Maple Divinity Candy

I like to make candy of all sorts; sometimes using honey, sometimes sugar, but my favorite types are made with maple syrup. Yum!

Divinity is an old-fashioned type candy that’s not quite a nougat, not quite a marshmallow, not quite a fudge, it’s just light and sweet and oh so good! This version uses only a few easy-to-obtain ingredients. The original recipe is found in various places over the internet including this one at About.com’s Southernfood, but I halve everything and still end up with enough candy to last for several days. (It’s rich!)

Maple Divinity Candy

• 1 cup pure maple syrup
• 1 egg white
• dash of salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 chopped nuts like pecans, walnuts, almonds, etc (optional – omit if desired)

Pour your maple syrup in a heavy saucepan and brush down the sides with a wet pastry brush or damp, clean piece of cloth/paper towel. Turn burner to medium-high and bring to a boil. (Don’t stir!)

While the syrup is boiling, separate the white from an egg and place it in a heat resistant mixing bowl. Sprinkle a dash of salt over it and swirl it around a few times to mix it in a bit. Pop this in the fridge until you’re ready for it.

Use a candy thermometer to keep tabs on the temperature (don’t guess with this recipe.) Once the syrup reaches 250 to 260 degrees F, remove from heat.

Grab your egg white out of the refrigerator and using a hand mixer, beat until stiff peaks form. Slowly, and carefully, drizzle a thin and steady stream of the hot syrup into the egg whites, beating all the while. Add vanilla, once the syrup has been incorporated.

Continue beating until the mixture thickens and begins to lose its gloss. If your hand mixer can’t handle the effort, you may have to mix by hand with a spoon for the last few minutes. Stir in the chopped nuts, if desired.

The easiest way to form these is to use two spoons – one to scoop out a mound of candy and the other one to push it off onto wax or parchment paper. Once all of your candy has been shaped, allow to air dry for a few hours, turning once.

Traditional divinity, made with sugar and corn syrup, is stored at room temperature in an air tight container for up to two weeks. I like to store maple divinity in the fridge or freeze though.

When it comes to making divinity, humidity is your enemy! It must be made on a dry day. If it’s raining or hot & humid out, save yourself some frustration and just make it another day. Also, make sure that you use 100% pure maple syrup for this recipe. It should be found in most grocery stores near the regular pancake syrups.

I hope you enjoy this recipe! I have several other candy recipes indexed on my Recipe Page, if you’d like to check them out!