Receipt shock

So far, I have found three sources that discuss the grades of chocolate used in candy making.  I have created a spreadsheet to keep track of chocolate brand recommendations.  Anybody can see that chart at this link (which should open in a new window).  So far, four brands come out on top:  Callebaut, Scharffen Berger, Valrhona, and Guittard.  There is actually a company that carries all of these brands.  It is Chocosphere (which should open in a new window).  Although the price per pound is very reasonable, one has to purchase 2.2 pounds of each different chocolate.  Depending on the brand, there are as many as seven different chocolates.  That means I would have to spend over $300 just to try all the type of all these brands.  That is why I am writing this blog right now; I am hoping it will break the logjam in my head so I can make a decision as to what to purchase.

Book remarks

Okay, I just scanned through the table of contents for Seventy-Five Receipts for Pastry, Cakes, and Sweetmeats (1832).  While there are many cake (including cheesecake), pie, pudding, and jelly recipes, there are no specific candy-making recipes.

Definitions, definitions

Wow.  Finding out what something is called can be almost as hard as figuring out how to make something.  Here are some terms I have been researching in order to determine whether or not they fall within the Victorian (1830-1900) period.  As some chocolate sites have stated, there is no governing body to make sure the names are used correctly.  Therefore, some misuse has muddied the definitions for certain candy terms.  Here, then, is some of what I have discovered.

Bon-bons are technically a filling "the size of a dollop" that is coated with hard chocolate.
Praline is a bon-bon filled with a nut mixture.
Truffle is a bon-bon filled with a ganache mixture, although the outer coating could be something other than hard chocolate, such as cocoa powder.  This, by the way, is known as a Swiss truffle.
A European truffle is made with syrup, cocoa powder, milk powder, fats, and other ingredients to form an emulsion.
An American truffle is a mixture of chocolates with butterfat and, in some cases, hardened coconut oil.

The bon-bon was created in Italy around 1865.  The praline was created in Belgium around 1912.  The truffle was created in France in 1895.  So, what does all of this mean?

Small chocolate-coated candies existed as early as 1865.  To this point in my research, however, I have not come across any specific Victorian techniques or recipes for dipping chocolate candies.

Books, books, and more books.

I have just spent about the last 2 hours going through links on the internet to download about 40 Victorian-era cookbooks available as on-line facsimiles or pdf files.  The downloads include Art of Confectionery (1866), Candy Making at Home (1884), Complete Confectioner (1844), a different Complete Confectioner (1849), Pastrycook & Confectioner's Guide (1889), and Treaties on the Art of Boiling Sugar (1865).  And to think, I was just trying to do a little research on chocolate truffles.

Merry Christmas to Me.

I just paid my spring 2012 tuition, and it came to about $1000 less than I thought it would, so I decided to treat myself.  I went ahead and ordered some enameled cast iron kettles.  I paid $40 for a 3-quart Wolfgang Puck kettle and another $51 for a 4-1/2-quart FancyCook (which I have never heard of).  We shall see how they last.  Now, I just want to find a 1-1/2-quart saucepan, and I think I will have all the candy-making pans I need.

Acid Drops

I have come across a period recipe for "Acid Drops".  These require tartaric acid, which the local grocery store does not carry.  Between looking for chocolate and other ingredients, I should start a business that specializes in premium and weird candy ingredients.  Anywho, my internet search says tartaric acid is available as a home brewing supply.  Now another decision: Do I just buy from the internet and hope the post office doesn't screw up or do I look around town for a home brewer.

Useless book

I bought The Victorian Kitchen Book of Candies and Confections in order to do research, as it claimed to "reveal the recipes and techniques perfected by the Victorian cook."  Well, almost nothing in this book has anything to do with the Victorian cook.  Nearly all the recipes are modern redactions, and very little is said of actual Victorian technique.  This turned out to be a nearly useless book when it comes to researching Victorian candy making.  Good think I paid less than $1 for it.

Decisions, decisions

I am looking for a slightly smaller granite pan in which to make candy.  I have a 6 quart, but I want something for making smaller batches.  Macy's has an enameled 2-3/4 quart for $44.03, but there is a 4-1/4 quart on eBay for $51.52.  I know the difference is only $7.50, but which pan is going to be better for my purposes.  The eBay pan has 4-1/2" sides; Macy's does not list the dimensions of its pan, and I can't find it elsewhere on the internet.  What to do?  What to do?

According to Macy's, they have it at a mall store about 10 miles from here.  Now, do I take the time to go look at it?  Decisions, decisions.

