My mom used to make these for us and it didn't take long for us to eat them all. This is her recipe and one that I am glad that I have. I made these for the first time myself this Christmas and they were such a hit I have made them several times since. I have tried a few different things with this recipe, but always go back to the original.
Even people who don't like black licorice LOVE these caramels.
It is important that you have a candy temometer. The first time I made these I didn't have one and thought that 'firm ball stage' meant that it would start to look like a firm ball. Wrong.
In a large heavy sauce pan add:
2 cups white sugar
1 -11oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 cups light corn syrup
1 cup butter (I usually use 1/2 marg - 1/2 butter)
1/4 tsp salt
Cook and stir over medium heat. Make sure that you scrape the bottom of the pot because it will start to burn.
Heat until you get to what is called firm ball stage. (**Please see note at bottom of post for temp details). As I metioned above the tempurature is important. If it doesn't get to the right temp it will be too soft and won't really hold its shape and will start to stick to the wax paper you wrap them in. But if it gets too hot they will be too hard and will eventually become rock candy. Which may not be bad if you wanted to make hard candy or suckers.
Remove from heat and stir in ;
3/4 tsp Oil of Anise (you can get this at a health food store)
3/4 tsp black food paste (you can get this at a craft store - Michaels has it)
Pour into a buttered 8 or 9 inch pan. You should butter your pan before you start cooking. And really butter it. Make a thick layer of butter. Pam won't work.
Cool throughly. I usually leave it overnight.
Turn out pan and cut or cut into strips while in pan.
Cut into 1 inch pieces and wrap in wax paper.
I also usually get hte wax paper ready before. I cut a piece about 6 inches and then cut that into 3 peices.
I did mention that I have tried different variations of the recipe. The basic recipe is the same I just changed the flavoring. At the health store you can get several other flavors. So far I have tried peppermint, maple, coconut, and root beer. All were good. I would add closer to 1 tsp of maple flavor.
Also you can't use extracts. It has to be the oil flavors. One more thing, is that other food paste colors don't work either. They end up black anyways.
This time I tried maple.
TEMPURATURE NOTE
** Firm ball stage is 244-248 degrees F.
But this temp will changed based on the altitude of where you live. You will need to adjust your candy tempuratures based on what your boiling point is.
Boiling point is 212 degrees. To determine your boiling point, bring a pot of water to a rolling boil for 10 minutes. Stick in your candy thermometer and let the temp register and determine what the water temp is. Then depending on where it is in comparison to 212 degrees adjust your candy temp.
For example. When I first started making the candy I lived on a lower elevation and my candy temp was 244. The candy always turned out perfect at this temp. But then I moved to the mountains and the altitude changed and therefore so did my boiling point. I did the boiling point test and got a temp of 205 degrees. So I adjusted the candy temp down to 237 degrees and the candy turns out great. If I were to let it go to 244, it would be rock solid. (even 240 is a little too firm)
So before cooking your candy, figure out your boiling point and then adjust your candy temp accordingly.
Don't be discouraged if it takes a few trys to get it right. This candy is so yummy it is worth the effort.
