Medovi Tsukerky (медові цукерки, honey-nut candies)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •A small square tin, about 20 cm
• •A heavy-bottomed saucepan
• •A glass of cold water for testing
• •A sharp oiled knife

Instructions

1. 1

   Line the tin

   Line a small square tin with edible wafer paper or baking parchment, then oil the parchment lightly if using. Have another sheet ready for pressing the top. Once the honey is cooked, you won't have time to hunt for paper and mutter at drawers.

2. 2

   Toast the walnuts

   Toast the walnuts in a dry pan until their skins smell warm and slightly bitter, then chop them roughly. Leave proper pieces. Dusty crumbs make the candy heavy, but generous walnut pieces give it a good bite under the teeth.

   Rub off any loose papery skins if they fall away easily. Don't fuss over every piece; this is home candy, not punishment.
3. 3

   Cook the honey

   Put the honey, sugar, sunflower oil, salt, and lemon juice into a heavy pan over medium-low heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves, then let it bubble without scraping the sides. Listen. The early bubbles are quick and thin; as it thickens they become slower, rounder, and louder against the pan.

4. 4

   Test the set

   Cook until the smell changes from flowery honey to deep caramel and toasted beeswax, then drop a little syrup into a glass of cold water. It should gather into a soft firm ball you can pinch, not dissolve into threads. If you use a thermometer, look for 118 to 120C, but the cold-water test tells the truth.

   This is the step that won't forgive wandering away. Pale and loose will not set; dark and smoking will taste burnt. Stay with it.
5. 5

   Fold in nuts

   Tip in the toasted walnuts and poppy seeds if using, then stir fast until every piece shines. The mixture will tighten almost at once and pull from the pan in one sticky mass. That's good. That's the candy deciding to be candy.

6. 6

   Press and set

   Scrape the mixture into the lined tin, cover with the second sheet of wafer paper or oiled parchment, and press it flat with a small board or the base of a glass. Let it cool until firm, about two hours, or longer if your kitchen is warm.

7. 7

   Cut the squares

   Oil a sharp knife and cut the slab into small squares or diamonds. Wipe and oil the blade when it drags. These are meant to be small, strong sweets, enough for eight guests or one hungry Ukrainian with tea.

Chef Tips

• •Buckwheat honey gives the deepest, almost malty candy; sunflower honey is brighter and very Ukrainian; acacia honey is gentler. Use what you have, but avoid bland supermarket squeeze honey if you can.
• •The sugar helps the candy set cleanly. All-honey versions are older in spirit, but they stay softer and stickier, especially in a damp kitchen.
• •If the slab sets too hard to cut, warm the knife under hot water, dry it well, oil it, and try again. If it sets too soft, chop it and fold it through porridge or baked apples. We don't throw away honey.
• •Store pieces between parchment in a tin. They keep for two weeks, though in my house that is a theoretical number.

Advance Preparation

• •These candies are better made a day ahead, once the honey has settled and the walnut flavor has moved through the slab.
• •Keep them in an airtight tin between sheets of parchment for up to 2 weeks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 18g)