Well, I came to a decision.  I have a total of $140 to spend on this stuff.  I would rather buy ingredients and work on technique until I can afford the kettles.  Besides, I can keep looking at thrift stores, flea markets, and antique shops for the right stuff.

Chocolate Search 2

I was looking around for where to buy my chocolates when I came on a page at About.com that describes the various types of chocolates (semi-sweet, etc).  It also states that couverture is the chocolate type used by confectioners because of the high cocoa butter content.  So, that pretty much means I should be looking for couverture chocolates.

Chocolate Search

Well, school is ending Sunday, so I will be able to dedicate my study time to Victorian candy research, including making stuff!  In view of that, I started searching for chocolate.  For this break at work, therefore, I am going to go looking for info on high-quality candy-making chocolates.

Okay.  According to Gourmet Candy Maker, the best chocolate is couverture (called "pure chocolate" on this website) by Callebaut, Sharfen Berger, Veliche, and Valrhona.  The next grade down is premium chocolate (or "real chocolate" as they call it) made by Merckens, Peters made by Nestle, Guittard and Ghiradelli.  The remaining grades in descending order are a regular candy bar, a baking bar, baker's chocolate (not really made for candy), chocolate chips, and coco buttons.  At lunch, I am going to search for a source for the pure and real chocolates mentioned by this website.

A further search revealed a list of recommended chocolates at About.com.  They are Belcolade, Blommer, Cacao Barry, Callebaut, Carma, El Rey, Felchin, Ghiradelli, Guittard, Lindt, Scharffen Berger, Valrhona, Van Leer, and Wilbur.  Only 5 of these are also on the Gourmet Candy Maker list.

Not abondoned; just busy!

It has been over 3 weeks since my last post?  Dang.  I wanted to do better than this.  Anyhow, my two jobs and full-time school are pretty much taking up my time right now.  Plus, I am still waiting for another book to arrive and the temperature to drop low enough for me to play with food.  I did, however, find out that the local Sam's Club has Ghiridelli (sp?) candy making chocolates!  I never thought of Sam's club as the place to get chocolate making ingredients.  I may have to rethink that.  Well, I just wanted to get something posted so anybody searching knows I am still here.

It's been a week?!?!

Can't believe I haven't posted anything new for a week.  Well, there really isn't much new.  I bought a new thermometer for my apartment, and yes, my apartment is actually 78 degrees.  Now I have to decide how much to spend for cooling.  I still need to try a box fan in the window to see if there is any impact.

School and life have been taking up most of my time.  I just didn't want folks to think I had abandoned this.

Huzzah, or the Victorian equivalent!

I was just researching granite saucepans, because it would be cool to do the recipes just like the Victorians.  Well, my research indicates that granite saucepan is not a saucepan made of granite.  It is what they called enameled cast iron due to the speckled patterns in the enamel that made it look granite-like.  I thought enameled cast iron might not hold up to the high temperatures of candy making, so I didn't even think of using my enameled cast iron.  That means, I HAVE THE RIGHT PAN!  Okay, it isn't a saucepan; it's a casserole.  However, I should be able to use it just like a saucepan.  It will just be very difficult to pour.  That means I am one step closer to actual candy making!  Now, on to "how to cool my apartment" problem.

Getting busy . . .

Wow, my life is getting busy all the sudden.  I am now the treasurer of two different college clubs.  One of them keeps asking me to go to more and more events.  At least I get a free dinner out of one of them.  I've just discovered my cost accounting will be more difficult to get an A in than I previously believed.  I am still looking for a job to pay for food and a proper church to join.  On top of that, I am involved in court cases involving bankruptcy and an ex-wife.

Why am I putting that in a Victorian candy making blog?  It is just to say my entries may not be as frequent as you or I would like them to be.  I have not abandoned the project.  From time to time, my focus may be drawn away.

Be that as it may, here is where things stand right now regarding candy.  I am in the process of downloading a treasure trove of on-line historic cookbooks, including The Complete Confectioner from the 1850s.  I have read two histories of candy with some fascinating results; and from these, I am putting together a candy timeline, a candy temperature chart, and a future reading list.  I still have not found a sugar boiling pan I am happy with.  From all the texts I have read, the pan needs to have a heavy bottom, to be nonreactive, and to have sides at least 4-5 inches high.  I will probably go to the local restaurant supply store soon to see if I can find anything.  I also need to stop at the Home Depot to see if I can purchase some marble scrap as my cooling surface.  My apartment still is too hot to make candy.  I am beginning to wonder if my thermometer is not functioning properly.  I will stop at the Bed, Bath, and Beyond on Saturday to get a new one.  If that still shows my apartment to be 78°F, I will next test a box fan to see if that lowers the temperature.  I have recipes in the waiting for molasses candy and barley sugar.  I found a reference to the use of "perlimpinpin" in barley sugar during the 18th century.  "Perlimpinpin", as far as I can tell, is a French term meaning fairy dust, magic cure, or false medicine (snake oil), depending on the source, although there is a French company that sells a spice blend called "poudre de perlimpinpin."  I am still trying to locate a recipe for this spice blend.

