[Sca-cooks] Once again venturing blindly so I need help.

[Pixel, Goddess and Queen]

Yes, you didn't stop soon enough, and your sugar started to carmelize.
Take it slow. The hard-crack stage is 300F to 310F, the beginnings of
caramelization start at about 320F. So you probably want to err on the
side of caution until you are more experienced working with sugar. Because
it will continue to heat right after you take it off the heat, watch your
thermometer carefully and take it off the flame (don't just turn off the
burner, take the pan OFF the head) right as the mercury hits 300F. That
should probably help you avoid caramel.

Also, what kind of pan are you cooking your sugar in? A heavy pan will
hold the heat longer than a thin pan, which means that a) your sugar will
take longer to harden, and b) the temperature is definitely going to
continue rising after you remove the pan from the heat.

250F is the hard-ball stage (nougats, divinity, gummies). It will form a
hard ball in cold water, but you should still be able to squish it. What
you want is hard threads rather than a ball, otherwise you'll run the risk
of squishing your candy into formless blobs and it won't really look like
stained glass. Think LifeSavers and lollipops and suchlike.

As for how to get it out of the pan, well, it's just sugar. It will
dissolve in hot water, so a good soak should take care of it. Actually, it
will dissolve in cold water, but it will take rather longer.

Margaret (who is notorious for screwing up her sugar syrup because of
impatience)


> Hi All,
> Just need a few tidbits of advice...
> First off I am using the "Stained Glass Candy"  Recipe from the Boke of
> Gode Cookery Website.
> Now my first question is more of a confirmation than a question.
>  Instead of the nice clear color I was getting early on, my final
> product turned a lovely shade of amber.  I assume that this means that I
> burned the sugar in trying to get it to hot to quick  Not a problem I
> just know that next time I can't rush it and try and get it to 310
> degrees by turning up the heat.... That is a correct assumption right?
>
> Now this is most important... How do I get the residual leftover candy
> off of the pan?  I mean Geez this stuff solidifies in like 2 minutes!!!!
>  I now have pan candy.
>
> But of course there is another question...
> Ok How solid is that 310 degrees? I ask this because I had some pretty
> candy at about 250 degrees and it was solidifiing rather well in cold
> water.  So rather than running the risk of burning it would it be better
> to go with the lower temp?
> Thanks for any help.
> And Yes Olwen I am photo documenting this...
> ;)
> Nichola
>
>
>