A tabletop machine from the 1910s that was used to mould sweets.
A tabletop machine from the 1910s that was used to mould sweets.
From boiled sweets to sweet treats every now and then, we all want to indulge our sweet tooth at times.
Whether it’s buying dollar bags at the dairy, looking for a sale at the supermarket or filling up our online cart with foreign candy — in the cost-of-living crisis, hard candy often offers great bang for buck.
Think raspberry drops with their long-lasting taste and incriminating staining of your tongue. Or perhaps you don’t have time for lollies.
You’re a serious adult with serious things to do, so you instead choose to suck on a cough lozenge to help you through that next important meeting. But how did these candies come to be? With Halloween coming up we delved into our collection to take a hard-boiled look at the history of these sweets.
You can see a 1910s tabletop machine pictured here that would have been used for moulding boiled sweets.
Trick or Treat will be back at Te Manawa in Palmerston North next month for the third year in a row
These sweets, also known as hard candy, are made by heating sugar-based syrups to very high temperatures. The term “boiled” is a misnomer, the sugar doesn’t boil in the traditional sense.
Instead, it melts and undergoes a series of chemical changes. The highest temperature the sugar syrup reaches tells you what the syrup will be like when it cools.
These temperatures can range from 106C to over 149C. The various stages are named after the shape the molten sugar takes when dropped into water to cool.
Starting with the threads stage where thin strands of sugar are formed, and then progressing to the soft ball stage where you’ll find your fudge. The firm ball stage is next, ideal for creamy caramel candies, while the hard ball stage suits marshmallows and toffee.
The soft crack stage at 132C produces your butterscotch and taffy, and the hard crack stage at an incredible temperature of 149C is perfect for drops, lollipops and lozenges.
Once the sugar has cooled enough to be handled with professional confectionery gloves often coated with an oil, it is then fed through the machine to shape.
Once fully cooled, the sheet of candy could be dropped and would break into individual pieces.
Historically, when sugar became widely available in the 19th century, we saw more of these hard-boiled sweets appear as a cheaper alternative to other sweet treats on the market, such as crystallised fruits.
Many apothecaries used sugar candy to make their prescriptions more palatable to their customers, and marketing them as a remedy or healthy option.
Te Manawa Trick or Treat will be back for the third year in a row on October 30-31 for a kooky and spooky exploration of the museum like you’ve never seen it before!
And of course, it wouldn’t be Halloween without the candy, which will be provided by local sweet company Carousel Confectionery.
