How to make Homemade Candy Canes

Comment If you have any ideas.

Prep Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Ingredients

3 cups granulated sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1/4 cup water

1/2 tsp peppermint extract

A few drops of red food coloring

Plastic gloves

 

Instructions

1. Prepare two cookie sheets by spraying them with nonstick cooking spray or covering them with a light layer of oil.

2. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees.

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

4. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring continuously, until the sugar dissolves.

5. Insert a candy thermometer and continue cooking without stirring until the candy reaches 285 (soft-crack stage).

6. Once the proper temperature is reached, remove the candy from the heat immediately and stir in the mint extract.

7. Pour half of the mixture onto the prepared cookie sheet and place it in the preheated oven to stay warm.

8. Add red food coloring to the remaining candy.

9. Pour the candy out onto a marble slab or heat-safe cutting board. Allow it to sit briefly until it forms a “skin.”
10. Spray a bench scraper or heat-safe spatula with nonstick cooking spray, and use the tool to begin spreading the candy out and pushing it back together, working it across the board and allowing it to cool.
11. Don’t forget to check out the instructions showing how to pull candy if you get confused about the process.
12. As soon as the candy is cool enough to handle (but still quite hot), begin to pull it.
13. If you have plastic gloves, put them on and spray the gloves with nonstick cooking spray—this will help prevent overheated or burned hands.
14. Take the candy in both hands and pull the hands in opposite directions, stretching the candy into a long rope.
15. Bring the ends of the strands together and twist the candy into a rope, then pull the rope out into a long strand.
16. Continue to twist and pull the candy until it has a satin-like finish and is an opaque red color. 17.Once the candy is still pliable but barely warm, pull it into a strand about 2” thick, and place it on the remaining prepared baking sheet.
18. Put this sheet back into the oven, turn off the heat, and remove the baking sheet with the other half of the candy syrup.
19. The pulled candy will remaining pliable in the warm oven while you work the second portion.
20. Repeat the pulling procedure with the second, clear portion of candy. At the end, the candy should be a pearly white color.
21. Form it into a log 2” in diameter, just like the red candy.
22. Remove the red candy from the oven. Cut a 5-inch segment from the white and the red log, and place them next to each other.
23. Begin to pull the candies together, twisting gradually to form the familiar candy stripes.
24. Once the twisted candy is the thickness you want, use oiled kitchen shears to cut them to approximately 8” lengths.
25. Immediately form the hook at the top of the cane, and place it on a baking sheet to set at room temperature.
26. Repeat the twisting with the remaining candy.
27. If the candy gets too hard to pull, place it in the warm oven for a few minutes to soften, but don’t let it sit too long and melt.
28. The candy canes will get very hard at room temperature, but if left out for long periods of time they will get soft and sticky, so be sure to wrap them in cellophane once they are set.  

How to make Homemade Hot Chocolate

Comment if you want to know a recipe.

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients
1/3 cupunsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cupwhite sugar
1 pinch salt

1/3 cupboiling water

3 1/2 cupsmilk

3/4 teaspoonvanilla extract

1/2 cuphalf-and-half cream

Directions
1. Combine the cocoa, sugar and pinch of salt in a saucepan. 
2. Blend in the boiling water. 
3. Bring this mixture to an easy boil while you stir. 
4. Simmer and stir for about 2 minutes. 
5. Watch that it doesn't scorch. 
6. Stir in 3 1/2 cups of milk and heat until very hot, but do not boil! 
7. Remove from heat and add vanilla. 
8. Divide between 4 mugs.
9. Add the cream to the mugs of cocoa to cool it to drinking temperature.
10. Enjoy!!

 

How to Make Apple Cider

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Makes: 6 servings

Ingredients

6 cupsapple cider

1/4 cupreal maple syrup

2 cinnamon sticks

6 whole cloves

6 whole allspice berries
1 orange peel, cut into strips
1 lemon peel, cut into strips

Instructions
1. Pour the apple cider and maple syrup into a large stainless steel saucepan.
2. Place the cinnamon sticks, cloves, allspice berries, orange peel and lemon peel in the center of a washed square of cheesecloth.
3. Fold up the sides of the cheesecloth to enclose the bundle
4. Tie it up with a length of kitchen string.
5. Drop the spice bundle into the cider mixture.
6. Place the saucepan over moderate heat for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the cider is very hot but not boiling.
7. Remove the cider from the heat.
8. Discard the spice bundle.
9. Ladle the cider into big cups or mugs, adding a fresh cinnamon stick to each serving if desired.

