Pawpaw’s Divinity
Written December, 2010
The celebration can begin. I have finished the Christmas candy and it is chocked full of nuts thanks to my college roommate who lives in the region of Georgia that produces an abundance of those nuts that makes candy not just so-so, but over the top. Among the Christmas traditions at our house, making candy is the one that usually signals that the season has begun. Divinity was my father-in-law’s favorite. His birthday was December 23, and the first year after I married, his gift from us was a batch of divinity. He loved it. Never mind that I used sugar, corn syrup and egg whites from his kitchen that year—the making of it was a real gift. That became his yearly birthday gift. It was a delight to see his smile and to hear him say, “I bet I know what this is.”
Pawpaw got his last batch of divinity on December 23, 2000. He died on March 4, 2001.
For several years I could not bring myself to make divinity. This year there is a batch of the white fluff loaded with South Georgia pecans on the counter between the fudge and peanut brittle. All of us will enjoy it and share fond memories of Pawpaw.
Here’s the recipe. It came from a dear friend, Mary Alice Cook.
Pawpaw’s Divinity Candy
3 cups sugar 2 egg whites (1/4 cup)
¾ cup water 1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup light corn syrup ½ teaspoon salt
1 cup broken pecans
Combine sugar, corn syrup and water. Boil rapidly without stirring until a little syrup forms a ball when dropped in cold water. (That’s 250 degrees F on a candy thermometer.)
Beat egg whites. Add vanilla and salt to beaten egg whites. Pour syrup gradually over whites beating constantly. Continue beating until mixture holds its shape and begins to lose the glossy shine. Stir in nuts. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto waxed paper.
Note: I start beating the egg whites a little before the syrup reaches 250 degrees.
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