By: BRIANNAH PERRY
Staff Writer
Ingredients
- Cooking spray, for baking sheets
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1/2 cup water, divided
- 1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
- 1 teaspoon red gel food coloring, more as needed
- 1 teaspoon white gel food coloring, optional
Directions
- Gather the ingredients. Spray 2 rimmed baking sheets with cooking spray and set aside. Position a rack in the upper and lower third of the oven and heat to 200 F.
- Combine sugar, corn syrup, and 1/4 cup of water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir with a silicone spatula until the sugar dissolves. Pour the remaining 1/4 cup water into a small bowl and use it to wet a pastry brush.
- Use the wet brush to wash any sugar crystals off the side of the pan. Do not stir syrup.
4. When the syrup comes to a boil, insert a candy thermometer and continue to cook, without stirring, until the thermometer registers 285 F. At this point, the candy will have reached the soft-crack stage.
5. Remove from heat. Let bubbles subside, then stir in peppermint extract. Pour about half of the syrup onto one prepared baking sheet and place it in the oven. Stir red food coloring into the remaining syrup. If necessary, add more coloring to achieve a vibrant shade of red.
6. Pour candy onto the remaining baking sheet and allow it to sit briefly until it forms a “skin.” Spray a bench scraper or metal spatula with cooking spray, and use the tool to “knead” the candy. Flatten the candy, then fold it back over itself. Repeat this process until the candy is significantly cooler, 1 to 2 minutes.
7. Using heat-resistant gloves, stretch the candy into a long rope, then fold the rope in half and twist the candy until it melts back into itself.
8. Repeat this process until the candy takes on an opaque color and a satiny finish, 2 to 3 minutes. At this point, the candy will be warm—you should have some trouble pulling and folding it.
9. Stretch candy into a rope, about 2 inches in diameter, then return it to the oven, where it will stay warm and pliable. Remove another baking sheet from the oven. Knead the white food coloring into the candy, if using.
Pull and fold the candy in the same fashion as the red batch until it becomes opaque, glossy, and difficult to pull.
10. Stretch it into a second log, about 2 inches in diameter. Remove red candy from the oven. Cut a 2-inch segment from the white log and another 2-inch segment from the red log. Put the remaining candy back in the oven.
11. Squeeze 2 segments together until they form a two-toned log. Stretch candy again. This step will determine the thickness of your candy canes—you can make them thinner (with a 1/4-inch diameter) or thicker (with a 1/2-inch diameter). When you’re happy with the candy’s width, twist the rope to form those distinctive candy stripes.
12. Oil or use cooking spray on a pair of cooking shears and cut candy into smaller pieces. Again, you can choose to make long or short candy canes. A 7-inch piece of candy will yield a medium-sized candy cane.