You won’t have a hard time finding the ingredients you need for these recipes in your local grocery store. But read these notes anyway if you’re interested in learning a bit more about what’s going into your delicious treats. Warning: this section may make you think about certain ingredients in a new way that will be rather inconvenient. Yes, I know, this is a candy book, not some sort of hippy, earthy, crunchy health food book. But I happen to think that health-conscious folks should be able to enjoy sweet treats, and one of the advantages of making your own candies is that you can choose ingredients that are healthier than what you’d buy off a candy shelf at the store.
Sugar
You’ll find granulated sugar, brown sugar (light and dark), and confectioners’ sugar in the recipes that follow. If the recipe just says “sugar,” I mean regular old granulated sugar, which could be the white stuff you’re used to or the unbleached raw granulated sugar. Either will be just fine. If you’re in the middle of making a recipe and discover you’re all out of brown sugar or confectioners’ sugar (also called “powdered sugar”), you can make your own using these equivalents:
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1 cup brown sugar = 1 cup granulated sugar + 1 tablespoon molasses |
1 cup confectioners’ sugar = 1 cup granulated sugar + 1 tablespoon cornstarch, whirled in a food processor or blender until mixture becomes powdery. |
Alternative Sweeteners
If you’re diabetic or just prefer not to spike your blood sugar through the roof, there are sugar substitutes available, and some are quite good.
Stevia is an herb that’s been used as a sweetener in South America for centuries. It’s suitable for diabetics and those looking to keep their weight in check. It does leave a strange aftertaste, which some people (myself included) find difficult to get past. Stevia does not caramelize like regular sugar, so it is not an acceptable sugar substitute for hard candies, caramel, or taffy. It’s also much sweeter than regular sugar, so you only need about 1 teaspoon of stevia for every 1 cup of sugar called for in a recipe.
Swerve is relatively new to the market, but it’s getting lots of great reviews. I tried it for the first time while working on this book, and it really does taste like regular sugar! It’s a sugar alcohol, like xylitol, only it doesn’t have the digestive side-effects typical of xylitol. It’s safe for diabetics and contains no calories, there’s no weird aftertaste, and it’s the same sweetness as sugar, so it has a 1:1 ratio to sugar called for in recipes. It does caramelize, so it can be used in hard candies, taffy, etc. It’s available in granulated form or in confectioners’ sugar form. If you can’t find it in your local health food store, you can order from www.swervesweetener.com.
Corn Syrup and Brown Rice Syrup
Corn syrup is sugar from corn, in syrup form. But you knew that already. What you might not realize is that most corn syrup is made from genetically modified (GM) corn. GMOs (genetically modified organisms) are banned or are required to be labeled in more than sixty countries around the world because there is evidence that they contribute to a wide range of health problems (I won’t get on my soap box here, but you should do a little research). The good news is, you can buy organic corn syrup, which is not made from GM corn. See the resource section on page 111 for more information.
Why not just skip corn syrup altogether? Because corn syrup lends a unique texture to candy that is hard to obtain from other sugars or syrups. The closest alternative I’ve found is brown rice syrup, which is less sweet than corn syrup and has a distinct flavor, but it functions similarly to corn syrup in most recipes. You can find it in health food stores, or see the resource section of this book (page 111).
Honey, Maple Syrup, and Agave
Honey and maple syrup are great for use in dried fruit and nut candies, but they don’t caramelize enough for use in hard candies, caramels, or taffy. They all will raise your blood sugar, so if you’re diabetic, these natural sugars are not a safe alternative to processed sugar for you. However, they are less refined than granulated cane sugar and have some health benefits—especially honey. As for agave, I wouldn’t bother with it, for the reasons outlined below.
The best honey—both for nutrition and flavor—is in its raw form. Raw honey is a powerful antioxidant and has antiviral antibacterial, and antifungal properties. It strengthens the immune system and can fight allergies (particularly if the honey is from local bees).
Maple syrup is, well, delicious. I’m from Vermont, so I grew up tapping trees and boiling down the sap to make our liquid gold. We used to drink it when it was halfway done—still a little watery, but delightfully sweet—in little shot glasses. Maple syrup doesn’t rank quite as high as honey on the health scorecard but it does have a lot of anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.
Agave, sometimes called “the great Mexican aloe,” produces a sweet sap, or nectar, that is traditionally extracted from the leaves, filtered, and heated to become a concentrated syrup—sort of like the tropical version of maple syrup. Sounds great, right? There’s a hitch. Most agave sweeteners you can find in stores comes from the blue agave plant, and rather than the sap being extracted from the leaves, it comes from the starchy root bulb. The agave glucose is converted to syrup through an enzymatic and chemical process that is similar to how cornstarch is converted to high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). And if you didn’t know, HFCS messes with your hormones and makes you fat. I’m not a doctor, but unless you’re going to go pick an agave leaf and extract the sap yourself, I’d stay away from it.
Sweetened Condensed Milk
Sweetened condensed milk makes lots of candy recipes super quick and easy. If you don’t have any on hand, or don’t like some of the ingredients used in store-bought varieties, you can make your own. It takes a while, though. (I also recently found organic sweetened condensed milk at Trader Joe’s—exciting!) The below recipe makes about 14 ounces, the equivalent of 1 store-bought can of sweetened condensed milk.
1½ cups whole milk or full-fat coconut milk
½ cup sugar
3 tablespoons butter or coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
Combine milk and sugar in a saucepan over very low heat and stir until melted. Allow to simmer, uncovered, for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally. When reduced by about half, add the butter and vanilla and remove from heat. Allow to cool and then use immediately or store in a glass jar.
Butter
If you don’t have an issue with dairy products, use real, unsalted butter when a recipe calls for butter. The flavor and texture will be your reward. However, if you’re steering clear of dairy for any reason, coconut oil is a good alternative (you’ll see it used in many recipes in this book). I don’t recommend margarine for making candy, since texture is so important, but if you have your heart set on it, choose a variety that doesn’t contain hydrogenated oils.
Chocolate
Chocolate deserves a section all unto itself. Keep reading.