This is a both hated and popular American Halloween treat. Candy Corn is kinda one of those that you either love or hate and there’s no neutral territory. I, for one, like them. But I know others loathe them.
I will say that making these at home is easy, just a little time consuming. And wont taste as waxy as store bought. The bits will also be a little larger than you’re used to seeing.
Ingredients
- 4 1/2 ounces confectioners’ sugar (about 1 1/4 cups)
- 1/2 ounce nonfat dry milk (about 6 1/2 teaspoons)
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 1/2 ounces granulated sugar (about 1/2 cup)
- 3 3/4 ounces light corn syrup (about 1/3 cup)
- 2 1/2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 or 3 drops each yellow and orange gel paste food coloring, or whatever color combo you want. You just need three colors. Or 2 if you want a white color.
Equipment needed
- Muggle food processor or mortar and pestle
- Bowls
- Spoons
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Large pot or a very clean cauldron
- Candy thermometer
- Spatula – preferably silicone
- Knife
- Ruler or pastry cutter
- Parchment paper or Silicone baking mat
- Optional latex or other such type material gloves
- Sharp knife, bench scraper or pizza cutter.
Instructions
- If you are a muggle born and at home Combine the confectioners’ sugar, dry milk and salt in a food processor. Pulse 4 or 5 times, until the mixture is smooth and well combined. Set aside. If you are not, use a mortar and pestle to do this.
- Combine the granulated sugar, corn syrup and water in a 2-quart pot, or your clean cauldron. Place over medium heat, cover and cook for 4 minutes. Add the butter, clip on a candy thermometer and bring the sugar syrup to 230 degrees F, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and remove the thermometer.
- Being super careful add the vanilla and the dry mixture to the wet mixture in pot and stir with a spatula until well mixed. Carefully Pour onto a half sheet pan lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Cool for 10 to 15 minutes, until the mixture is cool enough to handle. Do not cool completely though! It’ll get hard
- Divide the dough into 3 equal pieces. If you have them pull on your gloves now to keep your fingers from getting stained. Take one of your colors and add two or three drops of ONE shade to one of the pieces, repeat this with the other colors and the other pieces of the dough. The more of the food color you add the deeper the color will be. If you want one of your pieces to be white, don’t add any color.
- Roll each piece of dough into a strand about 18 inches long. Cut each strand in half and roll each piece into a strand that is about 1/2 inch thick and 22 inches long. This will give you a total of 6 strands, two of each color.
- Lay the strands side by side so you have one of each color in whatever order you want them in. Press them together using your fingers, smushing them enough to get the pieces to join to each other but not to blend the colors fully together. Cut into 4-inch pieces. Then, using a ruler or bench scraper, press each piece into a wedge. What you’re basically aiming for is for it to look as if you took a bunch of already made candy corn and laid them on their side and smushed them together into one long strand.
- Using something sharp, like a knife, bench scraper, or pizza cutter, you now want to cut each strand into candy. Like if you were chopping up a carrot into round pieces. If they smush a little as you pull them apart just reshape them best you can with your fingers. You can also do this if you want them to look a little rounder then flat on the sides. Lay the candies on a piece of parchment until dry, at least 1 hour. Store in an airtight container with parchment between each layer.
