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Show Cindy December 23, 2018 I had an old Dutch Cookbook years ago. It had recipes for peanut brittle, butterscotch, and other hard candies without corn syrup. In places like Louisiana if you can't escape corn syrup they sale cane sugar syrup. I use it for my pecan pies. I tried to copy and paste an address or 2 for you, bit it won't let me.. Most of your old books will have recipes that are pre corn
syrup. But you will really need to have your ducks in a row. Because cooking with sugar is an art. So read your directions from top to bottom. Then organize your ingredient list and premeasure everything!! Trust me on this. I have burned enough sugar to pave my driveway. Sugars go from soft to brittle relatively quickly and extremely quickly the second you take your eyes off from the pot. And not matter how long you think you have watched that pit, it will boil the minute you take your eyes off
it.
Cindy December 23, 2018 Excuse the errors...voice to text is not a perfected science.
4 cups sugar
Just as another suggestion I didn't see here; You can add any vinegar you want to the sugar/water mix if you don't have lemon juice or cream of tartar. Any acid will work, and I actually like how the vinegar helps to cut some of the sweetness of the sugar and makes the candy taste more balanced. White distilled or any light flavored vinegar would work well(red can work in a pinch, but it isn't recommended). Also, as long as you are careful to make sure all crystals are dissolved before bringing the candy up to temp you don't need any addition like corn syrup or acid. They just help make things more fool-proof/easier but aren't necessary. What I do is bring the water and sugar up to a boil, but as it starts to simmer and the sugar begins to melt wipe the sides with with water and a pastry brush being careful to get any stray sugar crystals. Let it come up to a boil for a couple minutes and do another wipe with water/pastry brush. No need to worry about the extra water being added to the mix since it'll just cook out. Then after wiping it down put a tight fitting lid on for a couple minutes or so to allow the steam to dissolve anything you missed and you should be crystal free. Hope that helps.
some people (like me) are allergic to corn and all corn products. Try finding candy without it!
SMCS October 6, 2013 I am concerned about HFCS (if you stop eating something for a month and feel better chances are it's the thing you cut making you feel like crap) so I am glad to find instructions to make candy without this modern killer (high fructose corn syrup) Thanks to those who answered without judging. :)
Thank you all for the lovely answers! I am not so much concerned with HFCS, but I would always rather use pure cane sugar if I can help it, also it makes for one less ingredient in my too-full baking cupboards. I do know about cooking with sugar in general, my favorite buttercream is an Italian meringue, but thanks for all the tips on that as well! Voted the Best Reply!
Hi Jessica! Regular sugar (sucrose) is two simple sugars linked (glucose and fructose). If you separate them, then you are creating fructose and glucose, the interfering agent needed to prevent
crystallization. You can make an invert sugar syrup recipe at home per this blog: http://notsohumblepie.blogspot.com/2010/05/lollipops-sugar-science-ramblings.html Happy Candy Making!!
I agree with Ophelia. Honey is a good sub for corn syrup (aka Karo). All invert sugars (sugar in dilute form) contain just enough acid to prevent the molecules from bonding at opposite poles and therefore re-crystallysing.
It sounds as if the
submitter simply doesn't stock corn syrup in her pantry and wants to make candy without having to go to the store first.
I wonder if the submitter is worried about high fructose corn syrup? Corn Syrup isn't the same product. Although it's a very sugary product with high glyemic index--it's not equal to HFCS.
I've made hard candy with maple syrup. I don't have the recipe at hand, but it worked well
The corn syrup is there to interfere with crystallization. When you melt sugar you get a pile of sucrose molecules, which have a penchant for forming crystalline structure around any stray sugar grain or other debris, or when they get disturbed. The simple sugar molecules (fructose and glucose) found in corn syrup act as a buffer for the process, because they get in between the sucrose molecules making it harder for them to link up. You could try adding something to invert the sucrose molecules into fructose and glucose molecules -- cream of tartar or lemon juice are common inverting agents. Or you could use a different invert syrup - pure glucose syrup, agave nectar, or golden syrup would all likely work. The commercial corn syrup available is not the same as the high fructose corn syrup used in food processing, if that makes you feel any better about using it. What can I use instead of corn syrup in hard candy?Corn Syrup Substitutes. 1) Agave nectar. Produced from the filtered, concentrated fluid in the leaves of agave plants, it may reach up to 90% fructose. ... . 2) Maple syrup. ... . 3) Cane Syrup. ... . 4) Simple Syrup. ... . 5) Honey. ... . 6) Brown Rice Syrup. ... . 7) Golden syrup.. Can I use honey instead of corn syrup for candy?You can substitute an equal amount of honey for light corn syrup in many recipes. Like maple syrup, honey is not the best choice for making candies or caramel because it may crystallize. However, it is a good option for making frostings, baked goods, jams, and jellies. Be sure to opt for raw honey whenever possible.
Does hard candy need corn syrup?Corn syrup is a common ingredient in many hard candy recipes because it is an invert sugar. Invert sugar inhibits the formation of sugar crystals and provides a smooth texture to hard candy, caramel, and other cooked sweets.
What does cream of tartar do in hard candy?Adding cream of tartar when you're making candy helps prevent the creation of sugar crystals. That's why lots of icing, syrup or candy recipes call for it: it makes it so the end product doesn't have large crunchy sugar capsules.
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