HOLIDAY CANDY-MAKING

          Since we just finished the holidays, I thought this would be a good time to comment on a few items from my book.

          First, when looking through the “Candy” chapter, you will notice that NONE of the recipes requires the use of a candy thermometer. In other words, they are made by melting chocolate and then using it as a basis for fudge, peanut butter cups, etc. This translates to an easier method to make and give holiday treats to friends and family, since you do not have to cook the creations to a “soft-ball” or “hard-ball” stage first.

          Second, when making the EARTH ANGEL DELIGHTS on p. 125, I discovered an even EASIER way to put them together! Rather than first refrigerating the coconut-pecan filling and then rolling it into balls to dip the chocolate in, I now make them in the same way as preparing DARK CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER CUPS on p. 124. I put a spoonful of the melted chocolate in the bottom of the paper cup, and then add a spoonful of the EARTH ANGEL DELIGHTS filling, followed by spooning more melted chocolate on top, enough to cover the filling and create an EARTH ANGEL DELIGHT candy cup. I hope you like this time-saving step as much as I have. I now can line up the little paper candy cups on a cookie sheet, so that I can create dozens of professional-looking candy cups at one time.

          Third, although in some recipes I talk about a way to make bittersweet chocolate for melting by using 6 oz. of  semi-sweet chocolate and adding 2 oz. of unsweetened baker’s chocolate for each cup called for in the recipe (see bottom of p. 121), in the EARTH ANGEL DELIGHTS recipe above I have discovered that if I use the full amount of semi-sweet chocolate chips called for (2 12-oz. bags) and ADD 4 squares of unsweetened chocolate, and then melt it all together, as I do in making the DARK CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER CUPS, this gives me plenty of dark melted chocolate to thoroughly cover the candy cups. When making these candies as gifts, we certainly don’t want to skimp on the chocolate!

          Although the winter holidays are now over, I hope that you will find these hints helpful when making Valentine’s Day treats in February for your loved ones.

          I welcome your feedback and experiences on these recipe upgrades. Until next week, this is Linda Joy wishing you much PEACE, LOVE & TOFU!