Wintergreen Mints Recipes

OLD-FASHIONED HOMEMADE HARD CANDY

Steps:

• In a heavy 2 quart saucepan, combine the sugar, water and corn syrup. Cook, stirring constantly until the sugar is dissolved; then cook without stirring, lowering the heat and cooking more slowly during the last few minutes, to the hard crack stage (300 degrees F), If sugar crystals form on sides of pan, wipe them off with a damp brush.
• Remove from heat, add oil flavoring and enough food coloring to color; stir only to mix. Pour into 2 well buttered 9 inch pans. Set one pan of candy over a sauce pan containing hot water (unless you have a helper to help cut the candy). As soon as the other pan of candy is cool enough to handle, cut it with scissors into 1-inch strips. Then snip the strips into pieces. Work fast. Drop the pieces onto a buttered baking sheet. If the candy cools too quickly, set it on a saucepan over hot water to soften it, but if it gets sticky, return at once to the work counter.
• Toss in a small amount of powdered sugar to keep from sticking together. Repeat with the second pan of candy.

CHOCOLATE COVERED MINT PATTIES

Steps:

• Combine corn syrup, butter, extract, salt, and food coloring in a medium size bowl. Stir until well combined.
• Stir in 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time until mixture is too stiff to stir.
• Add more powdered sugar and knead mixture until it no longer sticks to your hands, adding more powdered sugar as necessary.
• Roll into 1-inch balls and place on trays or baking sheets lined with waxed paper.
• Flatten with a flat-bottomed cup or your hand.
• Cover with another sheet of waxed paper and refrigerate for 60-90 minutes or until firm.
• Melt chocolate candy coating according to package directions.
• Dip the candies into the melted chocolate with a fork, tap off the extra, and place back on the waxed paper.
• Repeat until all candies have been coated.
• Let candies set up until chocolate is firm before storing in an airtight container.
• Candies can be frozen in single layers separated by waxed paper if desired.

OLD-FASHIONED BUTTER MINTS

Steps:

• To the bowl of stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine butter and salt and beat for 1 minute on medium-high speed.
• Add 3 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar, milk, peppermint, and beat on medium-low speed until a dough forms. If the dough seems wet, add additional confectioners' sugar until dough combines (I use 3 1/2 cups sugar). The dough will be crumbly but will come together when pinched and squeezed into a ball.
• Taste the batter. If you want a more intense mint flavor, add additional mint extract, to taste (see note below).
• Remove dough from the mixer, separate it into 1 to 4 smaller balls, and add one ball back into the mixer. Add the food coloring of your choice to the ball by squirting the droplets on top of the dough (careful when you turn on the mixer), and paddle on low speed until coloring is well-blended. Coloring will not blend completely into each and every speck of dough if examined extremely closely, but overall, mix until color is uniform. (I separated approximately two-thirds of the dough and made it green using about 15 drops green food coloring and made one-third of the dough red-pink by using about 7 drops red food coloring).
• Wash the mixing bowl and the paddle in between each color change and repeat until all the balls are colored.
• After the dough has been colored, either wrap it with plastic wrap and place it in an airtight container in the refrigerator to be rolled out later or roll it immediately.
• To shape the butter mints, place a golf-ball sized amount of dough in your hands and roll dough into long thin cylinders about 1 centimeter wide. Place cylinders on countertop and with a pizza cutter (or knife - be careful of your counter), slice cylinders into bite-sized pieces, approximately 1 centimeter long.
• Store mints in an airtight container in the refrigerator where they will keep for many weeks.

WINTERGREEN MINTS

Steps:

• 1. In double boiler, combine powdered sugar, water, food coloring, and mint extract. 2. Cook until mixture loses its gloss and becomes dull. 4. Immediately drop by teaspoonful onto waxed paper or press into candy molds.

MINI STRAWBERRY, RHUBARB AND WINTERGREEN BERRY TARTS

Steps:

• Before starting on the pastry, make sure your vegan butter and vegetable shortening is chilled. Right before you begin, pour about half a cup of water over several ice cubes, and set it aside.
• Start the pastry by combining the flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl and whisk. Add the vegan butter and vegetable shortening, in chunks about 1 tablespoon in size. Use a pastry cutter to cut the fats into the dough, until there are no pieces larger than a pea. Add ice cold water, one tablespoon at a time, and stir until you have a crumbly dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, and place in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Use a rolling pin to roll your chilled dough out between two sheets of plastic wrap. Use a circle cookie cutter or a glass or a jar, about 3 ½- 4 inches in diameter to cut 12 circles out of your dough. If needed, roll the dough scraps into a ball and re-roll the dough into a sheet to obtain the 12 circles. Place the circles into the wells of a muffin tin, and push them down sit centered on the bottom. Place the dough in the muffin tins into the fridge, and make the filling.
• Chop the strawberries and the rhubarb into small pieces. Add them, along with the wintergreen berries, sugar, cornstarch and vanilla into a mixing bowl and mix until they're totally coated. Once the oven is to temperature, remove the crust from the fridge and divide the filling evenly between the 12 mini tarts. Place the tarts in the oven for about 12 minutes, until the crusts are slightly golden on the outside. Let the tarts cool fully before enjoying.

HOMEMADE MINTS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, beat cream cheese and mint extract until smooth. Gradually beat in as much confectioners' sugar as possible; knead in remaining confectioners' sugar. , Divide mixture into four portions. Tint one pink, one green and one yellow, leaving one portion white. For each color, shape into 1/2-in. balls. Dip one side of each ball into sugar. Press sugared side into small candy molds; unmold and place on waxed paper. Let stand 1 hour or until dry before storing in airtight containers; refrigerate. May be stored for up to 1 week before serving.