Maple Leaf Candies

While we were in the Cape, in every shop that we went in, I noticed Si stopping to look at these weird maple leaf candies. I don't think that I'd ever seen them before, but I sure know a lot about them now. I decided that since the weather is chilled, and fall seems to be nipping at our heels, I would try out this recipe for Maple Leaves candy, and it turned out fantastic.

I made two batches, following the online recipe. I made some changes for my second batch, and I'll spell out the recipe, so no need to open a new tab!

For your benefit, I've laid out the ingredients, but usually while cooking, you can find me stirring with one hand, the other hand in the refrigerator, and a foot opening a cupboard. Here are my starting tools and ingredients:

Also, prior to starting working, I always put on the lovely apron that Si got me for Valentines day. Aprons, while they may seem old fashioned, are great multi-taskers. They keep your clothes clean, and I usually keep a wooden spoon as well as a tea towel in the apron pockets. Useful!

Alright, onto the actual cooking. Spray your candy mold with a cooking spray to ensure that the candies don't stick, and add two (2) cups of maple syrup to a saucepan. (Be sure to use pure maple syrup. Most table syrup contains less than 2% maple syrup.)

Turn the maple syrup pan up to medium heat, and let it get warm. Add one (1) tablespoon of butter to the mixture, and stir in to include. Insert candy thermometer in the mixture, and bring the mix up to 240 degrees.

Once the mixture hits 240, I found the easiest way to get the perfect mix is to immediately pour it into the measuring cup - please be careful here. Following pouring the mix into the measuring cup, I immediately whipped the mixture with the end of a wooden spoon.

When the mixture starts to thicken slightly, pour into the molds.

Let it sit for a little bit, and then pop them out of the molds. Voila!