Unique Machine Creates Old Fashioned Drop Candies

Candy and confections aren't made the way they used to be, but one candy shop is trying its hardest to preserve the old-fashioned way of making sweets. The confectioners over at Lofty Pursuits and Public Displays of Confection have been collecting drop candy making machines and rollers for a few years now. You may have heard of drop candies, but you may be wondering why these little hard candies are called 'drop' candies. We still have a few drop candies in modern society, like lemon drops, but the process of making them is a lot more interesting than you would think. The video below takes you through the history and process of making sweet drop candy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sd90XCvpO1k

Drop candies are made by rolling the molten sugar through brass rollers which push them into shapes, thus forming the hard candy. These brass rollers come in a wide variety of shapes, allowing for a lot of different designs. The antique rollers are actually pretty rare, and it is believed that most were melted down during WWII during the scrap metal drives.

The candy is made by first heating up a sugar mixture, then slowly cooling it. Once it has reached a consistent workable temperature, the molten candy is fed through the rollers. As it is thinned out, it cools rapidly. It comes out of the press in a sheet form, with individual pieces connected by a thin and hard layer. The candy sheets are then dropped to break the pieces apart, and this is where they get their names.

[Image Source: Lofty Pursuits]

Many foods and products aren't made like they used to be, and drop candies are only one example. If it wasn't for candy shops like this, the world might forget the delicate and interesting art of making gourmet confections.

SEE ALSO: Chocolate Design and Technology