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Old Fashioned Divinity Cookies

This special recipe that baker Roberta Castillo’s mom made for her each Christmas season, featuring a unique mixture of meringue and marshmallow paired with the salt and richness of toasted pecans, is sure to please.
Course Dessert, Snack

Ingredients
  

  • 2 cups (400 grams) sugar
  • ½ cup (120 milliliters) light corn syrup
  • ½ cup (120 milliliters) water
  • 2 egg whites
  • 2 teaspoons (1 milliliter) pure vanilla extract
  • Pecan halves

Instructions
 

  • To make sugar syrup, mix together sugar, water and corn syrup in a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan. Cook the mixture on low heat, stirring continuously until sugar is dissolved.
  • Turn the heat up to medium high and continue to cook the mixture without stirring until it reaches 250° F on a candy thermometer.
  • As the syrup approaches 240° F, start whipping the egg whites.
  • To make the divinity mixture, in a large mixing bowl with whisk attachment, beat the egg whites until hard peaks form. Reduce the speed to low, and slowly and continuously pour the hot syrup mixture into the egg whites.
  • Stir in vanilla extract. Increase the speed to high and continue to beat the mixture until it loses its gloss and holds its shape, about 15 minutes. Check the consistency after 15 minutes. If the mixture is stilly runny and shiny, beat for another 5 minutes and check again.
  • Line a baking sheet with wax paper and spray 2 spoons with non-stick cooking spray.
  • Using the greased spoons, drop spoonfuls of divinity mixture onto the prepared sheet.
  • For colored divinity, prepare a piping bag with a large round tip and draw a few lines with red and green gel food coloring inside the piping bag. Then transfer the divinity mixture into prepared piping bag and pipe out 2-inch rounds on prepared sheet.
  • Rest divinity at room temperature for at least 2 hours to set, or overnight. (The candies should set in about 2 hours though.)
  • In an airtight container, store them at room temperature for up to 2 weeks or freeze them for up to 2 months.
Keyword baked goods, cookie