Easy Homemade Candy

 Dipping Chocolate

• 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate 

Finely grate 3 to 4 ounces of the chocolate and set aside for tempering.

Chop the remaining chocolate and melt in a covered bowl in a microwave oven at full power for 2 minutes, or in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. As soon as it is melted stir in the grated chocolate, a handful at a time. This process is called ''tempering'', and it will insure that when the dipping chocolate firms it will yields a deep color and a shiny surface.

Allow the chocolate to rest until it is between 85 and 90 degrees. It is now ready for dipping.

To keep the chocolate at the proper consistency during dipping, you can place it over warm water.

 Salt Brittle

Makes about 1/4 pound

•  1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus more for coating pan and spatula
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons agave syrup
• Pinch baking soda
• 1 tablespoon coarse rock salt, like Tidman’s Rock or Himalayan Pink

1. Grease a sheet pan and a metal spatula liberally with butter and set aside.

2. Put the sugar in a large non-stick skillet and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon until the sugar begins to melt and lump up.

3. Add the agave syrup. The mixture will start to foam. Stir constantly. The liquid sugar will steadily become thinner and deep amber, and the lumps will start to melt. When almost all the lumps are gone, and the sugar is the color of George Hamilton’s tan turn off the heat.

4. Immediately stir in the tablespoon of butter and the baking soda. The liquid will become very foamy for a second. Stir until the foam is no longer streaky, about 10 seconds and immediately pour onto the prepared pan, scrapping as much of the sugar from the pan as possible with your stirring spoon.

5. Sprinkle the salt over the top of the sugar and count to 24. The edges of the sugar pool should be firm.

6. Slide your spatula under the sugar to loosen from the pan all of the way around and flip it over.

7. Working quickly you want to stretch the sheet of sugar as much as you can before it become to brittle to move. The easiest way is to gingerly push it with your hands into a larger thinner sheet. If some parts are thinner than others, don’t worry. If your hands are very sensitive to heat you can wear latex gloves, but it’s harder to work the sugar that way, so I advise you to suck it up and use your hands. It won’t be that hot. When the brittle is too brittle to move, stop pushing and let it cool.

8. Break into shards and serve

White Chocolate Almond Bark

Make about 3/4 pound, 6 to 8 servings.

• 6 ounces white chocolate, broken in pieces
• 1 cup (5 oz.) whole roasted almonds, skins on

Melt the chocolate in a covered bowl in a microwave oven at full power for 2 minutes, or in the top of a double boiler over simmering water.

Meanwhile chop the remaining chocolate finely. Remove the melted chocolate from the heat and mix with a whisk until smooth. Add the chopped chocolate in 2 or 3 handfuls, whisking in each addition before adding another.

When the chocolate is smooth, fold the almonds until the almonds are completely coated and the chocolate begins to firm up. Pour and scrape the chocolate onto a sheet pan and spread into a rough rectangle about 1/2-inch thick. When the chocolate is solid, cut into shards and serve.