How to make Peanut-Butter Fudge

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Total Time: 2hr 14min
Prep Time: 10min
Inactive Time: 2hr
Cook Time: 4min
Makes: 64 (1in) pieces

Ingredients

8 ounces unsalted butter, plus more for greasing pan

1 cup smooth peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 pound powdered sugar

 

Instructions

1. Combine the butter and peanut butter in a 4-quart microwave-safe bowl and cover with plastic wrap.

2. Microwave for 2 minutes on high.

3. Stir and microwave on high for 2 more minutes. (Use caution when removing this mixture from the microwave, it will be very hot.)

4. Add the vanilla and powdered sugar to the peanut butter mixture and stir to combine with a wooden spoon.

5. The mixture will become hard to stir and lose its sheen.

6. Spread into a buttered 8 by 8-inch pan lined with parchment paper.

7. Fold the excess parchment paper so it covers the surface of the fudge and refrigerate until cool, about 2 hours.

8. Cut into 1-inch pieces and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.

How to make Chocolate Chip Cookies

I hope you have been making some recipes. Since yesterdays recipe was really long I figured I would put a easy recipe on here. Comment if you want to know a recipe.

Makes 4 Dozen

Ingredients
1 cupbutter, softened
1 cupwhite sugar
1 cuppacked brown sugar
2 egg

2 teaspoonsvanilla extract

3 cupsall-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoonshot water
1/2 teaspoonsalt
2 cupssemisweet chocolate chips
1 cupchopped walnuts

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth.
3. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla.
4. Dissolve baking soda in hot water. 
5. Add to batter along with salt.
6. Stir in flour, chocolate chips, and nuts.
7. Drop by large spoonfuls onto ungreased pans.
8. Bake for about 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are nicely browned.

How to make a Chocolate Peppermint Cake

Please comment for any recipes you would like to know.

Makes 12 servings

Ingredients
Filling:

8 ounces imported milk chocolate (such as Lindt), finely chopped

1/2 cup whipping cream

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

Cake:

1 cup sifted all purpose flour

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup (packed) dark brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 large eggs

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 1/2 cups miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Chocolate Glaze:

8 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

12 whole red-and-white-striped hard peppermint candies, chopped

Fresh mint leaves

 

Instructions

For filling: 1. Place chocolate in medium bowl.

2. Bring cream and corn syrup to simmer in small saucepan.

3. Pour hot mixture over chocolate; add extract and let stand 1 minute.

4. Whisk until mixture is smooth.

5. Let filling stand at room temperature while cake is baking and cooling.

For cake: 1. Position rack in lowest third of oven and preheat to 350°F.

2. Butter 9-inch-diameter cake pan with 2-inch-high sides.

3. Line bottom with parchment paper.

4. Butter parchment.

5. Dust pan with flour.

6. Whisk first 5 ingredients in medium bowl to blend.

7. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until light and fluffy.

8. Gradually beat in both sugars, then vanilla.

9. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.

10. Beat in dry ingredients alternately with buttermilk in 2 additions each.

11. Mix in chocolate chips.

12. Transfer batter to prepared pan.

13. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour 5 minutes.

14.  Cool cake in pan on rack 5 minutes.

15. Turn out cake onto rack. Peel off parchment. Cool completely.

16. Using electric mixer, beat filling until fluffy and lightened in color, about 30 seconds.

17. Using serrated knife, cut cake horizontally in half.

18. Place 1 layer, cut side up, on rack set over baking sheet. Spread filling over.

19. Top with second layer, cut side down. Chill filled cake 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare glaze: 1. Stir chocolate, butter, and corn syrup in heavy small saucepan over low heat until melted and smooth.

2. Mix in extract.

3. Cool glaze until just lukewarm but still pourable, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes.

4. Pour 1/2 cup glaze over center of cake.

5. Spread over top and sides of cake.

6. Chill until glaze sets, about 15 minutes.

7. Pour remaining glaze over center of cake, then spread quickly over top and sides.

8. Chill until glaze sets, about 1 hour.

9. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome; chill. Before continuing, let stand at room temperature until softened, about 4 hours.)

10. Sprinkle candies around top edge of cake. Garnish with fresh mint leaves.