As you can see, I have been busy with everything.  Now, I just have to decide what I like doing and limit my activities to those things.

Chow for now.

PS:  Don't forget about my Suits and Soups Drive, which you can donate to by clicking here.

Molasses more sticky than I thought.

Who would have thunk the subject of molasses would be so sticky to unravel.

My first problem is the recipes.  One calls for "fine" molasses.  Another asks for "good" molasses.  Yet another requires "Porto Rico" (their spelling, not mine) molasses.  I wasn't prepared to have to figure out differences in molasses, so off to another search on Google . . .

Okay.  According to what I've found, "good" and "fine" are not grades of molasses.  Molasses is made during three different processings.  There is first-process, second-process, and third-process.  During each processing cycle, more sugar is removed, so the product becomes more bitter.  The first-process molasses is also called light.  The second-process is also referred to as medium or dark.  The third-process molasses is known in the United States as bootstrap molasses.  There is also something British called treacle, a refined molasses from the Victorian era which is sweeter and more mellow in flavor than molasses.  Sorghum is a syrup made from grains rather than grass, so it is technically not molasses.  Taking all of this into account, I am going to define "good" and "fine" as the higher grades.  Therefore, I wanted a first-process (fine) or second-process (good).  Sooner or later, I will work with treacle, if I can find it.

Something I did not know about molasses, though.  Although all its calories come from carbs, like sugar, molasses is nutritious.  It is high in minerals, such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron, selenium, and copper.  All the metals a growing steampunk needs.  It also contains uridine, which has been scientifically shown to help fight depression.  Throughout history, molasses has been used to cure everything from arthritis to gray hair.  Suddenly, molasses candy is sounding very appealing.


Next, I had to figure out which brands are which process.  Grandma's Molasses comes in two types:  Original and Robust.  Their website says Original is pure cane juice.  This means it is really not a molasses at all.  Robust is a blend of first-process molasses.  The only other brand I can find in the U.S. is Brer Rabbit.  They have mild (first-process), full (second-process), and bootstrap.  Amazon has 337 listings for molasses, including 5-gallon buckets and molasses dog biscuits.

So, off to the grocery store I went in search of molasses.  My local big-box grocer is King Soopers (owned by Kroeger).  They had a 12 fl. oz. jar of Grandma's Original for $3.99.  I felt that was too expensive, so I checked the Dollar Tree.  They did not have any molasses.  I next checked the Mexican supermarket, Rancho Liborio.  They did not have any molasses.  I checked the Safeway, they had Grandma's for $3.99 and Brer Rabbit for $3.59.  I was still not tempted to buy at those prices.  My next stop was WalMart.  They had the Grandma's Original for only $2.50 a jar.  This is the first thing I have found at WalMart that actually made it worth the travel time.

I am now in possession of all the ingredients to make molasses candy.  However, it will probably be a few weeks before I make the recipe.  I am still looking for a good heavy-bottom kettle, and I have to try to get my apartment a little cooler.  According to what I have read, the temperature has to be 68F with a humidity under 40% to make candy.  Therefore, my next step is to find an inexpensive way to cool my apartment.

Candy and Sherlock Holmes

I was eating dinner, doing a sudoku, and watching Sherlock Holmes with Robert Downey, Jr., when a scene came up that made me actually pay attention again.  Sherlock is trying to identify a scent.  He first postulates "candy floss . . . "

Candy floss is equated to what we in the US know as cotton candy.  Apparently, this existed in the Victorian era, although the exact origin of candy floss is not well documented.  However, an American invented the first electric cotton candy machine in 1897.  The idea, therefore, must have existed prior to the invention.

Sherlock then guesses "molasses . . . "  We all pretty much know what molasses is.  It is the juice obtained from raw sugar during the refining process.  Brown sugar is white sugar with molasses added back in.

Sherlock next asks "barley sugar . . . "  Barley sugar is a candy made with barley water and sugar.  More on this later, because I intend to try to make some.

