1. Adapted by Dr. Vivian G. Baglien

2. GOALS  The goal in candy making is to control the way these individual molecules come back together again to form a new crystalline structure and size particular to the type of candy you want.  Generally, recipe ingredients and procedures are specifically designed to control the reformation and size of sugar crystals.  This results in two categories of candy: Crystalline and Non-crystalline. Here candy can range from the soft textures of caramels and fudges, where crystallization is minimized, to hard candies where crystallization results in a desired grainy or crystalline structure. This does not occur as smoothly as one hopes because of the nature of sugar crystals. Crystalline and Non-crystalline CATEGORIES OF CANDY  Crystalline  Ranges from soft textures of caramels and fudges  Non-crystalline Hard candies.

3.  The white stuff we know as sugar is sucrose, a molecule composed  12 atoms of carbon,  22 atoms of hydrogen,  11 atoms of oxygen (C 12 H 22 O 11 ).  Like all compounds made from these three elements, sugar is a carbohydrate. It’s found naturally in most plants, but especially in sugarcane and sugar beets — hence their names.

4. What two carbohydrates link together to form sucrose or what we call table sugar? Sucrose, for example, is made up of two simpler sugars stuck together: glucose and fructose.

5. Special properties of sugar: Sugar has special properties which make it an ideal candidate for candy recipes Sugar crystals remain solid at room temperature. When sugar crystals are dissolved in water, the first step in candy making, the sugar goes into solution. It is then heated and boiled to certain temperatures

6.  You are making chemical changes or reactions in the sugar;  the heat breaks the crystals apart into molecules which at some point will come back together again as a sugar crystal as the sugar syrup cools.  The fact that it solidifies into crystals after heating, is extremely important in candy making.  Fudge Making

7. A Candy Thermometer is the most accurate way of testing the temperature of the sugar solutionCandy Thermometer

8. HEAT  Even without heat, crystallized sugar will dissolve in water. Up to a certain point, that is.  The general principle with candy making is that at a particular temperature, a given solvent (in this case, water) can dissolve only so much of a particular solute (sugar), reaching its saturation point where no more sugar can be dissolved.  In other words, sugar crystals added to the solution after saturation will just sink to the bottom of the container.  But heating the sugar/water solution will increase the amount of sugar that can be dissolved. WATER  sugar dissolves more readily in hot liquids than in cold  heat disrupts sugar's crystalline structure, breaking apart the sugar's molecules which allow more of it to dissolve in the water.

9. Saturation of the sugar solution  Continued affects of heat:  As boiling point increases, the concentration of solute (sugar) continues to increase.  You can use the temperature of the boiling syrup to tell when enough water has boiled away to give the syrup the right ratio of sugar to water for each candy recipe.temperature  For example, the boiling point of water is usually 212 degrees F.  However, when the liquid is around 70 percent sugar, the boiling temperature rises to 230 degrees. As the sugar solution continues to be heated, the sugar's molecules move faster and become farther apart The solution to dissolves more and more sugar molecules, until it boils. The sugar solution turns into a clear, syrupy substance, called a sugar syrup. Sugar syrups have various other uses than in candy making such as soaking cakes, glazing baked goods, poaching or preserving fruit, adding to frostings, etc.

10. Simple Sugar Syrup  Thin (3 parts water to 1 part sugar)  Medium (2 parts water to 1 part sugar)  Heavy (1 part water to 1 part sugar)  Depending on the thickness, sugar syrups have various uses including soaking cakes (such as babas), glazing baked goods, poaching or preserving fruit, adding to frostings, etc. Also called "Simple Syrup", sugar syrup is a solution of sugar(s). Sugar syrup can be made in various densities:

11.  As the solution is heated to above the boiling point, the solution becomes supersaturated.  More water evaporates and the concentration of sugar crystals to water increases.  The solution has a delicate balance of just enough sugar molecules and just enough heat to keep them dissolved, but it is in an unstable state.  The sugar molecules will begin to crystallize back into a solid at the least provocation and disruption of heat.  Stirring or jostling of any kind or introducing a new sugar crystal from an outside source into syrup, can cause the sugar molecules to begin recrystallizing to return to their original, dry and stable crystalline state.

12.  The magic in making candy is learning when to stir the sugar syrup and knowing when to stop it from cooking.  Sometimes you can see unwanted crystallization happening before your eyes, for example when the sugar syrup becomes a stiff and crackled mess in your pot upon cooling, ruining the whole batch.  Sometimes you don't always see that unwanted crystallization has occurred until it's too late.

13.  When boiling stops and the cooling process starts, if you've done everything right, the syrup continues to cool as a supersaturated solution and you get the recrystallization you want  the size is also influenced by stirring, kneading or beating.  At a higher temperature the rate of crystallization is slow and becomes more rapid at a lower temperature.

14.  Soft-Ball Stage 235° F–240° F /118° C–120° C sugar concentration: 85% Fudge, Fondant, pralines, pâte â bombe or Italian meringue, peppermint creams and classic buttercreams Soft ball: A small amount of syrup dropped into chilled water forms a soft, flexible ball, but flattens like a pancake after a few moments in your hand.

15.  Firm-Ball Stage 245° F–250° F /123° C–125° C sugar concentration: 87% Caramel candies Firm ball: Forms a firm ball that will not flatten when removed from water, but remains malleable and will flatten when squeezed.

16.  Hard-Ball Stage 250° F–265° F /125° C–133° C sugar concentration: 92% Nougat, marshmallows, gummies, divinity, and rock candy Hard ball: At this stage, the syrup will form thick, "ropy" threads as it drips from the spoon. The sugar concentration is rather high now, which means there’s less and less moisture in the sugar syrup. Syrup dropped into ice water may be formed into a hard ball which holds its shape on removal. The ball will be hard, but you can still change its shape by

17.  Soft-Crack Stage 270° F–290° F /135° C–145° C sugar concentration: 95% Taffy Soft Crack: As the syrup reached soft-crack stage, the bubbles on top will become smaller, thicker, and closer together. At this stage, the moisture content is low. Syrup dropped into ice water separates into hard but pliable threads. They will bend slightly before breaking.

18.  Hard-Crack Stage 300° F–310° F /150° C–155° C sugar concentration: 99% Butterscotch, brittles Hard Crack: The hard-crack stage is the highest temperature you are likely to see specified in a candy recipe. At these temperatures, there is almost no water left in the syrup. Syrup dropped into ice water separates into hard, brittle threads that break when bent.

19. As retrieved on December 6, 2010 from http://baking911.com/learn/bakedgoods/candy/preparation-methodhttp://baking911.com/learn/bakedgoods/candy/preparation-method As retrieved on December 6, 2010 from http://kitchenscience.sci-toys.com/solutionshttp://kitchenscience.sci-toys.com/solutions