Christmas Candy

[around]

i just have to thank you for posting this. i have been making hard candy with lor-ann oils for about 16 years and have never looked at their website. THERE IS SO MUCH GREAT STUFF ON THERE.
I make the stove-top hard candy recipe, and at Christmas time, i make cinnamon (dyed red), butterscotch (the oil has enough color to make it the perfect gold) and spearmint (which i dye green). but they have about a million flavors. i use that exact recipe and have NEVER had any trouble. one caution: the cinnamon is STRONG. before you put the oil in the hot candy, you'd better have the windows open and the fans going or you'll have that cinnamon smell up your nose for a MONTH. don't inhale while you're doing it either, because it BURNS. Bad.

here is the lor-ann website, and there are SO MANY OTHER great things on there. i hope i get caught up by Christmas so i can try some more!!!

http://www.lorannoils.com/gor_recipes.htm

[pmpknpunk]

Oh my gosh I know what you mean, the Cinn. burns soooooooooo bad!

[kewlchik]

ALMOND ROCA (EASY)   

1 lb. butter
2 c. sugar
2 tbsp. Karo syrup
6 tbsp. water
1 c. blanched almonds, crushed

Melt butter, remove from heat. Add Karo syrup, water and sugar. Cook on medium heat to 290 degrees or until color of brown paper. Stir in almonds. Turn into pan, melt Hershey bar over Roca and sprinkle with fine chopped almonds

[CraftyChef]

Candied nuts are super easy and eating them is addictive. Take a couple cups of nuts of your choice (not chopped; half pieces are good); Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large non-stick pan over medium heat. When melted, add about 1/4 cup of packed brown sugar. Turn the heat up to medium high. Stirring constantly, quickly add the nuts. This will cook quickly, so don't walk away. When the sugar gets dark, remove the nuts to a single layer on foil to cool.

At this point you can add some sprinkles of cinnamon or whatever you fancy.

[Moonbubbles]

Thanks guys for all the suggestions. I'm going to try making a batch of pepperment bark (test run first) Wish me luck.

Amanda

[bluesparkie]

I love this thread!  I've been making fudge for the past couple years and it always gets really good reviews, my niece even asked for it for her birthday this year.  This recipe is really easy and doesn't require a candy thermometer.  If you like your fudge more or less sweet, you can adjust the ratio of milk to semisweet chocolate accordingly.

1 (7 ounce) jar marshmallow creme
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1/4 cup butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk chocolate chips
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1 teaspoon vanilla extract


Line an 8x8 inch pan with aluminum foil. Set aside.

In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine marshmallow cream, sugar, evaporated milk, butter and salt. Bring to a full boil, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and pour in semisweet chocolate chips and milk chocolate chips. Stir until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in nuts and vanilla. Pour into prepared pan. Chill in refrigerator for 2 hours, or until firm.

[not2old4glitter]

I make that peppermint bark too, oh it's so good and last year I made these chocolate graham crackers, really thin and crispy, and spread the white peppermint bark goo on them while the white chocolate was still melted. Then put it in the fridge to harden. You could do it with storebought chocolate graham crackers too but they are thicker and less crispy.

I am addicted to the candied nuts, I do almonds and pecans most years and sunflower seeds are really good too. I salt them right after I spread them out to cool, the salt sticks because the candy part isn't quite cool yet. The sweet/salty contrast is really good, it's like honey roasted nuts. I have made pralines too but I don't like them as well as the salty/sweet candied nuts. Chocolate dipped pretzels have that salty/sweet combo too.

[Petunia0384]

Can someone tell me how hard it is to make the peppermint bark?  I don't mean to sound like a wuss, lol, but I'm a college kid who isn't exactly the best cook in the world.  If it's not too hard, I'm thinking of making it and putting it in canisters (they usually have holiday themed ones at the Dollar Tree) to accompany all of my gifts.

[sammyb]

Can someone tell me how hard it is to make the peppermint bark?  I don't mean to sound like a wuss, lol, but I'm a college kid who isn't exactly the best cook in the world.  If it's not too hard, I'm thinking of making it and putting it in canisters (they usually have holiday themed ones at the Dollar Tree) to accompany all of my gifts.

One of the first posts is my recipe.. not to toot my own horn, but it's awesome stuff.  And, since it's chocolate chips vs. almond bark, it can be made in a microwave!  Just go to dollar tree, get the candy canes there while you get the tins, and you'll be on your way to presents in no time.

[Petunia0384]

Can someone tell me how hard it is to make the peppermint bark?  I don't mean to sound like a wuss, lol, but I'm a college kid who isn't exactly the best cook in the world.  If it's not too hard, I'm thinking of making it and putting it in canisters (they usually have holiday themed ones at the Dollar Tree) to accompany all of my gifts.

One of the first posts is my recipe.. not to toot my own horn, but it's awesome stuff.  And, since it's chocolate chips vs. almond bark, it can be made in a microwave!  Just go to dollar tree, get the candy canes there while you get the tins, and you'll be on your way to presents in no time.

Microwave is good, I like my microwave...  lol.   I will definitely give it a trial run in December and if I succeed, Peppermint Bark for everyone!   Thanks for posting the recipe.

Also, if I did a white chocolate drizzle, how do I do that?  I have gel dyes from my cake decorating class, so I was thinking of using those.  Do I just let it drip off a spoon onto the bark?

Sorry to sound like a cooking idiot, lol...  Again, college student, and my preference for cooking is Lean Pockets.