Watson finally interrupts "toffee apple."  According to what I found on the internet, candied apples have various names.  Candy apple or toffee apple is an apple coated with a hard candy shell, whereas taffy apple or caramel apple is an apple coated with a soft coating.  So, to the Victorian English, toffee was a hard candy and taffy was a soft candy.  This is why the molasses candy recipe I am going to make says it can either be allowed to simply set or can be pulled into a "taffey".  One method produces a hard candy, and pulling produces a soft candy.

Fascinating.  I never though I would get some of my research from a Sherlock Holmes movie.  It makes me want to go back and re-read all my Holmes books to see if I missed anything.

Oh, Fudge!

Okay, the history of fudge.  Darby's Famous Fudge claims the first recorded sale of fudge was in 1886.  Yeah!  Right in my Victorian timeline!  Horray!  Another website has the actual first fudge recipes!  I kind of like the story that it is called fudge because somebody "fudged" making a caramel recipe.  Now I just need to find actual Victorian fudge recipes, and this one is in.

Fannie Farmer 1896

Another find at the thrift store (this time the Association for Retarded Citizens [ARC]) was a facsimile of the 1896 Fannie Farmer cookbook.  Fannie Farmer was part of the Boston Cooking School.  Unlike Home Candy Making, this facsimile does not include the original cover or title page and, therefore, does not show the original copyright, although there is a new title page that gives the original copyright as 1896.

The first thing I noticed while going through the table of contents was a section of “ices, ice creams, and frozen desserts”.  This means by 1896 freezing was available in people’s homes (How come the first commercial refrigerator wasn’t on the market until the 1910’s?), which tends to corroborate Home Candy Making’s refrigerator claim in 1889. 

Fannie does not refer to candy making but, rather, uses the word confections.  Her confection section is 15 pages long and includes 47 recipes and/or variations.  It includes a chart of temperatures for the 11 stages of boiled sugar and talks about how professionals know by sound when syrup is at the correct temperature.  There is also a mention that fondant is the basis of all French candy.  A-ha!  I have my first connection to fancy Victorian French candy making.  Scientifically speaking, Fannie also states cream of tartar is added to prevent sugar from granulating.

This is the second cookbook I have read that uses a granite pot to make candy.  I wonder if there is some chemical reaction between granite and boiling sugar that makes these folks not worry so much about the sugar turning back into crystals, with the addition of cream of tartar, too.

Something else I just noticed.  Neither Common Sense, Home Candy Making, nor Fannie Farmer’s cookbook mentions fudge when it comes to making candy, although there seems to be a plethora of Victorian fudge recipes on-line.  Truffles were also not mentioned.  Great.  Just what I needed.  Another thing to research.  I have also noticed the use of rose as a flavoring in candies, something I would think of as very Victorian.  I can’t wait to try a few rose candies on unsuspecting students.

Well, lots of research coming up, and I still have to get my homework for the week done.  I’m going to be a very busy fellow.

Change of heart

Since I found a Library of Congress date in the Common Sense book, I thought I would check for one in the Home Candy Making book I am questioning.  There is an actually copyright date of 1889.  The reprint is supposed to be a direct scan of the original rather than a re-typeset edition.  To satisfy my morbid OCD, I will find out when copyright came into existence.  My research should determine it was between 1871 and 1889.  If that is does turn out to be the case, I will have to take the Home Candy Making book as a Victorian source.

Well, there were copyright laws in the US since 1790.  So I now have one book that was only registered with the Library of Congress and another that was copyrighted but not registered with the Library of Congress.  To hell with this; I want to make candy!

Saleratus, anyone?

I love thrift stores.  I found a facsimile of Common Sense in the Household at Goodwill, which has a Library of Congress registration date of 1871.  I got this for $1.  The original book was over 550 pages of recipes and hints, including how to get dried ink out of a white shirt.  For my purposes, I looked in the candy section.  There are only two candy recipes:  Molasses candy and sugar candy.

The first interesting thing is the use of “saleratus”.  I think this is baking soda, but I will search the Internet for a proper definition.  What this tells me, however, is that at some point written recipes switched from using the term saleratus to baking soda.  This could help with dating some recipes, like that Cornell reprint I am debating.

Here is the poop on saleratus.  It is a soda, but not sodium bicarbonate.  According to my search, it is more likely potassium bicarbonate.  Here is one site that describes it, even mentions how it was mixed with water.  The Merriam-Webster site says it is "a leavening agent consisting of potassium or sodium bicarbonate."  Joe Pastry even says somebody sold both potassium bicarbonate and sodium bicarbonate under the name saleratus.  When I make these recipes, I will try baking soda and hope it works.  Otherwise, I will need to find a seller of potassium bicarbonate.

