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ByJenniferGraue ContraCostaTimesCorrespon- dent One bite was all it took to conjure up the ghosts of Halloweens past. It was summer, and Oct. 31 was the furthest thing from my mind, but as soon as I sank my teeth into the Lexington House's riff on Bit-O-Honey in a chocolate- peanut butter dessert, I was 10 years old again, gleefully sorting through my loot on the living room floor after a night of trick-or-treating. The Los Gatos restau- rant's version was noth- ing at all like the rock-hard candy rectangles in the red and yellow wrappers that were usually relegated to the reject pile — to become the decoy candy to keep my dad away from the good stuff — but it was familiar all the same. It dawned on me that mere mortals like you and me, and not just factories that crank out fun-size con- fections, could make home- made versions of our favor- ite trick-or-treat tastes — but ones that taste even better. "The traditional candy bar is a dumbed-down ver- sion of a very elegant con- fection that is less consis- tent in form but superior in flavor," says Susie Norris, a former TV executive turned pastry chef and co-author of "Hand-Crafted Candy Bars" (Chronicle Books, 2013). The candy bars we buy today are made to with- stand the rigors of ship- ping, stacking and long- term storage, which means they're usually flat and rect- angular and, Norris points out, pretty unappealing to the eye. It's the wrappers that make them attractive. That's not to say they're not pretty tasty, because clearly we love them and will spend about $2.2 bil- lion on Halloween candy this year, according to the National Retail Federation. "But yours will be bet- ter," Norris says. "There's so much more range in how it will look and taste." For starters you can use the chocolate you like best: milk or dark; higher co- coa content or lower; Ghi- rardelli or Guittard. Like a saltier caramel? Add an- other pinch. Maybe you've always dreamed of a Mars bar with smoked almonds. Go for it. When Lexington House's then-pastry chef, Kristine Vara, said she wanted to do a dessert that incorpo- rated peanut butter, choc- olate and honey, the whole staff started to reminisce about their favorite child- hood flavors. "That's when it came across our minds that we used to eat Bit-O-Honey," says Lexington House ex- ecutive chef Philippe Bren- eman, who says he loved Manresa's take-away car- amels because they re- minded him of the individ- ually wrapped Kraft cara- mels he ate as a kid. At San Francisco's Dirty Habit, a bar-centric res- taurant in the Hotel Palo- mar, a similar conversa- tion unfolded when an as- sistant pastry chef thought of doing a "kid in a candy store" themed dessert, said head pastry chef Francis Ang. "Everyone in the room lit up," he says, "then thoughts immediately turned to how to incorporate alcohol." At Halloween and through the rest of the year, diners can order goody bags filled with booze-in- fused, grown-up versions of childhood favorites, such as Pumpkin Beer Marshmal- lows, Green Apple Martini Lollipops and Fernet Choc- olate Taffy, which is essen- tially a from-scratch Tootsie Roll laced with the Italian spirit that has become so popular with San Francis- co's bartenders and their patrons. Tootsie Rolls, which Norris says are based on a confection called choco- late plastic, are one of the easiest candies to repli- cate at home, as are bars similar to Mounds or Al- mond Joy. Still, candy making can be intimidating when you first get started. But Norris says things like caramel are "easier physically to do than it looks on the page." The only special equip- ment one needs to get started is a candy thermom- eter, although Norris says any probe thermometer — even the kind used for out- door grilling — will work. A heavy-bottomed sauce- pan is pretty crucial, too, as it conducts heat better and prevents scorching. The hardest part, she says, is trying to mimic the familiar flavor and consis- tency of mass-produced candy, which is what the Lexington House found out, despite the fact that their candy was an excel- lent, slightly softer and nut- tier version of the real deal. "There were purists who said it wasn't Bit-O- Honey," Breneman says. "They wanted exactly Bit- O-Honey." Even for