After Cooking And Baking For Almost 40 Years, I Finally Have A Candy Thermometer

I have been cooking and baking for almost 40 years now. It's a passion of mine. Over the years, I've tried a myriad of kitchen appliances and gadgets. With most, I have not been impressed. At this stage in my life, what I have is what I love. You won't find fancy kitchen gadgets in any of our kitchen drawers. And, our kitchen counter certainly isn't decorated with appliances to air fry or cut cooking times in half. However...I will admit, there is one kitchen gadget that I've never tried or had in my possession, but I have wanted.

A candy thermometer.

Admitting this is kind of embarrassing.

In the past, I've occasionally tried my hand at making simple candy such as lollipops, fudge, toffee, and peanut brittle.

I've used the old-school technique of drizzling the mixture into a glass of cold water to determine the stages of softball and hardball.

All of my attempts have failed.

With each failed attempt, I muttered to myself...

"I need to get a damn candy thermometer."

I've also muttered the same thing to myself after watching videos on how to make various candies. All of the tutorials included a candy thermometer being put into the sweet confection and removed when the desired temperature was reached.

"I need to get a damn candy thermometer."

And, it never fails. Every Christmas season when I'm determined to make at least one special candy for treat baskets and pails...

"I need to get a damn candy thermometer."

Early Saturday morning, Lisa and I had a conversation over coffee. These coffee chats are all over the charts. No rhyme or reason. They happen every Saturday and Sunday morning.

After a brief silence, something emerged in my brain.

"You know how much I love making cheesecake, right? I'd really like to make you a salted toffee cheesecake for your birthday."

"That sounds delicious. What do you need?"

"A candy thermometer. A lot of what I'd like to make requires that."

"Aside from the salted toffee cheesecake, what else?"

"Homemade peanut brittle."

A few hours later when Lisa returned home from running errands, she presented me with a candy thermometer.

Ah. Huh.

Peanut brittle is her favorite.

Need. I. Say. More.

I finally have a damn candy thermometer.