The next interesting thing is the assumptions.  This is definitely not a beginners manual.  What exactly is “pull white” supposed to mean?  How much water is the saleratus supposed to be dissolved in before adding to the candy?  What is supposed to be used for “flavor to taste”?  Measurements are still not all exact, such as “butter the size of an egg.”  There are also no temperatures; the candy should “crisp in cold water”.  Yet another oddity, the molasses candy is stirred frequently but the sugar candy is boiled without stirring.  Does something in the molasses keep the sugar from crystallizing?

The last interesting thing is that the author calls the molasses candy “taffey” (author's quotes, not mine) when cut into squares but without pulling.

I think I am going to do the molasses candy as my first experiment.  There are only 5 ingredients with no real special equipment involved.  I know this isn’t fancy French creams, but a guy has to start somewhere.

How can candy be so complicated?

I just finished reading a book reprint from the Cornell University Library titled "Home Candy Making" with a date of 1889.  However, on page 8, it says to not store candy in the refrigerator.  A refrigerator . . . in 1889?  I had to investigate.

The history of the refrigerator is about as stable as radioactive uranium.  Depending on what website I view, refrigerators in homes existed as early as the 1830s or as late as the 1910s.  Since I could not pin that down, I went out to check on when electricity was available in homes.  The general consensus is homes did not have electricity until about the 1890s.  Another website says the refrigerator "as we know it now" did not come into existence until the 20th century, although the word refrigerator was coined in 1805.

Since the author of this book is identified as the principal of the Philadelphia Cooking School, it is possible she had access to refrigerators before most homes would have had them, as refrigeration in breweries and railroad card goes back to the 1840s.  (The refrigerator coil was actually invented in the 11th century by a Muslim scientist to aid in distillation of essential oils.)

I am now not sure if I should rely on this book as authentic.  I hope I can, because it contains some other interesting facts:  Candies were made "marble" size, candies were not dipped in chocolate, there were no thermometers used, and all colorings were homemade.  So, do I believe the Cornell University Library or put this book aside?

Lots of odds and ends . . .

My mind and research has been racing, and I wanted to take some time to get some stuff down in print.

As for the outfit question from my last post, I came up with a solution.  Johnny Depp again comes to the costume rescue:

Time to buy Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.  (Love the high-heel boots.)

Back to business.  I now have in my possession reprints of two Victorian-era cookbooks.  A candy making book written is 1889 and the Fanny Farmer Cookbook from 1898.  I'll be able to use these to get started.

Other candy books I have been reading say I need to keep my work area at 68 degrees with under 40% humidity.  During shopping on Saturday, I'm going to have to buy a couple of those thermometer/barometer thingies, one for the work area and one for the kitchen.

I also have started looking into tempering chocolate, which, by the by, was invented about the same time that French creams were invented.

I've also begun thinking about the definition of candy.  What is candy?  How does it differ from a confection?  My theory is a true candy involves boiled sugar, but I have to do more research to figure this out.

I'm hoping within a week or two to have my first cooking experiments done.

A few semi-related questions

A couple of questions came to my mind while working tonight.

1)  How would a steampunk confectioner dress?  I've seen the airship steampunk, the adventurer steampunk, the amazing weaponry steampunk, and the guy with goggles on a top hat and lots of pocket watches sewn to his clothing steampunk.  What kinds of things would a steampunk confectioner wear?

2)  What time period am I actually looking for?  I know I said "Victorian" candy, but what is "Victorian"?  Another Google search . . . the "Victorian era" was from 20 June 1837 until Queen Victoria's death on 22 January 1901.  Therefore, I need to look for candies created and/or eaten during the second part of the 19th century.  Then I need to figure out how to make them steamy.  

Looking for Mr. Victorian Goodbar (or Crunch)

Well, the first thing I needed to do in my search for Victorian candy was to find stuff on Victorian candy.  A Google search of "Victorian candy making" yielded some results.  There is Miss Mary's Gazette, which as two separate pages of Victorian recipe reprints totaling about 15 recipes.  It is enough, however, to start a database of what types of confections existed.  Squidoo has an old-fashioned candy page, including a couple of book titles, but the years listed are slightly beyond Victorian.  I also came across a Food Timeline.  It is too long to read now, so I will save it and glean what I can later.  A quick scan, though, hinted the Victorian era saw the invention of new sweets, including cream-centered French candies and milk chocolate.

Unfortunately, I am out of time.  Chow for now!