experienced candymakers like Norris, there are certain candy bars that leave her stymied. "Butterfinger is hard to replicate, because it's done chemically to make it break and melt the way it does," she says. This year, she's making candy corn. As for how to serve them, these homemade treats are perfect for the office, par- ties or even reverse trick-or- treating your neighbors, but you probably don't want to toss your labor of love into any neighborhood chil- dren's trick-or-treat bags, where they'll just be thrown in the trash by fretful par- ents. Instead, hand out the fun-size bars to the kids, while you enjoy your own Halloween handiwork with friends. DarkChocolate- Dipped Almond Coconut Bars Makesabout16bars 1cup whole almonds 3/4 cup powdered sugar, si ed 2tablespoons heavy cream 2cups sweetened, shredded coconut 1/2 teaspoon salt 3cups tempered dark chocolate (see recipe) 2tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, garnish 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil. 2. Place the almonds on one baking sheet; bake 10to 15 minutes, until aromatic and lightly browned. 3. In a medium bowl, com- bine the powdered sugar and cream until you have a paste. Stir in coconut and salt. Shape into 2-inch firmly packed logs, each with a slightly flattened top. Put the logs on the second baking sheet. Put 2almonds on top of each log, pushing gently but firmly into the coconut mixture. Refriger- ate for about 20minutes. 4. Remove the logs from the refrigerator. Have the tempered chocolate at 90 degrees. Dip each log into the chocolate. Use two dinner forks or chocolate dipping forks to fish the log out. Shake the logs carefully until excess chocolate drips off, then slide them onto the baking sheet originally used to toast the nuts (brush any nut crumbs off or reline the pan with parchment paper). Using a si er or sieve, dust each bar with a little cocoa powder while the chocolate is still moist. Let the choco- late set at room tempera- ture or refrigerate for about 10minutes. Once the choco- late sets, serve the bars at room temperature. Store in an airtight container, zip-top plastic bag or plastic wrap at room temperature up to 3 days, in the refrigerator for 2weeks or in the freezer for 2months. Tempered Dark Chocolate 3cups ice 3cups chopped, high quality dark chocolate 1. Put the ice in a large bowl; set aside. 2. Reserve a handful of the chopped chocolate. Melt the rest gently in a stainless- steel bowl set over simmer- ing water until it reaches 115degrees on a candy thermometer. Remove the bowl from the heat. Wipe the bottom of the bowl with a dry cloth to prevent water splashing onto the work surface. 3. Sprinkle the reserved chocolate into the melted chocolate and stir. Cool by placing the bowl over the bowl of ice for a few seconds at a time, remov- ing it, stirring until smooth and repeating until the temperature drops to 82 degrees. 4. Heat the chocolate again by placing the bowl back over the simmering water for 30seconds to 1minute at a time. Once its tempera- ture rises to 90degrees, the chocolate is ready to use in candy-bar production. —SusieNorrisandSusan Heeger, "Hand-Cra ed Can- dy Bars" (Chronicle Books, $24.95, 160pages) Nutty Bits of Honey Note: The better the honey, the better the candy will be. Vara uses Tim's Lo- cal honey. You will need a candy thermometer or probe thermometer, such as one for the outdoor grill. 1/2 cup honey 1/2 cup chunky peanut but- ter 1ounce almond paste 1cup dry powdered milk 1. Prepare a large sheet pan by spraying with cooking spray, then line with parch- ment paper (the cooking spray will keep the parch- ment from sliding around on the pan). 2. In a small sauce pot set over medium-high heat, melt the honey, peanut butter and almond paste, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until the mix- ture reaches 210degrees. 