This is my great-grandmother's, my Grandma Bah's, recipe. She was my mother's maternal grandmother and she was a wild woman . . . and an exceptional cook. She lived her life on her own terms — much like my mother did — left a big impression whether you met her only briefly or spent a lifetime with her.
By the time I was born, she lived close to 1500 miles away in Colorado, so I was lucky to have gotten to know her at all, to have had twelve or so years of intermittent visits to be charmed by her. Unfortunately, once I was old enough to have helped her in the kitchen, she was enjoying being out of it.
Thankfully, my mother cooked from and kept her recipes and now I have them. I have inherited them all or at least all that my mother had tucked away in books, scribbled on the backs of envelopes and written out on note cards. It is bittersweet to have now become the keeper of the recipes.
The first time you make homemade candy, it can be an adventure. And just like any adventure, you need proper gear.
For candy-making, you need a candy thermometer because the whole game centers around getting your sugar syrup, the base for your candy, to the right stage (temperature) so that it turns out with the proper consistency. All of that may sound difficult, but it isn't at all.
For this candy, the syrup must be heated to between 235-245 F, which is actually within the temperature range for both "soft ball," the stage for pralines and buttercreams, and "firm ball," the stage for caramels. You must stir the mixture constantly while keeping an eye on your thermometer because after several minutes of not much happening, things ramp up pretty quickly once the dates, milk and sugar start to thicken and bubble.
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The adventure is all but over once you get your base to the proper temperature. After that, it's pulled off the heat and your last ingredients are added before turning it onto damp tea towels to mold into log shapes. A bit of refrigeration time and you've got candy! Once fully chilled, you can remove from the tea towels and wrap in wax paper. Store in the refrigerator and cut to serve as desired.
This candy is sweet like you would expect cooked-down, reduced fruit and sugar would be, but remember, it is candy. But I will say that the addictively rich, maple-y, caramel-y flavor of the dates will remain even if you choose to make a less-sweet version.
These simple ingredients — milk, sugar, dates and pecans (plus a pat of butter) — are all you need to make this wonderful confection. No preservatives, no high-fructose corn syrup, nothing artificial. It's fun. It's easy. It keeps well and makes a great gift.
So what are you waiting on? Get on with your next kitchen adventure and make yourself some candy.
Ingredients
2 cup sugar (I uses coconut sugar)
1 cup milk
8 ounces chopped dates
1 tablespoon butter
4 cups chopped pecans, lightly toasted
Directions
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Spread chopped pecans onto a cookie sheet and lightly toast. Set aside.
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Combine sugar, milk and dates in a medium saucepan and cook on medium heat, stirring constantly, just until mixture reaches "soft ball stage," which is between 235-245 F using a candy thermometer. (This stage can also be determined by dropping a bit of your hot mixture into very cold water. Using your fingers to gather it up, if it forms a ball in the cold water, it has reached the soft ball stage. It will flatten when removed from the water.)
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Remove from heat as soon as it reaches soft ball stage and quickly stir in butter and pecans.
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Divide mixture in half and place each half on a damp tea towel.
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Wrap and shape each portion into a 10" x 2" log and refrigerate at least an hour before cutting into slices to serve.
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Cook's Notes
Sugar: My great-grandmother's original recipe called for more sugar (three cups instead of two), but I have always reduced it when making it myself, sometimes by even more than the two cups stated above. I also use coconut sugar, which is not nearly as sweet as regular sugar.
Milk: Feel free to substitute coconut cream, non-dairy milk, half-and-half or any combination you like. I would caution against using a "thin," watery milk, like skim or rice milk. I often use coconut cream or a mixture of plain almond milk with a splash of heavy cream.
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