Although I'm directing you to an internet recipe, mine isn't typed out and it's exactly the same as the one I've used for years. You do need to use flavored oils, not extracts. I usually make cinnamon (red), anise (yellow) and wintergreen (green).

Here is a link that might be useful: Hard Candy

Hi Rob:

Most of my candy recipes are 50 years old or more. Is that old enough? I don't make candy much anymore because I try to keep sugar out of my diet and I can't quit eating it when I do. I'll have to check to see what I might have in hard candy recipes. I don't recall anything other than a toffee or english candy. I have the old See's Fudge recipe made in a skillet that is very simple to make.

Happy New Year to you,
Sharon B

I make this every year, and it's always a hit.

Becky
Lompoc, CA

* Exported from MasterCook *

Toffee

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 cups butter
2 cups white sugar
6 milk chocolate Hershey bars -- broken into pieces
1 cup finely chopped nuts (I like pecans)

1. In a large heavy bottomed saucepan, combine the butter and sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring until the butter is melted. Allow to come to a boil, and cook until the mixture becomes a dark amber color, and the temperature has reached 285 degrees F on a candy thermometer, stirring occasionally.
2. While the toffee is cooking, butter a large baking sheet.
3. As soon as the toffee reaches the proper temperature, pour it out onto the prepared baking sheet. Lay the chocolate pieces over the top, and let it set for a minute or two to soften. Spread the chocolate into a thin even layer once it is melted. Sprinkle the nuts over the chocolate, and press in slightly. Putting a plastic bag over your hand will minimize the mess.
4. Break into pieces when cool and set, and store in an airtight container.

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NOTES : If it's raining when you make the candy, cook to about 290F instead.

Lots of old recipes linked below.
Linda C

Here is a link that might be useful: Fanny Farmer

Thanks for everyone's help! Any more are appreciated. I will try some this weekend. And I guess I need to get some oils too! Toffee sounds good too. I have to make altitude adjustments for this so I hope is all works well.

I should add...has any done the Fanny Farmer stuff? I think I kinda like the idea of "lost candy recipes." Not that these are lost. Comments on them?

Some of the recipes below are a lot older than 50! Just updated to Metric by Yours Truly.

Acid Drops
500g sugar
150ml water
1 teaspoon tartaric acid
icing sugar to coat (optional)

Put the sugar and water into saucepan, stir over a moderate heat until the sugar dissolves then boil the mixture until it reaches the 'brittle' stage at 156C. Remove any scum that floats to the top of the mixture during boiling. Allow the mixture to cool slightly in the saucepan, then, while it is still a pouring consistency, carefully blend in the tartaric acid. Mix thoroughly. Pour into tiny moulds and allow the mixture to set, or pour into a tray and leave until sufficiently cool to handle, then form into long rounded bars. When cold, cut into small pieces. Roll in a little sifted icing sugar if desired.

Basic Honey Toffee
1 cup honey

Cook honey to hard crack stage, stirring constantly. Pour onto a buttered marble slab. As soon as outside edges are cool enough to touch, fold to centre and make a long roll. Start stretching or pulling while hot. Pull until honey becomes light and porous and small strings develop. Cut into short pieces. Place in paper lined metal containers for two days to soften.

Creamy Peanut Toffee
60g butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon golden syrup
3/4 cup condensed milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup unsalted peanuts

Stir butter, sugar and golden syrup over low heat until sugar is dissolved. Stir in milk, bring to the boil. Reduce heat and stir for 8 minutes or until the colour of straw. Add vanilla and peanuts, mix well. Pour onto a greased oven tray and leave until set. Break into pieces.

French Toffee
5 cups sugar
2/3 cup hot water
1 cup sweet cream
any flavouring desired

Combine sugar and hot water. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Boil. Add cream slowly. Stir constantly. Do not allow syrup to stop boiling. Boil to hard ball stage. Add flavouring. Pour into a well-buttered pan. When cool, pull until it will hold its shape. Form into long bars about 3cm wide. Cut with a sharp, hot knife in 2cm lengths.

French Rocks
500g sugar
a little cream of tartar
1 large cup water
essences and colours as desired

Stir sugar, cream of tartar and water together over heat until the mixture boils, then allow to boil for another 5 minutes. Turn onto a large greased baking dish, sprinkle with a few drops of essence, fold over and over with a wooden spoon. When cool enough to handle, keep pulling it out until it is white and firm. Form into a long roll and cut into pieces with scissors. Many varieties can be made by varying the flavourings and adding colourings.

