734 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



December, 1920 



honey, an individual service of comb, one of 

 extracted, and a little cake of wax suitable 

 for a workbasket, all daintily wrapped and 

 tied. The next year he sent an order to the 

 firm who had put it up for half a dozen such 

 boxes, one of them to go to his employer, a 

 wealthy manufacturer whose njlme you 

 would probably recognize if I should give it. 

 The following year an order came from that 

 wealthy man for two dozen special boxes for 

 friends of his. These boxes were filled ac- 

 cording to his specifications and cost $10.00 

 apiece, altho that was before the post war- 

 time high prices. I suppose the honey gift 

 boxes appealed to him because they were 

 unique, a welcome change from the conven- 

 tional boxes of candy. 



One way to give the personal touch which 

 we all prize so much at Christmas is to send 

 a gift of homemade candy, Christmas cakes, 

 or even a Christmas pudding all ready to 

 reheat. The following recipes are some of 

 my favorites, which I have used for years 

 for this purpose and for our children, who 

 think Christmas would hardly be complete 

 without a box of mother's homemade candy. 

 A candy thermometer, while not indispen- 

 sable, is of the greatest help in candy-mak- 

 ing, and you will notice I have given the 

 temperature to which to boil the syrup in 

 each recipe. 



The little cakes with the German name 

 were baked by the wife of the editor of 

 Gleanings a month before Christmas last 

 year and were in perfect condition Christmas 

 day. 



FOND.iNT. 



1-3 cup white honey 2 cups granuLated sugar 



Vo, cup water 



Mix, put over fire, and stir only until the 

 sugar is dissolved; boil until the thermome- 

 ter registers 238 degrees F. or until the 

 syrup will hair from the tines of a fork 

 which has been dipped into it. Do not stir 

 while boiling, and it is well occasionally to 

 wipe the sides of the kettle with a damp 

 cloth to remove crystals. "When done pour 

 on to a cold platter or marble slab which has 

 been rinsed in cold water and put in cold 

 place. When blood-warm work it with a 

 spatula or wooden spoon until it is thick and 

 crumbly and then knead with the finger tips 

 until smooth and creamy; pack it in a bowl, 

 cover and set aside in a cool place for sev- 

 eral days or until needed to make into can- 

 dies. When ready for use the bowl of fon- 

 dant may be set in hot water until it softens 

 ■ enough to handle easily. Any flavor may be 

 used when making into candies. The honey 

 flavor alone is delicious when the fondant is 

 used for stuflSng dates. 



The use of honey in the fondant obviates 

 the necessity of adding an acid such as 

 cream of tartar or vinegar in boiling the 

 syrup. Also honey fondant will keep soft 

 much longer than the ordinary kind. If it 

 shows signs of forming a dry crust it is well 

 to cover the bowl with a damp cloth, but 



ordinarily it will keep moist for weeks with- 

 out this precaution. 



CHOCOLATE CREAMS. 



The above fondant may be used to form 

 the centers of all kinds of chocolate creams. 

 It may be delicately tinted and flavored and 

 mixed with various kinds of chopped nuts 

 or glace fruits or dried fruits such as dates. 

 A marble slab or large platter is convenient 

 to use when kneading in the flavors and 

 tints. A quick way to form it into centers 

 for dipping is to shape it into a long roll 

 about half an inch in diameter, cut into 

 pieces, press a nut or fruit into each piece, 

 form it into a ball, and set aside to become 

 firm before dipping. 



A regular dipping chocolate gives the best 

 results, but cooking chocolate does very 

 well. Many are fond of the so-called "bit- 

 ter chocolates," but if a sweet coating is de- 

 sired it may be sweetened by putting in a 

 little fondant, never sugar or honey as either 

 will spoil the texture and cause it to lump. 

 Melt the chocolate in a shallow double 

 boiler or a dish set in a little larger vessel 

 of hot water which should be kept below the 

 boiling point. A drop of water or even 

 moisture collected by covering the double 

 boiler will spoil the texture of the 

 chocolate for dipping, and it is therefore 

 better not to cover it. When the chocolate 

 is all melted, remove from the fire and beat 

 until it is cool and then quickly dip the pre- 

 pared centers, one at a time. Professional 

 candy-makers always do the dipping with 

 their fingers, and by withdrawing the finger 

 quickly from the top of the chocolate the 

 little mark is made which shows that it is 

 hand-dipped. Cool the candies on waxed 

 paper. If the chocolate drains off and forms 

 a wide base it is too warm and should be 

 cooled more. Practice is essential to a per- 

 fect result, but the candies will taste just 

 as good if they are more than a little irregu- 

 lar. 



AFTER DINNER MINTS. 



Put a portion of the fondant in a double 

 boiler and flavor delicately with either pep- 

 permint or wintergreen. If wintergreen is 

 used it may be colored a pale pink with a 

 harmless coloring. Stir until it is of even 

 consistency and then remove the double 

 boiler from the fire and drop the melted 

 fondant from the tip of a teaspoon on to an 

 oiled paper. If the fondant seems too thick 

 to form candies of the right shape it may 

 be softened by the addition of a very little 

 water stirred in, but the addition of the 

 water is apt to coarsen slightly the texture 

 of the mints. Put in a cool place to become 

 firm. 



TAFFY. 



1 cup white honey 1-3 cup cold water 



1 cup granulated sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 



Mix all the above ingredients except the 

 vanilla, put over the fire, stir until the sugar 

 is dissolved, and then boil to 270 degrees F. 

 or until it is a very hard ball when tested 



{Contin'ued on page 762.) 



