On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 1297

Candy canes and after-dinner mints are common examples of such confections An opaque but satin-or silk-like sheen results when the cooled but malleable syrup is repeatedly pulled and folded back onto itself This working incorporates some air bubbles, and these in turn encourage the formation of tiny sucrose crystals Both bubbles and crystals interrupt the candy structure, giving it a crisp, light quality and making it easier to break between the teeth (See “Sugar Work” below.) Cotton Candy Cotton candy or candy floss is a very different kind of hard candy, filaments of sugar glass so fine that they have the consistency of a cotton ball and dissolve away the moment they touch the moist mouth Cotton candy is made in a special machine that melts the sugar and forces it through tiny spinnerets into the air, where it instantly solidifies into threads It was introduced at the 1904 World’s Fair in St Louis Brittles Brittles are also cooked to a very low moisture content, around 2%, but unlike the other hard candies, they include butter and milk solids, and usually pieces of nuts They’re thus opaque with fat droplets and protein particles, and brown in color thanks to extensive browning reactions between sugars and proteins Baking soda is often added to brittle syrups after they’re cooked, for several reasons: alkaline conditions favor browning reactions, help neutralize some of the acids produced thereby, and the bubbles of carbon dioxide that result from this neutralization become trapped in the candy, giving it a lighter texture The original French praline was a brittle made with almonds (The modern New Orleans praline is soft and chewy, more like a caramel, and contains New-World pecans instead of almonds.) Caramel, Caramels, Caramelization ... moisture content, around 2%, but unlike the other hard candies, they include butter and milk solids, and usually pieces of nuts They’re thus opaque with fat droplets and protein particles, and brown in color thanks to... reactions between sugars and proteins Baking soda is often added to brittle syrups after they’re cooked, for several reasons: alkaline conditions favor browning reactions, help neutralize some of the. .. was a brittle made with almonds (The modern New Orleans praline is soft and chewy, more like a caramel, and contains New-World pecans instead of almonds.) Caramel, Caramels, Caramelization