Candy

• Sugar confectionery refers to a large range

of food items, which includes candy. It's
main ingredient is sugar, especially
crystalline sugar (sucrose), sometimes
along with its close relative being glucose
or corn syrup.
 Candy Types
CRYSTALLINE CANDIES: Two types exist based on the NON-CRYSTALLINE CANDIES: Sugar is present
size of their crystals formed from sugar solutions without form (amorphous) from sugar
solutions .
Type 1) Tiny crystals result in candies with soft,
creamy •Brittle
and smooth textures •Butterscotch
•Divinity* •Caramel
•Fondant •Gummy Candies *(Gummy bears, Jelly
•Fudge beans, Gumdrops)
•Marshmallows** •Hard Candy (Lollipops)
•Maple Sugar Candy •Toffee
•Nougat
•Pralines
*Note: Divinity is a crystalline candy but is a special
case
as the crystals are dispersed in a foam.
**Marshmallows and gumdrops are also special
classes as they contain a gelling substance.
Type 2) Candies with larger crystals
•Rock Candy
NOTE: Aside from rock candy and certain types of
sugar,
crystal coatings are desirable on candies such
as bon-bons and gumdrops and cream candies.
 Preparation Method
• Candy making is an exact science and an art, its success largely dependant on
the knowledge of the science of sugar crystallization and timing. But, you
need not worry because we show you how to make candy recipes without
your having extensive training; we give you ample explanations of what to do
when throughout our step-by-step recipe-tutorials, posted with ample
photos and information.
• Candy preparation happens in steps:
STEP 1: PREPARE THE SUGAR SOLUTION the sugar solution is made from
crystalline (table) sugar (sucrose), sometimes along with its close relative such
as glucose or corn syrup (invert sugars), dissolved in water;

STEP 2: COOK (BOIL) THE SUGAR SOLUTION INTO A CONCENTRATED SUGAR

SYRUP it is then, cooked (boiled) into a concentrated sugar syrup to a codified
density and temperature, indicated on the CANDY - SYRUP TEMPERATURE
CHART; and,

STEPS 3 AND 4: COOLING AND BEATING (OPTIONAL) It is allowed to cool and

any kneading, beating and manipulation may follow.
• Crystalline sugar (sucrose) is a disaccharide made up of individual crystals, which
make it an ideal candidate for candy recipes. Sugar crystals are a an orderly
arrangement of sucrose molecules, comprised of one molecule each of glucose
and fructose bonded together around a nuclei. Identical sucrose molecules
arrange themselves in orderly geometric patterns repeated over and over again in
orderly arrangements, called crystals. The tendency of sucrose molecules to form
crystalline forms, gives us the amazing variety of candy.
• Controlling sugar crystallization is one of the most important aspects during the
Preparation of Candy - controlling the initial sugar solution or the proportion of
sugar to water, concentrating the sugar syrup as its cooks, essentially filled with
sugar crystals broken into individual molecules and, finally controlling the physical
rearrangement of the crystals as it cools. Using ingredients and techniques, the
candymaker can control how the broken-apart sugar molecules are physically
rearranged back into the soft textures of caramels and fudges, where
crystallization is minimized, to hard candies where crystallization results in a
desired grainy or crystalline structure.
• The goal in preparing soft, creamy and smooth textured crystalline candy is to
develop numerous very fine nuclei in the sugar syrup solution. They are formed
by: 1) controlling the form and content of the sugar; 2) controlling the
temperature; and, 3) stirring correctly. As the solution cools, the sugar crystallizes
into the proper size. If the nuclei appear slowly in the syrup solution, there is more
time for the sugar molecules to aggregate around the nuclei and form large
crystals.
• Non-crystalline candies are simpler to make as the goal is
to stop crystallization from happening. Two methods used
are: 1) to create a very concentrated sugar solution by
cooking the sugar syrup solution to a higher temperature
than crystallized candies; and/or, 2) adding large amounts
of "interfering agents" or extra ingredients which inhibit
nuclei formation or by decreasing the amount of water
available for sugar to dissolve in.
• Candymaking has to be done with great skill because
controlling crystallization does not occur as smoothly as
one hopes because of the nature of sugar crystals; once
the sugar molecules are broken apart through heat, their
scientific attraction is to form an orderly crystalline
arrangement, again, on their own. One misstep in any part
of the process, the whole candy batch is ruined from the
sugar molecules prematurely crystallizing or reordering
themselves back into a crystalline structure.
 STEP 1: PREPARE THE SUGAR SOLUTION
• This step is basically the same for crystalline and noncrystalline
candy. There are different ingredient (formulas) used depending upon the
candy recipe.
All sugar based candies, whether creamy or chewy or brittle, typically start
out with crystalline sugar (sucrose), sometimes along with its close relative
such as glucose or corn syrup (invert sugars), as its main ingredient. What
determines the type of candy being made is done through the type and
proportion of ingredients that make up the intial sugar solution, typically
sugar dissolved in water.
• Prepare the ingredients, pans and your worksurface: Weighing ingredients
is the most accurate way to measure solids, such as sugar, but it can also be
measured in a dry measuring cup. Measure liquids in a liquid measuring
cup or weigh. Prepare all equipment and tools in advance; you won't be
able to once the candy making steps start. All pots and utensils must be
spotless and dry. Prepare your worksurface. If using a buttered pan or mold
at the end, always have it ready. Keep a container of ice water handy. If you
accidentally spill hot ingredients on your hand, immediately plunge it into
the ice water to stop the burn.
• Dissolve the sugar (a solute) in liquid, typically water (a
solvent): and optionally mixed with other ingredients to
create a sugar solution. Sugars have a strong affinity for
water; sucrose is the second most soluble sugar and two
parts can readily dissolve in one part water, called a sugar
solution, whereby forming temporary but strong bonds to
water molecules in their vicinity.

