Great homemade southern candy

Great homemade southern candy is everybody's favorite. Well, at least everybody's favorite while they are eating it!  There are some candies that remain southern specialties, as well as some we just like to claim. No matter where you live, homemade candy is a delicious treat.

Chocolate candy is one of our great southern homemade treats.  You can smell it cooking in the pot before you walk into the house.  The kitchen is warm and the bubbling candy, stirred lovingly by its cook, conjures up Norman Rockwell images.  So without further ado, here, for your dining pleasure, (drumroll, please) is the best chocolate candy recipe of all time:

3 cups of sugar

1/2 cup of cocoa

1 1/2 cups of milk

one stick of butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine dry ingredients. Gradually add milk until well blended. Cook over medium-high heat until the candy reaches the soft ball stage.  Remove from heat, add butter and vanilla, and stir until your arm drops off or until the candy stiffens whichever comes first.  If you wish to add a half cup of pecans, add them in before the candy gets too firm.  Pour the candy onto a well-buttered platter and you're done with chocolate candy making. Try to wait for it to harden before you eat it.

A few candy making tips:

Don't even try to make candy on rainy days. High humidity will not allow the candy to harden, and while it may still taste great, sticky candy is no fun to eat. You might still eat that chocolate candy with a spoon, but we don't recommend it.

Make sure to use heavier, good quality cooking vessels. Cheap pots don't heat evenly, so your results will likely be inconsistent. Copper bottom pots are particularly good.

Cook candy at the right heat. As long as you are stirring the praline mixture (or chocolate fudge or candy), you can keep the temperature up pretty high. Once the candy starts to bubble you should reduce the heat to medium and let it cook a bit, but you will still need to stir frequently. 

Use a candy thermometer to help you decide whether or not the candy is ready to take off the heat, at least until you have cooked the recipe enough times to be really comfortable with it.