cinnamon candy - day 6 of the 12 crafty days of christmas

who else loves hot tamale candy?

i do! 

this cinnamon candy tastes just like them and is one of my favorite christmas treats.

for the past several years, i have been making cinnamon candy for teacher christmas gifts.

right after i married my husband, my mother-in-law showed me how to make cinnamon candy. she makes it every christmas. :)

 at first it looked intimidating so i didn't try it for a few years. but after i had 3 children in preschool and multiple teachers, i started thinking that making candy might be an affordable way to give a really special gift to my kids' special teachers. 

so i tried it and i figured out that it's actually pretty easy to do.

you should try it too!

here's what you need:

the recipe is inside the lorann gourmet cinnamon oil package.

here it is:

2 cups granulated sugar

2/3 cup light corn syrup

3/4 cup water

1 dram (1 tsp) lorann gourmet flavoring

1/2 tsp of red food coloring

(there is also a recipe for a double batch if you need to make a lot! 

it isn't double these measurements so be sure to check the package.)

you will also need:

a candy thermometer

a jelly roll pan

pam

wax paper

powdered sugar

and kitchen scissors

first, combine the granulated sugar, the corn syrup and the water and stir together over medium heat until the sugar dissolves.

then, turn up the heat to high and bring to a boil without stirring. This is where you start watching your thermometer.

when your syrup temperature reaches 260 degrees, add your red food coloring.

do not stir, the rolling boil will incorporate the color into the syrup.

now just watch your thermometer closely because the temperature rises quickly at this point.

when your thermometer reaches 300 degrees (hard crack), remove your pot from the heat.

to test if it's ready, you can drop a little syrup off of a spoon into a glass of cold water. if the syrup forms hard, brittle threads, it's good to go!

wait until the syrup stops boiling, then add your dram of cinnamon oil and stir.

WARNING: 

as you stir the cinnamon oil into the syrup it will steam

(see the picture above)

and that steam can sting your nose and throat.

just be really careful and go slow.

i find that the steam bothers me the most when i pour it out onto my pan so just be aware and take a deep breath before hand, and it should be ok. 

also, the oil can get on your hands so try not to touch your face or lick your fingers. 

because it's cinnamon oil, it's HOT!

after you stir your flavoring in, pour the syrup onto a greased jelly roll pan. (i spray mine with pam.) 

now you will wait until it cools down enough to cut into strips with your kitchen scissors.

you don't want to let it cool too much because then it will break into little shards. 

as you cut the strips, place them onto wax paper that is covered with the powdered sugar.

after these strips cool, you can easily break the strips into little bite-sized pieces.

the powdered sugar keeps the pieces from sticking together and also adds a fun element to the candy.

it almost looks like it's been snowed on!

it's also important to store your candy in an air tight container. if you leave it out, it will get all sticky.

i really hope my kids' teachers enjoy their little treat this year. 

and hopefully, some of you will enjoy this treat too!

(special thanks to my wonderful hubby for being my model while i took pictures!)

again, if you ever have any questions, 

please leave a comment or email me at sewannadesigns (at) gmail (dot) com.

i would love to hear from you!!!