Honey Almond Brittle
1 cup sugar
1 cup toasted, chopped almonds
2 tablespoons honey

Place the honey and sugar in a saucepan and heat together over gentle heat until the sugar is dissolved, stirring once. Bring to the boil and boil for 2 minutes. Stir in the almonds. Pour mixture into a greased 18cm square dish. Cut into 12 pieces while still warm, then leave to cool.

Potato Candy
1 cup warm mashed potatoes, unseasoned
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1kg icing sugar
500g chocolate, melted for dipping
2/3 cup crushed peanuts OR 1 cup coconut

Combine the potato, salt and vanilla in a four-quart mixing bowl. Sift the icing sugar over the potato, stirring and adding about one cup at a time. The mixture will liquefy when the first sugar is added, then gradually begin to thicken. When it becomes the consistency of stiff dough, knead it even though all the sugar has not been added (likewise add more sugar if needed). After kneading, cover the mixture with a damp cloth; chill until a small spoonful can be rolled into a ball. Shape into 1cm balls. Dip the balls into melted chocolate, then roll in peanuts or coconut. Makes about 8 dozen 1cm balls.

The amount of water in the potato affects the quantity of icing sugar you need to add. The trick is to add enough sugar to produce a candy mixture with the consistency of a stiff dough so that you can knead it. The result is a type of fondant that you can dip in melted chocolate and roll in chopped nuts or coconut. Or you can omit the dipping and decorate the candy pieces with nuts. Best when eaten fresh.

Russian Caramels
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons condensed milk
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Combine all ingredients except vanilla in a saucepan and bring to the boil over low heat, stirring frequently as it will burn easily. Boil for 15 minutes, or until it forms a soft ball when dropped into cold water. Remove from heat, add the vanilla. Beat until creamy and just beginning to thicken, pour into a greased slab tin. Cut into squares while still warm.

Scottish Tablet
400ml condensed milk
1kg sugar
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon butter
vanilla essence
2 teaspoons golden syrup (optional)
100g chopped walnuts (optional)

Combine the condensed milk, sugar, milk, golden syrup (if adding walnuts) and butter in a large saucepan and bring to the boil very slowly, then simmer for 20-30 minutes or until a rich creamy brown colour and a small amount dropped in a little cold water firms nicely. Add vanilla and beat until thick (the beating is important - it is easier with an electric mixer). Quickly stir in the walnuts if using, and pour into a greased slab tin. Leave until cool, then mark into squares. Remove when cold.

Toffees
3 cups sugar
1/4 cup brown malt vinegar
1 cup water

Place sugar, water and vinegar into a saucepan, stir over low heat until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat, boil rapidly, uncovered, for about 15 minutes or until a small amount, when poured into cold water, will crack. Remove from heat, stand saucepan in cold water for 1 minute. Remove from water, allow bubbles to subside. Pour into paper patty cases. Leave 2 minutes before decorating with coconut, hundreds and thousands etc.

Butterscotch
2 cups sugar
2/3 cup liquid glucose
1 teaspoon lemon essence
1/3 cup water
125g butter
1/2 teaspoon salt

Combine sugar, water and glucose in a heavy saucepan, stir over low heat until sugar is dissolved. Bring to the boil, reduce heat until very low, boil 8-10 minutes or to 150C on a sweets thermometer; mixture should be light golden brown. Remove from heat, add remaining ingredients, stir until well blended. Pour into lightly greased lamington tin. Mark into squares while still hot. [A lamington tin is your Jelly Roll tin.]

Old Fashioned Barley Sugar
1/2 cup pearl barley
thinly peeled rind of 1/2 lemon
juice of 1 lemon
5 cups cold water
4 cups sugar

Put the barley, lemon peel and water into a saucepan, bring to the boil and simmer, covered, for two hours. Remove from heat, and let the barley water stand for about 30 minutes so that the solids settle to the bottom of the pan. Ladle off enough clear liquid from the top of the barley water to make 2 1/2 cups of liquid. Pour the barley water into a saucepan and add the sugar. Set the pan over low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved, then let the syrup boil without stirring. Add the lemon juice, and boil the syrup again until it begins to crack (140-145C on a sweets thermometer). Pour the syrup onto a buttered platter or buttered marble slab. When cool enough to handle, cut it into short strips with oiled scissors, then hold each strip by its ends and twist the ends in opposite directions. You will need to work quickly, before the mixture cools. Makes about 1kg.

