How to Make Homemade Butterfinger Candy

Butterfinger Recipe

• 2 cups sugar
• 2/3 cup light corn syrup
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 1/4 cup smooth style peanut butter
• 16 oz milk chocolate.
• Cooking spray (like Pam)
• 1 tsp margarine or butter
• Salt

1. In a clean sauce pan combine sugar, corn syrup and water. Heat and stir gently until the sugar is dissolved. Increase the heat and cover the pan with a lid for one minute. Condensation will wash any stray sugar crystals from the sides of the pan. If sugar falls into your mix it will act as seed and your mixture will crystallize—not good. Remove lid and attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pan. Make sure that the bulb does not touch the bottom or you'll end up with false readings -also not good. While your mixture is cooking heat the peanut butter, margarine and a pinch of salt in a separate pan or in the microwave to emulsify. Take care not to burn or scorch -another bad thing. You should do this when the candy thermometer reaches 280 degrees so that it doesn't have time to cool down and thicken.
2. Continue cooking until the thermometer reaches 290 degrees. Remove from heat and stir in the peanut butter. Pour mixture onto a greased cookie sheet. Tilt the sheet to allow the hot candy to spread out evenly. The stuff that you're working with is close to 300 degrees, that's HOT! Candy burns are very unpleasant. Not only do they hurt but the hot candy sticks to skin.
3. Allow the candy to cool.
4. If the candy is oily blot with a paper towel. You can dust it lightly with corn starch to help the chocolate adhere better in the next step.
5. Use a double boiler or a Pyrex type bowl on top of a simmering pot of water to melt half of the chocolate. Remove from heat and stir in the other half of the chocolate to temper. (There are better ways of tempering chocolate but this works.). If you choose not to temper the chocolate you'll end up with something that melts in your hand far too quickly.
6. You can spread the chocolate over the candy or break the candy into pieces and dip them in chocolate. Whatever floats your boat.
7. Other hints. I mentioned that the candy coming off the stove is hot—right? Keep an eye on children while making this stuff. Temperature is all important in candy making. It takes a little while for the temperature to rise but once it hits 285 or so it skyrockets quickly because the water has evaporated. It's a good idea to have everything ready to go from the very start. Burned candy is bad candy. Most confectioners will tell you that it's best not to make candy on cold rainy days because of the moisture in the air. I've done it with no baleful results but it's probably a good idea to follow this advice.

SOURCE