These Super-Light Sweet Treats Make Delicious Gifts
Something about the holidays makes people give each other sweet homemade treats. Even the most evasive of us among us flock to them to make seasonal pastries. If you have that kind of momentum, but you are, like me, quite lazy, I have good news: we have a lot of treats that you can make with your own hands, with the necessary effort, ranging from “falling off a log” to ” wow, I have to love this person well. ” Little.”
Things are sweet but not sweet
I say this with great love, but tinctures are the greatest gift scam of all time. Fancy flavored sugars and syrups always seem more complex than they are, especially when placed in fancy containers. Making vanilla sugar is as easy as scraping the beans into a couple of cups of table sugar, stirring to distribute, and then burying the halved beans. Close the container, let it sit for at least a week, and then give it to a friend. (Yes, and if you happen to find an off-season stone fruit, use the peel to make peach-flavored sugar .)
If you’d like to bring joy with peppermint, candy can help. To make candy syrup – perfect for cocktails, cocoa and holiday mochas – simply break eight candies into two-inch pieces, then add them to a saucepan with two glasses of sugar and one glass of water. Dissolve over medium heat until all forms of sugar are melted and syrup boils. Let it simmer for a few minutes, remove from heat and transfer to nice jars when it cools down. If you consider yourself a real Christmas con man, you can simply break a few candies, pour the resulting powder into cans and pass it off as fancy ” candy dust ” that you can sprinkle with cakes and cocktail glasses. However, be careful, unless you present this “gift” with great confidence, your intention is definitely “Um, these are just a few cheap candies that you dropped.”
Apart from seasonal flavors, we have other options as well. What is your favorite cocktail lovers deserves as a super-strong ginger syrup without cooking, so and truly excellent homemade grenadine , and I’m sure a star baker in your life would really appreciate this golden syrup, made their hands (so that they can bake you a truly great cake).
Things that can hardly be called candy
Last year I brought you some good news about haystacks , but maybe not everyone got the note, so I’ll repeat it again. A haystack is a two-ingredient confection made with only toffee chunks and crispy Chow mein noodles. You simply melt 11 ounces of the former in the microwave for 30 seconds, then mix the crunchy sticks until they are completely covered. Transfer the spoons of the mixture to waxed paper, parchment paper, or a silicone baking mat and leave them alone until they harden. If you want to add more ingredients, I’ve heard some people add peanut butter, cereal, pretzels, or chopped nuts. I didn’t do it, but I bet everything is very good.
While the lack of a candy thermometer may limit your options, that doesn’t mean that fictional fondant – or at least a candy-like candy store – isn’t available to you. While not a real fudge, this condensed milk treat works best and can be cooked entirely in the microwave. ( See the complete tutorial here , and if you decide you love microwave candy, try these super-light caramels .) Also, if you don’t want to heat anything at all, mix the shredded cookies and shredded nuts with at least a quarter cup. alcohol to make drunk balls, such as gin or rum balls .
Finally, let’s not forget about our multicooker, which makes some truly excellent candied nuts . While this recipe requires most of the ingredients at this point – and a little beating of eggs – almost everything is mixed together in a multicooker (or multicooker-like device), and you spend most of the time waiting, either preparing the multicooker or setting the nuts.
Things that require attention to detail
While I’ve never met someone who isn’t fascinated by haystacks, I understand that some of you might feel a little more ambitious. At its simplest, we have a bark that can be made with or without peppermint . The hardest part of making the crust is melting the chocolate without setting, and this can be accomplished by making sure your microwave-safe steamer or bowl is completely dry. The next thing is to spread the melted chocolate on the parchment and sprinkle it on top with something I’m sure you can do.
If you do not mind a lot of clean orange peel and boil these many times, I would advise you to try your hand in a sunny orangette , serving, which our editor on health and science prepares every year with great enthusiasm. According to Beth herself, “Orangetta is unusual, but not picky. You will spend several hours on this, but you will never be a slave to a thermometer or a clock. It also has only two ingredients: oranges and granulated sugar. ” Since one of my hobbies is overlooking, this sounds like a doable project.
Now, if you have a friend or loved one who truly deserves a custom made candy, consider turning their favorite shake into lollipop. This requires a candy thermometer, molds, and some booze, but the recoil is pretty good. If your friend’s favorite drink is Negroni, you are very lucky because this cocktail is used for educational purposes in this lesson . (If not, don’t worry, there are tips on how to turn any cocktail into candy, so feel free to dream the size of a bar cart.)