Thursday’s Culinary Adventure VII

 

 

Tonight, on Thursday’s Culinary Adventure:

Yay!  I am sure that most of you have had this, but have you made it?  If so, feel free to continue about your day, unless you know how tricky it is and just want to watch me squirm.

Divinity is generally considered a Christmas candy, and I know many moms make it around the holidays. 

Not my mom. (why Mom, why??!!) 

My Aunt Catherine did though! (My mom’s twin sister, so almost as good.)  I would wait and wait for my Aunt, Uncle, and cousins to arrive on Christmas afternoon.  My cousin Julie may have thought it was to see her, but NO!  It was for the divinity!!

Sadly, I only got to have divinity once a year, and, since I was a mere child, I could only have one piece.  But no longer!! :)  I decided to make a WHOLE batch, which, apparently, makes 40 servings!!  All for Brian and me!!  Hooray!!

You will need:

2 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 c. light corn syrup

1/2 c. water

1/4 tsp. salt

2 egg whites

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 c. pecans (optional)

Dried cherries (optional- I opted out.)

Candy Thermometer!!

- Combine sugar, corn syrup, water , and salt in a large saucepan.

- Turn on the heat and stir just until the sugar is blended and a little dissolved.    Then, put down your spoon, for you will stir no more!!

- Meanwhile, put the egg whites in a bowl. Did you know that, in order to make good “stiff peaks”, like we are about to do, you should have your egg whites at room temperature?  Well, who has time for that?!  I stuck my whites in the microwave for 8 seconds.  Voila! Room Temperature.  Beat those whites until they form stiff peaks. No one knows what that really means (or I sure don’t), I usually just guess.

- Check on the boiling candy stuff every now and then, you want it to reach “hard ball stage”, or about 260 degrees.  (Remember from a few weeks ago, it won’t look like an actual hard ball.)

- Now, in a perfect world, your stiff peaks will be peaking right at exactly the same time as your boiling sugar stuff will reach hard ball.  Not so with mine.  My stiff peaks formed first, so I left them and had to monitor the boiling stuff. 

-Once the liquid sugar is at 260 , take it over to the bowl of stiff peaks.  Slowly, slowly, slowly pour it in, while mixing on high.  Your arm will burn, and your wrist will think it is going to break- but don’t pour too fast, or else it will splatter all over, and then instantly harden so that it is impossible to get off.  Don’t ask me how I know…

-Add vanilla, and beat until it holds it shape, about 4-5 min.  I don’t think that “holds it’s shape” is very clear.  What shape?  I prefer to say, beat it until it no longer looks like liquidy-eggy-grossness, and starts to look like a fluffy cloud that you want to eat.

-Stir in your pecans and/or cherries.

-Quickly drop by the spoonfuls onto wax paper.  Don’t take “quickly” too literally.  I panicked, and knocked over the bottle of vanilla in the process.  Just do it soon.

- Swirl the tops.  I couldn’t- apparently, this is what I think a swirl looks like.  More like a chicken claw.

- I don’t know how this is supposed to be 40 servings.   Maybe if you are an elf of some kind?

- Let cool for a little while, then eat!

The taste testers say:

Caitlin: (I did it!!)

Brian: (weirdo)

Caitlin after eating four:

Summary:  Really yummy, but also very rich.  Children, listen to your mothers and only eat one!  Also, mine weren’t AS good as I would have hoped for, because my pecans tasted kind of sketchy.  I think I stored them too near my curry powder.  Brian says that he doesn’t like them because he thinks that they are too sweet.  I didn’t know that such a thing existed…

Grade:  Brian: D

Caitlin: A

Caitlin after eating four: F