Sponge Candy, Buffalo Style
What a series of events this candy was. I falsely believed that if I could pull off marshmallows, that any candy making endeavors would be a proverbial walk through the baking aisle.
I was mislead. Three times, in fact.
It turned into somewhat of a chemistry experiment, adding this and taking away that. Thankfully none of the ingredients happened to be especially explosive, although the baking soda certainly had potential.
I knew there was something I was missing when I tried it for the third time, and it was the product I was looking for, minus one thing: volume. In the cooling process it had seemed that I lost some of the loft of the candy, thereby making it a little too crunchy and dense. Sponge candy as I know it can best be described as ‘crisp cotton candy’; plenty of air to make it light, but enough cooked sugar to leave it delicately crunchy.
So I did some research online and found my answer: gelatin!
When I saw it, it made perfect sense. The gelatin would set and retain the air bubbles created by the baking soda as the hot candy cooled down, preventing it from collapsing on itself. The fourth attempted was a complete success, right down to coating the candy in it’s traditional milk chocolate bath.
Depending on what part of the world you’re from you may call this confection one or more of the following: sponge toffee, cinder toffee, hokey pokey, honeycomb, seafoam, or simply the inside of a ‘Crunchie bar‘ or a ‘Violet Crumble‘. Whatever the name, it’s damn good and certainly worth a try at home.
Ingredients
- Recipe totally ripped from Wilde in the Kitchen
- 4 oz corn syrup
- 4 oz water
- 1 tbsp baking soda, sifted
- 10 oz granulated sugar
- 1 tsp water
- 1/4 tsp plain powdered gelatin
- 12 oz bag milk chocolate chips (optional...but not really)
Instructions
- Get a medium to large saucepan and attach a candy thermometer to the side of it. In a little bowl, place the gelatin and then the 1 tsp water and allow the gelatin to swell; also known as 'blooming'. Butter and lightly flour a 9"x9" pan, set aside.
- Place the 4 oz of water, corn syrup, and granulated sugar into your pot. Kick on the heat and allow mixture to come up to 305F. Do not stir. Once the mixture hits 305, remove it from the heat and add gelatin when the bubbling quits. Whisk vigorously; mixture will turn thick and sticky. Add baking soda and be careful of the foaming that will ensue. Whisk the crap out of it to be sure you don't leave any baking soda clumps. Ew.
- Pour the molten hot sugar into the 9"x9" pan but do not spread it around. It will relax itself into the pan, no help needed. Allow to cool for a couple hours or overnight.
- Cut the candy with a serrated knife as neatly as you can. It will be a messy endeavor. It is highly recommended that you dip the candies in milk chocolate for the full experience.
- To dip in chocolate, melt the chips in the top of a double boiler or in a bowl set atop a saucepan of simmering water. The water should only be a few inches deep, and don't let it get to a rolling boil. Dip the candies into the smooth melted chocolate, covering completely on all sides. Place the wet candies onto wax or parchment paper and let cool. Keep in an airtight container. You may want to place the container into the fridge if your climate is warm.
- *Please note, you will be working with extremely hot sugar which can cause some of the worse burns. Take care to handle it with caution. Under no circumstance should you allow a child to make this, even with supervision. Make cookies instead.
- *One more thing, keep an eye on your sugar mixture once it reaches 305F. It is easy at this point to let it linger in the saucepan a little too long and have it scorch on you. Be ready to throw in the gelatin and baking soda after removing the pan from the heat, and turn it out as soon as you get them incorporated. Burnt sugar tastes like mean people. Yuck.
Tags: candy, chocolate, cinder toffee, confection, crunchie, hokey pokey, honeycomb, seafoam, sponge candy, sponge toffee
