Thisdivinity candy recipe is a classic, old-fashioned candy recipe that my kids request every year. It’s the perfect treat to give to neighborsor friends.
Before we got married, my husband made divinity, and he’s made it for Christmas every year since we got married. My recipe is slightly adapted from the Betty Crocker’s Cookbook we received as a gift at our wedding.
My kids grew up eating divinity, and it just wouldn’t be Christmas for them without it.
What Is Divinity
According to Wikipedia,divinity is a nougat-like confection made with egg white, corn syrup, and sugar. It’s softer than most store-bought nougats but not as soft as a marshmallow. It’s very sweet and sort of melts in your mouth when you’re eating it.
Often nuts, especially pecans in the South, are added to divinity. However, my family prefers it without nuts. (Two of my grown kids still don’t care for nuts.) If your family loves nuts, definitely add them.
How to Make Divinity
Making divinity isn’t difficult, especially if you have a stand mixer and an instant-readthermometer. You can use a hand-held mixer to beat your egg whites and do the initial mixing, but once the divinity gets thick and creamy, you’ll have to finish mixing it by hand. The hand mixer motor isn’t strong enough to beat it when it’s thick.
It’s important to cook the sugar mixture to 260°F or until asmall amount of the hot sugar mixture dropped into very cold water forms a hard ball that holds its shape but is pliable.
Next, you’ll beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Once the egg whitesare whipped, you’ll continue beating while you slowly pour the hot sugar mixture into the whipped egg whites.
Lastly, you’ll beat in the vanilla extract and stir in the nuts, if using. Instead of using traditional vanilla extract, I used aclear vanilla extract so my divinity is a brighter white.
Once the divinity has thickened to a creamy consistency, you need to quickly divide it into individual portions. We’ve found it’s easiest if you use two spoons to portion it out.
Use one spoon to scoop up the divinity and a second spoon to push the scoop off of the spoon on to the parchment paper. You could also spoon it onto a Silpat or wax paper.
How to Store Divinity
Let the divinity set up on the parchment paper for about an hour or two. You want to wait until it’s no longer sticky and removes easily from the parchment paper.
Store the divinity in an airtight container. Or, we prefer to wrap the divinity in plastic wrap in individual servings. Then the divinity stays softer and is easy to give away as gifts.
When I’m making it for the kids, we generally skip the plastic wrap and use small size sandwich bags.
I decided to put my divinity candy recipe on Barbara Bakes so the recipe would be easy for my kids to find and make themselves one day with their kids. I hope you’ll give the recipe a try too.
Stir sugar, corn syrup and water over low heat until sugar is dissolved. Cook, without stirring to 260ºF on candy thermometer or until small amount of mixture dropped into very cold water forms a hard ball that holds its shape but is pliable.
Beat egg whites in a stand mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form. Continue beating while pouring hot syrup in a thin stream into egg whites, beating constantly on medium speed. Add vanilla. Beat until mixture holds its shape and becomes slightly dull. (If mixture becomes too stiff for your mixer, you'll need to beat it by hand.) Gently stir in nuts if using.
Use two spoons to push dollops of candy onto parchment paper or a Silpat. Let stand at room temperature until candies feel firm. Store in airtight container or wrap in plastic wrap to give as gifts.
Notes
*Can sub traditional vanilla extract
**Use 1 tablespoon less water on humid days and let dry longer on parchment paper
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Divinity is a confection made from egg whites, corn syrup, and sugar. It's similar to nougat, fudge, or marshmallow. Tip: replace the sugar with brown sugar to create "sea foam." Other ingredients can be used to give the candy other tastes, like chopped dried fruit and chopped nuts.
In a meringue, the sugar syrup is cooked to about 240°F or until the sugar forms a soft, malleable ball when a spoonful is dropped in cold water. For divinity, the sugar is taken a bit further to 250°F (or the firm ball stage) where it can hold more structure.
There could be several reasons that your divinity did not turn out fluffy: The syrup was not at the right temperature when it was added to the egg whites. The egg white and syrup mixture was not beaten long enough. The humidity was too high.
Divinity candy is an old-fashioned confection made with very simple ingredients such as sugar, egg whites, water, vanilla, and corn syrup. It is nougat-like in texture, but slightly lighter, and nuts, dried fruit, or candy are often added.
As sugar attracts water, any humidity or moisture in the air can affect how your divinity turns out. Divinity should be dry and set within two hours, but have patience. It may take a little longer.
Corn Syrup – This is added to stop the sugar from crystalizing giving you a very smooth, chewy texture that's not grainy. Sugar – White granulated sugar is the best for this recipe, avoid brown sugar or it'll affect both the taste and look of the divinity.
Store the divinity at room temperature in an airtight container for up to two weeks. Make sure the environment is not humid, as excess moisture in the air will make the candy sticky.
Divinity candy stays fresh even at room temperature for 10 to 14 days. The heat from the sugar syrup removes the danger of the egg content spoiling. To store the divinity candy, line an airtight storage container with wax paper.
High humidity hastens the breakdown of sugar as it cools. Once the candy has cooled to the point where it can no longer evaporate moisture, it can actually begin to reabsorb moisture. This produces a softer product than may be desirable.”
You can sometimes correct a divinity fail. If it is too stiff, add very hot water, beating in a half tablespoon at a time until it reaches a fluffy consistency. If it is too thin and does not set, try adding 1/2 tablespoon at a time of powdered sugar until it thickens.
It's best to make divinity on a cool, dry day. If it's humid (over 50%) or rainy, the candy might end up with a more gooey, or grainy texture. If you're making candy on a hot or humid day, cook the candy a few degrees higher than the recipe specifies to overcome these undesired side effects.
Similar to Turkish Delight and other nougat/meringue-type candies, divinity is made by cooking sugar syrup until firm then beating whisked egg whites into it. Many believe that the name of this Southern confection is derived from how it tastes --"divine!"
To store: Once the divinity candies are set, place them in an airtight container with parchment paper in between layers and store at room temperature for up to 1 week. You can also freeze them in airtight container for up to 2 months.
How long does No Nut Divinity last? Divinity candy can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. It can also be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. If you are storing divinity candy in the refrigerator, let it come to room temperature before cutting it into squares.
Old fashioned divinity is a vintage recipe for a meringue-based candy that I would describe as somewhere between fudge (even though there is no chocolate in most divinity, it is often even referred to as Divinity Fudge), nougat, and marshmallow.
Typically known as "divinity," this fudge is unlike your average. This is because it's a fluffy white or artificially tinted fudge. Whereas traditional fudge is made from your usual baking ingredients (sugar, butter, milk and cream) -- divinity is created out of sugar, corn syrup, egg whites, and artificial flavoring.
Early Beginnings. The exact origins of divinity candy are a bit murky, but it is believed to have originated in the Southern United States, particularly in the early 20th century.
Consider this: divinity hates humidity. It's best to make divinity on a cool, dry day. If it's humid (over 50%) or rainy, the candy might end up with a more gooey, or grainy texture.
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