierced with a straw, drain off the hot water. Let them cool, and scrape out the white pulp with a spoon. Make enough syrup to cover the yellow peels, using the proportion of a pound of sugar to a pint of water. When the syrup is boiling, drop in the peels and let them cook slowly until they are clear. Then boil rapidly until the syrup is reduced almost to dryness, using care that it does not burn. Spread the peels on a flat dish and place them in a warm place to dry for twelve hours or more. When perfectly dry pack them into preserve jars. They are cut into shreds and used in cakes, puddings, and wherever raisins and citron are used. They are also used in pudding sauces. It is very little trouble to make the candied peels, and they are a delicious addition to various sweet dishes. The boiled peel can be cut into shreds before being cooked in the syrup if preferred.