In his “Tricks For Treats” episode of Good Eats, Alton Brown talks about how Americans spend billions of dollars each year on factory-manufactured candy, and in true Alton Brown style, tells us how simple it is to make these goodies, as well as giving a LOT of other useful facts and advice on the topic.
So with Halloween looming even closer, I dare you to resist dashing to the nearest supermarket to load up on your candy stash this year, and try this recipe below:
Chocolate Taffy
2 cups sugar
2/3 cup Dutch process cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons butter, plus additional for greasing pan and hands
In heavy medium saucepan, combine sugar, cocoa powder, and salt. Stir until thoroughly combined. Add corn syrup, water, and vinegar to pan and place over medium heat. Stir until sugar and cocoa dissolve, raise heat to high and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low, clip candy thermometer to side of pan and cook until mixture reaches 260 degrees F. Remove pan from heat, add the butter and stir. Butter edges of sheet pan, line with silicone baking sheet and pour on taffy. Allow to cool until you are able to handle it.
Once you are able to handle the taffy, don vinyl gloves, butter them, and begin to fold taffy in thirds using the silicone mat. Pick up taffy and begin to pull folding the taffy back on itself repeatedly twisting as you go. Taffy is done when it lightens in color, takes on a sheen, and becomes too hard to pull. Roll into log, cut into fourths, roll each fourth into a 1-inch wide log, and cut into 1-inch pieces. Making sure to keep pieces separated or they will stick to each other. Wrap individual pieces of candy in waxed paper. Store in airtight container 3 to 5 days.
[tags]Alton Brown,Halloween,Chocolate,Taffy,Sweets,Chef,Recipe[/tags]
Originally posted on October 22, 2006 @ 9:04 pm