3. Remove the pan from the heat; immediately begin to incorporate the dry powdered milk until well combined and smooth. It may be easier to add half the powdered milk and incorporate before adding the rest. 4. Working quickly, while the mixture is still hot, use a spatula to evenly spread the mixture onto your parchment-lined sheet pan. Spread or roll it out into a rectangle, about 1/4- to 1/2- inch thick. Let cool. 5. Using a greased knife or pizza cutter, cut the candy into 1-by-1/2-inch strips. Wrap individually in 2-by-3- inch parchment paper strips to store. — Kristine Vara, pastry chef, Lexington House Corn Candy Makes about 24 11/2 cups ice 21/2 cups sugar 3/4 cup water 2tablespoons plus 2tea- spoons corn syrup 11/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon salt Orange and yellow food coloring 1. Put the ice in a large bowl. Set aside. 2. Combine the sugar and water in a large saucepan. Over medium heat, bring the mixture to a boil. Add the corn syrup; cook 5to 7 minutes. When the mixture reaches 238degrees on a candy thermometer, care- fully pour it into the bowl of an electric mixer. Allow it to cool for about 1minute. Place the bowl over the ice and let the syrup cool about 15minutes more, to 110 degrees. 3. Using the paddle at- tachment, mix the syrup on medium speed for at least 10minutes. During this process, the syrup will change from a yellowish to a white, sticky liquid that eventually thickens into a paste. Once it does, add the vanilla and salt, remove the paste from the bowl and knead it a little. (At this point, the fondant can be stored in a zip-top plastic bag for 2weeks in the refrigerator or 3 months in the freezer.) 4. Refrigerate the fondant for about 20minutes, then separate it into 3batches. Apply a few drops of orange food coloring to the first batch; knead it into the fondant to make the right shade of Halloween orange. Repeat the process using yellow food coloring on the second batch. Leav- ing the third batch white, assemble the classic candy corn triangles, with a plump ball of orange fondant on the bottom, a smaller ball of white in the center and a small ball of yellow on top. Dip your finger in water and rub the pieces lightly, then press them together to form the triangular shape. Allow the finished candies to set in the refrigerator for about 20minutes, then serve at room temperature. Store in an airtight contain- er or a zip-top plastic bag at room temperature for 3 days, in the refrigerator for 2weeks or the freezer for 2 months. — Susie Norris and Susan Heeger, "Hand-Cra ed Can- dy Bars" (Chronicle Books, $24.95, 160pages) Fernet Chocolate Taffy Note: Fernet is an Italian aperitif, available in liquor stores. 1/2 cup light corn syrup 1/4 cup water 1cup (8ounces) sugar 2tablespoons (1/2 ounce) good quality cocoa powder, such as Valrhona 1/4 cup Fernet 11/2 tablespoons butter 11/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice Pinch of salt 1. In a small pot, combine corn syrup and water. Add sugar and cocoa powder; stir until dissolved. Heat on high, stirring constantly, un- til mixture comes to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook until temperature reaches 260degrees, stir- ring to make sure it doesn't scorch. 2. Add Fernet and continue cooking and stirring until mixture comes back up to 249degrees. Remove from heat, stir in butter, then pour over a Silpat or an oiled marble surface and let cool. 3. Once the taffy is cool enough to handle, put on vinyl gloves and spray them with cooking spray. Pull and twist the taffy until it's light in color, about 5minutes (the taffy is also great as is, unpulled). 4. Roll into 1/2-inch diam- eter logs and cut to desired length with kitchen shears. Keep the pieces sepa- rated so they don't stick to one another. Wrap them individually in waxed paper. Store wrapped candies in an airtight container for up to 1week. — Chef Francis Ang, Dirty Habit, San Francisco HALLOWEEN DIY candy evokes Almond Joy and Candy Corn MARK DUFRENE - BAY AREA NEWS GROUP Clockwise from le , Homemade Corn Candy, Fernet Chocolate Taffy and Nutty Bits of Honey, are some Halloween treats you can make yourself. N EWS D AILY REDBLUFF TEHAMACOUNTY T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U NTY S I N C E 1 8 8 5 PHONE: (530)527-2151 FAX: (530) 527-5774 545 Diamond Avenue • P.O. Box 220 • Red Bluff, CA 96080 Support our classrooms, keep kids reading. DONATE YOUR VACATION newspaper dollars to the Newspaper In Education Program HELP OUR CHILDREN For more details call Circulation Department (530) 527-2151 FOOD » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, October 22, 2014 » MORE ATFACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS B4