Last weekend I tried making a sugar syrup-y affair to put some pistachios in so that I could get a final mixture that I could form into a roll (Lulu, if you're reading, I'm very slowly working toward getting that bourma recipe right!).
I started with a popcorn balls recipe from Joy of Cooking (thinking that had the idea about right since it was sticking stuff together with sugar syrup but keeping it all malleable enough to shape) and chose the brown sugar and butter caramel option (just because it sounded delish, to be honest, NOT because it was the most suited to my final need!)
Proceeded to handle it as instructed getting it to about somewhere midway between the soft ball and firm ball stages. When it reached the right temperature, I poured in the nuts and stirred them around to coat. For about a half-minute all looked fine, then very suddenly the texture changed dramatically with the syrup hardening onto the indivudual nuts in a matte, sugary way. The were anything but stuck together!
Was this just a case of the syrup crystallizing? Very honestly, I did use such a small pan that I didn't feel real comfortable putting the lid on to let it boil so that it washed down the sides of the pan (I was afraid it would boil over) -- was that my mistake?
I also wondered if maybe I boiled the syrup too much -- my candy thermometer seemed to 'stick' for too long at one temperature which makes me wonder if maybe it's faulty? The resulting sugar-y mess on the pistachios is, however, pretty soft, not rock hard, so that maybe isn't so likely.
Thank heavens they're still very edible, infact really nice, they're just not at all what I needed and sooner or later I need to lick this problem. Can anybody advise?
I started with a popcorn balls recipe from Joy of Cooking (thinking that had the idea about right since it was sticking stuff together with sugar syrup but keeping it all malleable enough to shape) and chose the brown sugar and butter caramel option (just because it sounded delish, to be honest, NOT because it was the most suited to my final need!)
Proceeded to handle it as instructed getting it to about somewhere midway between the soft ball and firm ball stages. When it reached the right temperature, I poured in the nuts and stirred them around to coat. For about a half-minute all looked fine, then very suddenly the texture changed dramatically with the syrup hardening onto the indivudual nuts in a matte, sugary way. The were anything but stuck together!
Was this just a case of the syrup crystallizing? Very honestly, I did use such a small pan that I didn't feel real comfortable putting the lid on to let it boil so that it washed down the sides of the pan (I was afraid it would boil over) -- was that my mistake?
I also wondered if maybe I boiled the syrup too much -- my candy thermometer seemed to 'stick' for too long at one temperature which makes me wonder if maybe it's faulty? The resulting sugar-y mess on the pistachios is, however, pretty soft, not rock hard, so that maybe isn't so likely.
Thank heavens they're still very edible, infact really nice, they're just not at all what I needed and sooner or later I need to lick this problem. Can anybody advise?
if truth be told).
