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Before you shape your candies for dipping, put a piece of waxed paper which has been dusted with powdered sugar on a big cookie
sheet. To dust with xxxx sugar, put about 1/2 teaspoon powdered sugar on waxed paper; spread it around all over the paper,
then shake excess sugar off. Then shape your candies and place on it. This will prevent candy sticking to waxed paper when
you are ready to dip it.
Candies should be set aside for 2 to 4 hours before dipping. They should be turned
once to let bottom dry out about half-way through the drying period. Candies will actually feel dry to the touch when they
are ready for dipping, and most should be at room temperature for dipping.
Use a dipping fork for dipping candies.
These can be bought or you can make your own by shaping a coat hanger into a small oval shaped loop a little smaller than
a teaspoon at bottom with an 6 to 8" handle on it. The circle will be bent at right angle to handle.
You
can buy dipping chocolate, or you can make your own chocolate coating by melting semi-sweet chocolate, bars or chips, and
adding a small amount of paraffin which helps it solidify and also gives it a nice gloss. I use about 1/4 piece of paraffin
to 8 ounces of chocolate when I make my own. Sometimes I blend the dipping chocolate with semi-sweet. That's very good.
Whatever you do, do not even let ONE drop of water get into your chocolate because it will not set properly. The
whole batch will be ruined. Do not put a lid on when you are melting chocolate.
When melting chocolate for dipping,
use double boiler. Cut chocolate into small pieces (paraffin too, if used). Heat water, then place top pan in. Water should
be at least 1/2" below bottom of the top pan. Any closer and it will cause your chocolate to overheat. Stir chocolate
often and when it is soft, remove pan from heat and stir until it has completely melted and is smooth. Chocolate should not
be too hot; it's ready for dipping when cooled to 95 deg. If it cools too much, just sit back over the hot water again and
stir until it's warm enough to continue.
When you dip your centers, gently tap the dipping fork on the edge
of the pan to knock off excess chocolate, then gently roll onto a clean piece of waxed paper. Give a slight swirl as you
remove fork to make a neat decorative touch. When finished dipping, look them over and if you missed a spot, you can use
a toothpick to patch. Let them sit overnight. Then pack in boxes or containers. Candy will keep best in refrigerator, especially
cream candies.
If you want to keep them several weeks, you can wrap the packaged candy in aluminum foil and put
in the freezer. When ready to use, let thaw several hours at room temperature BEFORE opening. This will prevent streaky
chocolate. Streaks don't hurt the flavor, but they won't be as pretty.
Got chocolate left over? Just stir some
chopped nuts into it and drop by teaspoons onto waxed paper. Can also use raisins, peanuts or dip some pretzels.
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