Make it sweet; for holiday gifts or a special treat, homemade candy is irresistible

Sunset, Dec, 2003 by Charity Ferreira, Kate Washington

Is there anything more delicious, more purely self-indulgent, than a square of dark, creamy fudge or a piece of crunchy, buttery toffee? And when it's homemade, the treat is sweet indeed. This year, we're bringing back the tradition of candymaking.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

At its elemental best, most candy is nothing more than sugar and a few flavorings, transformed through sweet alchemy from a syrup base into old-time favorites like brittle, toffee, and fudge. Some simpler confections--like our white chocolate bark studded with cranberries and pistachios--require no sugar syrup or cooking at all. All our recipes and tips for making these treats have been tested by novice and experienced candymakers alike, to give you the information you need for great results.

Homemade candy is wonderful to have on hand for nibbling or offering to drop-in guests. Beautifully packaged, it also makes a personal gift for the holidays: Five-spice cashew brittle, rich maple fudge, or crunchy peppermint bark will inspire visions of sugarplums for everyone on your list.

Candy basics

Before you begin, read the recipe all the way through and assemble all the tools and ingredients you will need. Many candy recipes require that you act quickly once the sugar syrup reaches the desired temperature. Use care when working with hot sugar syrup, as it can cause severe burns.

Choose the right pans. Heavy-bottomed stainless steel pans are best for cooking sugar mixtures. Thin, light-weight pans tend to conduct heat--and cook sugar syrup--unevenly.

Use a candy thermometer when called for. They measure temperatures up to 400[degrees]. You'll find them in the kitchen-gadget section of many supermarkets, priced between $10 and $20.

Submerge the bottom of the thermometer completely in the sugar syrup to get an accurate reading. Using a narrow pan with tall sides makes the mixture deeper, but, if necessary, you can gently tilt a shallower pan to submerge the thermometer bottom.

Melt chocolate gently for best results. If chocolate gets too hot, it may not set properly and will develop "bloom" (white streaks) on the surface when stored. Stirring chopped chocolate in a pan or bowl over hot, not simmering, water maintains an even, low temperature, resulting in glossy, firmly set chocolate.