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Wisconsin Parent

Holiday Bling: How to Make a Hard Candy Plate

Dec 04, 2014 09:47AM ● By Julie Henning
Holiday party season is in full swing and in Wisconsin it's time to pair cheese with some extra cheer.

Hosting a "Fancy Food/Ugly Sweater" even at our house later this week, I decided to get into the spirit with a simple craft event he most domestically-challenged of us can handle.

You will need:

  • One container of Washburn's Old Fashioned Hard Candies (I found a canister at Walmart for less than $2).
  • One cake pan or pie tin.
  • Aluminum foil.
  • An oven.
  • Hot pads and cooling rack.
  • Cheese.
To begin, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and locate the Washburn's Old Fashioned Hard Candies.

Line a cake pan or pie tin with aluminum foil. I originally thought I would have enough candy for two tins, but one canister of candy was "just enough" for one cake pan.

Aluminum Lining

Pour the hard candies into the lined cake pan or pie tin.

Candy in Pan

Rearrange the hard candies so the larger pieces are along the outside edge of the cake pan or pie tin.

Candy Rearranged

Pop the cake pan or pie tin into the oven and set the timer for 10 minutes. Check to see the candy is melting evenly and not bubbling out of control. My candy plate needed about 19 minutes in the oven when it was all said and done. Here's the best image I could take shy of cooking my camera.

Candy in Oven

Remove the cake pan or pie tin from the oven and place it on a cooling rack. Allow the candy plate to cool completely before lifting the aluminum foil up from the pan.

Removing Aluminum Foil

When cool, flip the candy plate over and carefully peel the aluminum foil from the candy surface. Mine came off with only a few tiny pieces to pick off. Determine which surface you like better (for me, the top turned out prettier).

Cooling on Rack

Top with your favorite Wisconsin cheese (and you can't go wrong with Sartori Cheese from Plymouth).

Sartori on Plate

Have a party. Eat cheese. Be merry.