ly place a board over the pan; a molding board will do very
well indeed. If a tin cover were used in place of the wooden, the steam
would condense and drop back on to the candy instead of being absorbed.
After the pan has been left undisturbed for a full day, lift the rack
out and pour the syrup into a suitable receptacle, cook to two hundred
and twenty degrees and place in it again the candy. Take the crystal
from the fire. Stir carefully, making sure that each piece is thoroughly
immersed. Place the rack in the pan as directed above, and again pour
over it the syrup with the candy in it. Note, however, that it is
necessary that the wire netting be free from hardened particles of the
syrup. Cleanliness, almost to the point of chemical purity, is
necessary. This process must be repeated four times more, but each time
the mass should be cooked two degrees higher--in each case, twenty-four
hours must elapse between each treatment. After the last operation, the
candy should be allowed to dry on the racks. The result will be found
well worth the time expended.

VI

CHOCOLATE COATING

The ability to handle chocolate successfully is a great assistance to
the maker of vegetable candy. Although chocolate coating is no more an
essential in vegetable candy-making than in the old fashioned kind,
there are very many times when the ability to use it effectively will be
very useful to the confectioner. In either sort of candy-making, it is
but a finish--as acceptable a finish to the one as to the other. Many
people like the flavor of chocolate, and it is extremely serviceable
because it furnishes a uniform covering for confections. Thus, when
chocolate coated candies rub against one another in the box in which
they are packed, their uniformity prevents their taking to themselves
strange flavors and colors. No candy-maker should scorn to make herself
master of the intricacies of chocolate coating.

The best instructor in chocolate coating is a few pounds of chocolate,
firm, well-shaped centers, an allowance of time and interest, plenty of
good common sense and inclination to profit by the hints given below.
With the knowledge that will be accumulated after a few trials, the
candy-maker will soon be able to give to her candy the niceties of the
professional product. The confectioner can well begin with nuts, or some
other hard centers, for they are comparatively easy to handle. By
handling them, she will soon gain the exper