Tag Archives: Candy

Kohakutou (Japanese Amber Candy)

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Makes A lot! (dependent on cutting size)

Ingredients

  • 4 teaspoons agar agar
  • 1 3/4 cups water
  • 3 cups sugar, white
  • 1/2 teaspoon candy flavouring oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon citric acid
  • Gel food coloring, to personal preference

Method

  1. Prepare an 8-x 8-inch square pan with smooth sides by spraying lightly with cooking spray
  2. In a medium pan, stir to combine the agar agar and water. Let sit for 5 minutes
  3. Bring the agar agar mixture to a boil over a medium heat, stirring constantly, until it has completely dissolved and the mixture thickens. This should take between 2 to 3 minutes
  4. Add the sugar and cook, stirring constantly, until it has completely dissolved and the mixture is thick and syrupy, about 3 minutes
  5. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the candy flavoring, citric acid and stir to combine
  6. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Add a few drops of food coloring to your personal preference and swirl throughout the mixture using a skewer or chopstick. Refrigerate for 1 hour
  7. After this time your agar agar mixture should be quite firm and set. If it isn’t refrigerate for another 15 minutes. Run a thin knife or offset spatula around the edges of the pan. Flip the pan over onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, or counter-top. then tap to dislodge the jelly. If the jelly is stubborn, cut it into chunks and remove those from the pan instead
  8. Use a sharp paring knife to cut the jelly into crystal shapes, trimming as desired. The jelly will be firm but sticky. You can also tear the jelly to form jagged edges
  9. Now here comes the hard part! Set the shaped jelly shapes on to clean parchment paper and leave in a cool area, free from or with low humidity. Leave the jellies for about 7 days, rotating morning and evening to ensure even drying. Over this time you’ll notice the candy pieces will form a hard out crust.
  10. After this time you can eat the candy crystals as is, or you can decorate them with edible glitter or paint, to enhance their “geode crystal” look.
  11. The candies can be kept in an air-tight container for up to a further two weeks to enjoy them at their best

OMG! Candy TDF!!!

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I recently had the pleasure of coming across the wonderful people at TaffyMail . If you haven’t heard of them and if (like me!) you’re partial to a bit of sweetness, they’re well worth a try.

Taffy Mail Image
For a monthly “subscription” of £14.99 you get a surprise selection (don’t we all love surprises?) of 10-12 American candies and sweets. It’s not just limited to sweets though- some deliveries will include sodas and drinks from across the pond too. That works out at about £1.25 per item of candy which is ALOT cheaper than what I’ve seen them retail for in some of the larger supermarkets. Whether your looking for something familiar or in a more adventurous mood there’s sure to be something here for you.


My recent TaffyMail delivery was their “Festive box”. Inside were “Holiday Season” goodies including Reese’s Peanut tree; Candycane white chocolate Hersey’s kisses; fruit flavored Ike & Mike and “Holiday Punch” selection of Wonka “Nerds” to name but a few. The Nerds were by far the hit for me. Flashbacks from childhood erupting with each sugar-filled mouthful. The combination of Watermelon and Wild Cherry flavours (what they have to do with the festive season I’ll never know?!?) provided mouth-puckeringly goodness made all the better because you know it’s so very wrong but oh so right!

The only let down in my selection was the can of lemon tea that arrived. Called “Arizona” it lacked the slightly tart kick that I love from a fruit iced tea. Instead it had a sacarine laced flavour which left my teeth, disappointing, feeling rather “furry”. All in all a minor flaw in what otherwise was a TranAtlantic box of delights full of giddy nostalgia (for some reason American sweets were widely available in my native Ireland).
Love the idea of “Oooh”-ing and “Aaaah”-ing as you open the box and then giggling like a school kid caught in a sugar-rush? Well head on over to TaffyMail’s website and subscribe. In fact the team there have been so generous as to offer my readers a discount. How’s that for a sweet start to the year!?! Enter the discount code MRMOMS as your coupon code when subscribing and you’ll get the next 3 months for @12.99 instead of the standard subscription of £14.99.