One of the best things about the holiday season is all the sweet treats and goodies. Gum drops and Christmas cookies are great, but the pepperminty kick of candy canes have stood the test of time.
Hammond’s Candies has been making candy canes for nearly 100 years, and they've shared their candy-making secrets.
It all begins with boiling sugar to 325 degrees. The molten mixture then gets poured onto the cooling table. That’s where the concentrated color gets mixed in.
Once the sugar becomes a taffy-like texture, it’s time for the candy to get its stripes and give it its signature minty flavor.
Next, the candy is pulled to give it the proper shape and texture.
"Every single candy cane we do is going to have a little bit of a difference in it. I think that is what makes our candy so unique and so special,” says Andrew Shuman, the CEO of Hammond’s Candies.
Finally, the crook of the cane is sculpted and then the candies are shipped off for packaging.
"With that big batch of candy, it will take them about 30 minutes from start to finish get 600 candy canes,” Shuman says.
Once the candy canes cool and are packaged, they are sent off to stores across the globe.
Hammond’s candy can be found in stores like Whole Foods.
