I have always wanted to make my own candy, and now, with a nut-allergic toddler, I am even more interested in experimenting with candy that I make sure is safe for him. Candy Corn has always been a favorite of mine despite all of the nasty waxy ingredients in the mass-produced kind, so I'm kind of excited to try to make my own without all of the factory additives!
CAVEAT–I have not yet tested this recipe. I am merely sharing it because it is seasonably appropriate and sounds pretty simple (if labor intensive) and yummy. My friend Sheri tried it and vouches for it–though she replaced the Light Corn Syrup with Lyle's Golden Syrup. I hope to test it out soon…and I'll comment back!
Thanks to Jessie Oleson/Cakespy from whom this recipe was lifted in its entirety.
Homemade Candy Corn
– makes about one pound of candy corn –
Ingredients
1 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup light corn syrup
1/3 cup salted butter
2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/3 cup powdered milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
red and yellow food coloring
Procedure
1. In a medium sized bowl, combine the sifted confectioners' sugar and powdered milk. Set to the side.
2. In a medium saucepan, combine the granulated
sugar, corn syrup and butter. Bring to a boil on high heat, stirring
constantly. Once it reaches the boiling point, reduce heat to medium
and continue stirring for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir
in the vanilla extract and remove from heat.
3. Add the confectioners' sugar and powdered milk
mixture to the wet ingredients; stir well until the mixture is
thoroughly incorporated and smooth.
4. Let the dough cool until it is firm enough to handle, about 30 minutes to an hour (I just let it cool in the saucepan).
5. Divide the dough into three equal parts and set
each third into a separate bowl. Add 2 to 3 drops of yellow food
coloring to one dish, one drop of red and two drops of yellow to
another dish, and leave the remaining dish uncolored. Knead the dough
to which you have added food coloring until the color is even (you may
want to use gloves to ensure that you don't stain yourself). If the
dough is feeling very soft or sticky, you may want to chill the dough
for about 20 minutes in the refrigerator before proceeding with the
next steps.
6. On top of a sheet of waxed paper or parchment
paper, use your hands to roll each color of dough into a long, slender
rope. You can roll it out to your desired thickness: for larger
candies, make each rope thicker; for smaller candies, make each rope
thinner.
7. Line the three ropes of dough together: white,
orange, and yellow. To ensure that they will stick together, lay a
piece of waxed paper on top and give them a very gentle rolling with a
rolling pin. You just want to adhere them, not to flatten them.
8. Using a very sharp knife, cut the dough into
triangles. Keep a damp cloth nearby so that you can wipe off the knife
if it begins to get a candy residue. This method will result in half a
batch of traditionally colored candy corn and half a batch with yellow
tips (it's OKâthey taste the same). Let the finished kernels sit for an
hour or two (do not stack them on top of one another as they will stick
together!) to become firm.