POURING AND COOLING THE MIXTURE
61. After the testing of the mixture proves that it is boiled sufficiently, there are several procedures that may be followed. The one to adopt depends on the kind of candy that is being made, but every candy that is cooked should be cooled by one of the following methods.
62. The first treatment consists in pouring the mixture at once from the pan to be finished without cooling, as, for instance, caramels and butter scotch, which are poured at once into a buttered pan to be cooled and cut; or, the hot sirup may be poured upon beaten egg whites, as in the case of sea foam or penuchie. In the making of either of these kinds, the sirup may be allowed to drip as completely as possible from the pan without injury to the finished product.
63. The second method by which the mixture is cooled calls for cooling the sirup in the pan in which it was cooked, as, for instance, in the case of fudge. When this is done, the pan should be carried from the stove to the place where the mixture is to be cooled with as little agitation as possible. Also, during the cooling, it should not be disturbed in any way. Stirring it even a little is apt to start crystallization and the candy will then be grainy instead of creamy.
64. In the third form of treatment, the sirup is poured out and then cooled before it is stirred to make it creamy, as in opera creams or bonbon creams. To accomplish this, the pan should be tipped quickly and all its contents turned out at once. It should not be allowed to drip even a few drops, for this dripping starts the crystallization. Candies that contain milk or butter, or sticky materials, such as taffies, should always be poured on a buttered surface. Those which are cooked with water but are to be creamed should be poured on a surface moistened with cold water.
65. When candy mixtures are cooled before being completed, the cooling should be carried to the point where no heat is felt when the candy is touched. To test it, the backs of the fingers should be laid lightly on the surface of the candy, as they will not be so likely to stick as the moist tips on the palm side. It should be remembered that the surface must not be disturbed in the testing, as this is also apt to bring about crystallization.
Every precaution should be taken to prevent even the smallest amount of crystallization. Any crystals that may have formed can be easily detected when the stirring is begun by the scraping that can be felt by the spoon or paddle used. If a little crystallization has taken place before the candy has cooled completely, it being easily seen in the clear sirup, the mixture should be cooled still further, for nothing is gained by stirring it at once.
A point that should always be kept in mind in the cooling of candy is that it should be cooled as quickly as possible. However, a refrigerator should not be used for cooling, for the warm mixture raises the temperature of the refrigerator and wastes the ice and at the same time the moist atmosphere does not bring about the best results. As has already been learned, a platter or a slab is very satisfactory. If either of these is used, it should be as cold as possible when the sirup is poured on it. Cold weather, of course, simplifies this matter greatly, but if no better way is afforded, the utensil used should be cooled with cold water.