I have done several of the Fanny Farmer recipes...the filled dates ( which is certainly not rocket science!) as well as the caramels and the pulled molasses taffy....and the vinegar taffy....which I still remember as awful some 50 years later!
Somewhere in a Fanny Farmer cook there is a wonderful recipe for penuche.
Linda C

Thanks Daisy and Linda.....!!

Another question....has anyone made candy with herbs...meaning steeping the herbs in water for along time. Someone passed along horehound but I was wondering if you can do that with mints or lemon verbena (I have a lot of it dried). I know you can't overindulge in herbs...but figured it would make use of the things I grow.

Oh and thanks for the honey recipe Daisy. I buy honey from a guy I used to work with. I was wondering how to work with it in regards to candy

From the 1952 cookbook entitled "Culinary Arts Institute Encyclopedic Cookbook". Have not tried it.

BUTTERSCOTCHES

6 cups light brown sugar
2 cups water
Pinch cream of tartar
1½ cups butter, melted
2 tsp lemon extract

Place sugar and water in large saucepan and heat, stirring occasionally, until boiling point is reached; add cream of tartar. Cover and allow to boil for 10 minutes.

Remove cover, then cook to 310 F, or to hard-crack stage.

Add melted butter and lemon extract and remove from heat when blended with the syrup. Pour between buttered candy bars, or into buttered pan.

When cold, cut with buttered scissors into small pieces and wrap in waxed paper.

HOREHOUND CANDY (What exactly is horehound anyways??)

1 ounce dried horehound
1-1/2 cups water
1-3/4 pounds brown sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup

Cook horehound slowly in water 30 minutes. Remove horehound. To liquid, add sugar and syrup. Cook to 300 degrees or to hard-crack stage. Pour into greased pan and mark into squares.

TROPICAL NUGGETS

1/4 cup Brazil nuts, sliced 1/8-inch thick
1/4 cup seeded raisins
1/4 cup figs, chopped
1/4 cup shredded coconut
2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon lemon extract

Place the nuts, raisins, figs and coconut in a buttered pan. Place the sugar, butter, vinegar, and water in a saucepan and cook to 290 degrees, or to the soft-crack stage. Add the lemon extract and pour mixture over the fruit and nuts. Break into pieces when cold.

TRADITIONAL TAFFY

This taffy recipe was from my daughter's grade 4 teacher a few years ago. I've made it before and it's good. I remember my mother pulling taffy outside, when I was a child. She said it's best to pull the taffy where it's a bit cold so it doesn't "melt/soften" in your hands and it hardens better as you pull it (you butter your hands first). It's a tradition to make pulled taffy on November 25th for St.Catherine's Day.

1 cup molasses
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup corn syrup
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp vinegar
½ cup water
1 tsp baking soda

In saucepan, combine all ingredients except baking soda; stir well to combine.

Bring to a boil and cook until 260 degree F (hard ball formed in cold water).

Add baking soda and mix well. Pour into buttered dishes. When cool enough to handle, pull taffy until it turns a golden brown. Cut into pieces and wrap in waxed paper.

Khandi, LOL! Horehound is a herb, Marrubium vulgare. Some people call is a pesky weed. Horehound Candy is a medicine (herbal remedy) for treating the symptoms of colds, flu, coughs etc. More details below.

Medicinal Uses: Leaves (which taste like menthol) and flowering tops of the plant can be eaten or made into a syrup or lozenges to relieve sore throats, asthma and coughs, colds, flu, and especially congestion. The tea can be used to get rid of intestinal worms and to relieve heartburn and indigestion. It will also treat irregular heartbeat. Use the tea internally and externally for eczema, psoriasis and shingles, and externally to aid the healing of wounds. The leaves applied as a poultice are used to treat cold sores.

Got a cold today and I thought I would try to make honey candy. I read that honey is "softer." Anyone know how to make a honey HARD candy? Do you add it to sugar and water? Can you add lemon juice?