Crystallized Chocolate.—Prepare some sugar, as in the preceding articles, and pour it into the box. When a thin crust is formed on the top, make a hole on one side, and put the articles previously shaped with chocolate, as for drops, gently under, with your finger; put them in the stove to crystallize, as other articles. After the syrup is drained off, and the articles dried, they must remain until quite cold before being turned out, as the chocolate continues soft for some time.
Fruits, to Crystallize.—Have a square or round tin box, smaller at the bottom than at the top, with wire gratings made to fit at convenient distances, and having a hole with a tube or pipe to admit a cork, and drain off the syrup. Take any preserved fruits wet, drain them from the syrup, and dip them in lukewarm water to take off any syrup which may adhere to them; dry them in the closet; when dried, place them in layers on the gratings, side by side, so as not to touch each other; continue in this manner with any sort of fruit until the box is full; then fix the whole with a weight to keep it steady. Boil a sufficiency of clarified sugar to fill the box to the degree of crystallization or the blow, add a little spirit of wine, and remove it from the fire. When a thin skin has formed on the top, remove it carefully with a skimmer, and pour the sugar into the mold; place it in the closet at 90 degrees of heat, and let it remain for twelve hours, then drain off the syrup into a pan from the tube at bottom, and let it remain in the closet until quite dry; then turn them out by striking the box hard upon the table, separate them carefully, and put them in boxes with paper between each layer. When different fruits, paste, knots, etc., are mixed together indiscriminately, it is termed mile-fruit candy. Any sort of fruit or gum pastes, when thoroughly dried, may be crystallized in the same manner. When the syrup is drained off, if you find the size of the crystals is not large enough, another lot of syrup maybe prepared and poured over it; let it remain in the closet for seven or eight hours, then drain and finish as before.
If small pieces of stick are pushed down at each corner, or in any other vacancy, when you fill the mold, one of these may be withdrawn at any time you may wish to ascertain the size of the crystals, which will save the trouble of giving a second charge of sugar.
Liqueur Rings, Drops and other Devices.—These are all made after the same manner. A square box is necessary, which you fill with very dry starch powder. Sugar, powdered very fine and dried, will answer the same purpose. The depth of the box should be suited to the articles intended to be made. Shake the box, or pass a knife repeatedly through the powder, that it may be solid; smooth the surface with a straight piece of wood; have a thin piece of flat board, on which is fastened a number of little devices, about an inch asunder, and to suit the width of the box; these may be made either of lead, plaster, or wood, in the form of rings, diamonds, stars, bottles, scissors, harps, shoes, or any other form your fancy may suggest; make the impression in the powder in regular rows, until the box is full; then prepare some sugar as for the preceding articles, boiling it to the blow, and flavoring it with any sort of spirit or liqueur, such as brandy, rum, noyau, maraschino, cinnamon, rosolis, etc., coloring the syrup accordingly. It should be prepared in a pan with a lip to it.
When a thin skin has formed on the top, place a cork in the lip of the pan, but not to close it, allowing a space for the sugar to run out, the cork being merely to keep back the skin; then fill the impressions you made in the powder, and place them in the stove at 90 degrees; let them remain a day, then take them out, and their surfaces will be found quite hard and solid; brush the powder from them with a light brush, when they may either be painted, crystallized, or piped. Many of these bonbons are beautifully piped and colored to represent dogs, horses, costumer, and theatrical characters; the fur on the robes is imitated with white or colored sugar in coarse grains, and lace work is done by means of a pin.
Liqueur drops are made with the impression of half a ball to any required size, or other forms. If the flat parts of two are moistened, put together, and dried in the stove, they will form drops perfectly round.
To Form a Chain with Liqueur Rings.—Have some molds to form the impressions in powder, as in the preceding, in the shape of the links of a chain; fill them with syrup at the blow, as before, and put them in the stove for a day; when they are hard and fit to be taken out, place them on their ends in the powder; have another mold of a link in two halves, and with this form the impression between each of the others so as to make it complete; then fill them, and finish as before.