Great homemade southern candy is everybody's favorite. Well, at least everybody's favorite while they are eating it! There are some candies that remain southern specialties, as well as some we just like to claim. No matter where you live, homemade candy is a yummy treat.
Chocolate candy is one of our great southern homemade treats. You can smell it cooking in the pot before you walk into the house. The kitchen is warm and the bubbling candy, stirred lovingly by its cook, conjures up Norman Rockwell images. So without additional ado, here, for your dining pleasure, (drumroll, please) is the best chocolate candy formula of all time:
3 cups of sugar
1/2 cup of cocoa
1 1/2 cups of milk
one stick of butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
Combine dry ingredients. Slowly add milk until well blended. Cook over medium-high heat until the candy reaches the soft ball stage. take off from heat, add butter and vanilla, and stir until your arm drops off or until the candy stiffens whichever comes first. If you wish to add a half cup of pecans, add them in before the candy gets too firm. Pour the candy onto a well-buttered platter and you're done with chocolate candy making. Try to wait for it to harden before you eat it.
A few candy manufacture tips:
Don't even try to make candy on rainy days. High humidity will not allow the candy to harden, and while it may still taste great, sticky candy is no fun to eat. You might still eat that chocolate candy with a spoon, but we don't recommend it.
Make sure to use heavier, good capability cooking vessels. Cheap pots don't heat evenly, so your results will likely be inconsistent. Copper bottom pots are particularly good.
Cook candy at the right heat. As long as you are stirring the praline blend (or chocolate fudge or candy), you can keep the climatic characteristic up pretty high. Once the candy starts to bubble you should sell out the heat to medium and let it cook a bit, but you will still need to stir frequently.
Use a candy thermometer to help you decide whether or not the candy is ready to take off the heat, at least until you have cooked the formula adequate times to be no ifs ands or buts comfortable with it.
Cook up a double formula this weekend. Make it a special treat that becomes a tradition in your home.
Chocolate Candy production - Best formula Ever
