My husband came home from a trip to his hometown, bringing back some candy from the local candy store up there. The name of said candy?
Fairy food*.
This purchase correlates to the book for this edition:
The Iron King is the first of a series, and sets up a fantastic world of faeries, their kingdoms and their interaction with humans. Our main character is Meghan Chase, who is dealing with all the usual woes of a 17 year old girl in America, until her brother gets kidnapped and is replaced by a changeling. Suddenly, her world is thrown upside down as she discovers there is more going on than meets the eye. She is determined to get her brother back, and with the help of a guide, thus beginning her adventures into the Nevernever. She ends up in the court of the summer king, where she is advised to not eat any of the food, as that proves to be detrimental to humans.
Since actual food wasn't mentioned in the book, other than a fruit called a summerpod (magical, of course) and trail mix, I decided I wanted to see if I could make the candy myself. I began the search for a good recipe.
All had the basics the same, but with little tweaks and tips included.
1 c granulated sugar
1 c dark corn syrup
1 T white vinegar
1 T b. soda, sifted
Chocolate for dipping
In a heavy duty saucepan, stir together the sugar, syrup and vinegar over medium heat. Pop in your candy thermometer and let it boil up to the upper end of the hard crack stage (which is about 305ºF). This will take roughly 15 minutes. Immediately remove from the heat, quickly stir in the baking soda (watch for uniform color) and pour into the pan. Do not spread it out, or it will deflate! Do not make sudden moves once in the pan, or it will deflate! Let this cool completely.
Meanwhile, melt your chocolate.
Once cool, take the candy out of the pan, removing the parchment paper. Cut into rough squares and dip in the chocolate. Let harden and then enjoy!
My notes: waiting for the hard crack stage will feel like forever, but be patient! And despite me yelling at you in the directions, it will deflate somewhat, regardless of your actions. Cooling takes about 40 minutes or so. You'll notice I crossed out buttering the pan... to keep things real, this is what happens when you do that:
Candy making takes practice!
Book recommendation: The Iron King by Julie Kagawa
Recipe recommendation: Fairy Food
TV recommendation: The Blacklist
*This also has the name of sponge candy or angel food.
2 comments:
I love the name Fairy food and I am glad it includes chocolate. I admire your patience with the process. You make me curious to see what happens when you add the baking soda. I am sure Meghan would have liked to have some of your Fairy food during her adventures. Thank you so much for your contribution to Novel Food.
How odd! I grew up in Australia, where this candy is known as "honeycomb," and I've never heard the name "fairy food" before. (Though "cotton candy" is known as "fairy floss.") Wikipedia tells me it has a whole host of names, though! Fairy food, seafoam, hokey pokey, cinder toffee!
I love a good story about scary fae, so I will be looking up the Iron King. :)
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