Holiday Sponge Candy
A classic old farm recipe for the holiday season!
Ingredients
Step One
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1 cup granulated sugar white or light brown
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
Step Two
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Line a 9x13 baking sheet with parchment. Your pan needs to have sides, so the candy does not spread over the edge when poured.
- Place your candy thermometer on the side of a medium saucepan, making sure the tip of the thermometer does not touch the bottom of the pan.
- Measure out all of your ingredients before you begin as the addition of ingredients in step two happens fast.
- Add the 1 cup corn syrup, 1 cup sugar and 1 Tablespoon vinegar to the pot and bring to a boil on medium heat, stirring frequently.
- When your liquid mixture reaches 285 degrees, move the pan to a cold burner and immediately stir in your remaining ingredients (vanilla and baking soda) until JUST incorporated. It is very important that you do not overmix.
- Your mixture will bubble up quickly when the baking soda and vinegar meet. Do not keep mixing as you will knock out the air bubbles.
- Quickly pour your bubbling mixture onto your parchment lines pan and let sit for about 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, lift your parchment paper to free the candy and break into chunks. Dropping the candy can help. Also hitting with a rolling pin.
Notes
The key note is to not overmix your ingredients in that second step. The finished product will be gummy like taffy instead of light like a honeycomb.
Once your candies are broken into pieces, you can dip them in melted dark chocolate for a beautiful golden taste treat.