Christmas Coal Candy

Name: Christmas Coal Candy
Cook time: P0Y0M0DT0H40M0.000S
Total time: P0Y0M0DT4H15M0.000S
Yield: about 4 cups candy
Ingredients: 1 large egg white, at room temperature, beaten; 1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar; 1/4 cup dark cocoa powder; 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract; 1/2 teaspoon distilled white vinegar; Black gel food coloring, for tinting; 3 cups granulated sugar

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Level: Intermediate

Total: 4 hr 15 min (includes cooling time)
Active: 40 min

Yield: about 4 cups candy

Know someone on Santa's naughty list? Give them this crunchy cocoa-flavored candy. It's sweeter than it looks and fun to make as you break it into odd-shaped pieces.

Level: Intermediate

Total: 4 hr 15 min (includes cooling time)
Active: 40 min

Yield: about 4 cups candy

Ingredients

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1 large egg white, at room temperature, beaten

1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar

1/4 cup dark cocoa powder

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon distilled white vinegar

Black gel food coloring, for tinting

3 cups granulated sugar

Directions

Watch how to make this recipe.

Special equipment:

a candy thermometer; a rubber mallet; a chisel, optional

Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Mix together the egg white, confectioners' sugar and cocoa in a bowl with a fork until smooth and very thick. (The mixture should hang on the fork in a blob without falling off.) Whisk in the vanilla and vinegar. Whisk in enough food coloring to turn the mixture a deep black color and the brown of the cocoa is no longer visible, 1/2 to 1 teaspoon.
Combine the granulated sugar and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan and stir until the mixture looks like wet sand. Using a wet pastry brush, wipe down the sides of the pot where any sugar has clung to the side. Cook over medium heat until the mixture registers 258 to 260 degrees F on a candy thermometer, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and immediately stir in the black mixture, stirring vigorously until smooth. Spread in the prepared pan and let harden and cool completely, about 2 hours.
Lift the candy out of the pan using the parchment paper overhang as handles. Peel off the parchment and chip into small irregular-sized pieces using a chisel or a sturdy butter knife and rubber mallet.