How to make sweets

To get the best results when making sweets at home, it's best to get the right equipment from the start.

Here is my personal selection of equipment that I tried and used and know that the quality withstands the heat and the process of sweets making.

Have a look at what you already have at home and what you can readily utilise.

The minimum you will need is a sugar thermometer, big soup pot (or other large pot) and heat proof surface.

You can use any large pot you have, but I prefer to use a non-stick soup pot as it's easier to clean afterwards. Don't underestimate the size, in this case, it really does matter! Most sugar recipes double in size (really rapidly!) when boiling and you can't keep the pot on a lower heat to prevent it from running over the top, because you would spoil the sugar syrup. With some recipes, such as honeycomb, the final stage involves the mixture tripling in size and running just about everywhere.

In the olden days chefs (before sugar thermometers were invented) would check the temperature of the boiling sugar by diving in with their fingers and checking how quickly the sugar thickened. Years of experience would tell them when the sugar reached 'hard boiled stage' or when it was just at 'soft boiled stage'. As much as I like history and doing things 'the old fashioned way' I'm grateful for the invention of the sugar thermometer. If you are completely new to working with sugar, getting the temperature right is definitely a step in the right direction. Without a thermometer, chances are you are going to end up with a burned pot.

If you already have a granite kitchen surface, you should be fine, but I prefer large marble. Make sure that the one you buy is a good thickness (at least 3 cm). That way it's not going to fly around as you are working and the thickness also means that the sugar will cool down quickly.

You will also need something to initially move the sugar mixture around the marble. The mixture will be very hot (over 100 C) so you need to use good quality heat proof equipment. I use a large stainless steel spatula or you can also use a sturdy stainless steel bread dough cutter.

To save you time looking around, I've included links to my favourite equipment items and since recommending my local shop wouldn't do much good, here is sweet making equipment you can get anywhere.