ISO info on using/not using paraffin wax in candy

[LEFSElover]

is it really necessary to add to holiday candy's with chocolate in them?
can it be bought at a regular supermarket?
what's wrong if you omit it?
how good for a person is it to eat parafin?

 

[kitchenelf]

is it really necessary to add to holiday candy's with chocolate in them?
can it be bought at a regular supermarket?
what's wrong if you omit it?
how good for a person is it to eat parafin?

I've learned this from my many years of baking - please pay careful attention! I will answer in order:

I don't know
I don't know
I don't know
I don't know

Alix will not dispute that these are my legitimate answers!!!!

BUT, on that note, I can only assume they pull things together, make them glossy, and don't hurt anything!

 

[kitchenelf]

Wow - by the times of our posts I answered before you ever asked the question

 

[GB]

Hey that is a cool trick KE. I think you just discovered time travel.

As for the wax...It gives it a nice, glossy finish, a harder shell and helps it remain solid at room temperature. It also keeps the chocolate "dippable" for a longer period of time and yes it is safe to eat as long as it is the edible type.

 

[candelbc]

Pro's will generally "temper" the chocolate to make it set and dippable. That being said, I happen to be a Wax-user...

-Brad

 

[LEFSElover]

Hey that is a cool trick KE. I think you just discovered time travel. As for the wax...It gives it a nice, glossy finish, a harder shell and helps it remain solid at room temperature. It also keeps the chocolate "dippable" for a longer period of time and yes it is safe to eat as long as it is the edible type.

or you were typing as the GMT was changing daylight savings, guess it happened while I slept

 

[texasgirl]

It also helps when the middles of candy are not solid. I have on that I make that most people call Martha Washingtons. Once the filling has been dipped and sets out a little while and you bite into it, it's kinda gooey. If not for the parafin wax, it would not hold it's shape, believe me, I omitted the wax one time. Not a pretty thing.

 

[Michael in FtW]

Looks like everything but this has been answered .... yes, you should be able to find it in a regular grocery store. If it's not with the baking ingredients look in the canning supplies section. Gulfwax is the only one I remember ever seeing, but there may be other brands.

One word of caution: melt it in a double boiler and don't overheat it or it will catch fire - just like grease in a skillet!

 

[LEFSElover]

One word of caution: melt it in a double boiler and don't overheat it or it will catch fire - just like grease in a skillet!

oh gee yeah! now I'm really wantin to go buy that stuff.
thanks MIDFW and all who helped me here.

 

[Caine]

how good for a person is it to eat parafin?

Not good at all. They will begin to wax poetic, which will soon make you crazy.

 

[LEFSElover]

Not good at all. They will begin to wax poetic, which will soon make you crazy.

too late, already there