The sugar and water ingredients are put into pot large
enough so boiled sugar does not overflow and placed over
medium heat. Stir the mixture constantly until the sugar is
dissolved.
 STEP 2: COOK (BOIL) THE SUGAR SOLUTION INTO A
CONCENTRATED SUGAR SYRUP

• Sucrose tolerates the high heat of boiling; after a sugar

solution is formed, it can be heated and boiled to certain
temperatures concentrating the solution as a sugar syrup,
whereby chemical changes or reactions in the sugar crystals
take place.
• Most candy recipes require that the sides of the pot be
washed down early in the cooking process, either with a wet
pastry brush or by putting the lid on the pan for a few minutes
to remove any sugar crystals clinging to the container
walls. Afterwards, clamp or place a candy thermometer on
the side of the pan.
• Depending on the candy being made, the syrup is boiled to a codified
temperature, measured with a Candy Thermometer, and/or to the
syrup's specific concentration indicated on the CANDY - SYRUP
TEMPERATURE CHART. Keep the temperature constant; never try to
rush a candy mixture by cooking it at a higher temperature than the
recipe directs, or slow it down by reducing the heat.
• The high heat dissolves the sugar, evaporates the water and breaks
apart the sugar's molecules, causing the sugar syrup to get hotter and
denser, resulting in a sugar syrup with concentrated sugar molecules.
At this point, the sugar molecules are tightly concentrated in the
water, reaching a supersaturation state, while at the same time more
unstable. Any unnecessary jarring, stirring or bumping of the pot
during the boiling phase, will cause the unorganized sugar molecules
to recrystallize, or form an ordered sugar crystallline structure, ruining
the whole batch.
•
• Even without heat, crystallized sugar will dissolve in water. Up to a certain point,
that is. The general principle with candy making is that at a particular
temperature, a given solvent (in this case, water) can dissolve only so much of a
particular solute (sugar), reaching its saturation point where no more sugar can be
dissolved. In other words, sugar crystals added to the solution after saturation will
just sink to the bottom of the container. But heating the sugar/water solution will
increase the amount of sugar that can be dissolved. That's because heat disrupts
sugar's crystalline structure, breaking apart the sugar's molecules which allow
more of it to dissolve in the water. As you have probably already found out, sugar
dissolves more readily in hot liquids than in cold.
• As the sugar solution continues to be heated, the sugar's molecules move faster
and become farther apart, enabling the solution to dissolve more and more sugar
molecules, until it boils. Here, the sugar solution turns into a clear, syrupy
substance, called a sugar syrup. Sugar syrups have various other uses than in
candy making, such as soaking cakes, glazing baked goods, poaching or preserving
fruit, adding to frostings, etc.
• Once the solution boils, many water molecules are released into the air,
concentrating the solution as a sugar syrup and raising its boiling point. In general,
a solid, such as sugar, dissolved in a liquid makes it harder for the liquid molecules
to escape. Consequently, the solution has to be hotter for the liquid molecules to
get away at the same rate, and the boiling point rises.
• As boiling point increases, the concentration of solute continues to increase. You can use the
temperature of the boiling syrup to tell when enough water has boiled away to give the
syrup the right ratio of sugar to water for each candy recipe. For example, the boiling point
of water is usually 212 degrees F. However, when the liquid is around 70 percent sugar, the
boiling temperature rises to 230 degrees. At 240 degrees F, the solution will be 80 percent
sugar, and a small portion of the solution will form a soft ball when dropped in cold water. At
about 300 degrees, the solution, now about 98 percent sugar. Sugar begins to melt around
320 degrees F and caramelize around 340 degrees F.
• As the solution is heated to above the boiling point, the solution becomes supersaturated.
Here, more water evaporates and the concentration of sugar crystals to water increases.
Now the solution has a delicate balance of just enough sugar molecules and just enough
heat to keep them dissolved, but it is in an unstable state. The sugar molecules will begin to
crystallize back into a solid at the least provocation and disruption of heat. Stirring or jostling
of any kind or introducing a new sugar crystal from an outside source into syrup, can cause
the sugar molecules to begin recrystallizing to return to their original, dry and stable
crystalline state.
• Sometimes you can see unwanted crystallization happening before your eyes, for example
when the sugar syrup becomes a stiff and crackled mess in your pot upon cooling, ruining
the whole batch. Sometimes you don't always see that unwanted crystallization has
occurred until it's too late. For example, once I made homemade fudge and could hardly
wait to taste it. When the moment came, and it bit into a piece, to my surprise it was sandy
and gritty, rather than smooth and creamy! Into the garbage can it went.
 STEPS 3 AND 4: COOLING AND BEATING
(OPTIONAL)
• The sugar solution is cooled and beaten, which in part controls how
these individual sugar molecules come back together again as
crystals. The goal in making crystalline candies is the formation of
ordered sugar crystals, whereas the goal in making noncrystalline
candy is to inhibit their formation.
• Whether you cool and/or stir the sugar syrup during cooking or
afterwards is determined by the type of candy being made. Many
of the non-crystalline candies are poured out of pan immediately
after cooking. They harden quickly because their are made from
highly dehydrated sugar syrups and any agitation or stirring will
cause unwanted crystallization. For example, in the case of
caramels and hard candy, such as lollipops, their finished cooked
recipes are poured directly into their molds or pans, and left to
cool.
LINE STAMPING HARD
BOILED CANDY
 Factors affecting in candy properties

Cooking

Fats

Softness Starch

Reducing Sugars
Tuxture
ٍSugars

Granulation Residual moisture

Milk and casein

Temperature