Castellon's Kitchen: Black Mirror Candy (Black Sesame Seed Brittle)

Mirror, Mirror on the wall...can you believe no food coloring was used at all?

The beautiful black color was created entirely from black sesame seeds. All those little gems make a striking piece of candy, don't you think? The color so dark and pure that you cannot see through it. The real beauty is when it's cracked and all the layers of creamy, nutty deliciousness are revealed!

Mirror, Mirror on the wall...who's the fairest of them all?

Beautiful on the outside with deliciously complex flavors in the inside, is a perfect metaphor for the way we should see ourselves. Our inner most desires, experiences, and feelings create a complex landscape that shapes who we are, and our personality. But often we spend a lot of time tending to how we look, and how we are perceived on the outside. And often we work hard to protect the delicate centers of ourselves from revealing the things that are painful or make us feel insecure.
So how about we use this brittle as inspiration to help us to no longer hide all those fears, feelings and experiences. Let's silence those inner voices that whisper uncertainty that wear down our confidence, by letting them break free and speak to our beauty, not just the familiar reflection in the mirror, but that beautifully flawed and gorgeously unique inner self. Let's go crack some mirrors!
💀180 days until Halloween💀

Black Mirror Candy (Black Sesame Seed Brittle)

Makes ~1 pound candy

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup water
1 cup black sesame seeds

Needed equipment: candy thermometer

Measure out all ingredients and prepare cookie sheet(s) with parchment paper before beginning.
Add sugar, corn syrup, and water to a small saucepan with a candy thermometer and cook over medium heat. Stir occasionally and heat until the sugar mixture reaches 305-310 degrees on a candy thermometer. This is the hard crack stage. If you do not have a candy thermometer, heat until a small amount of mixture dropped into very cold water separates into hard brittle threads.

Once the sugar mixture has reached 305-310 degrees, turn off the heat and immediately pour the sesame seeds into the sugar mixture. Quickly stir to incorporate. (I wasn't able to get a picture of this step because the candy sets up very fast) Immediately pour out the sesame seed brittle onto your parchment lined cookie sheet(s). Note: I used two parchment lined cookie sheets and poured half of the sugar mixture into two ovals to mimic my broken mirror frames, but you can pour it all onto one cookie sheet.

Work quickly as the candy will immediately begin to harden but try to spread the candy mixture to about 1/4 inch thickness, with a silicone spatula. If it's too firm to spread with a spatula, place another piece of parchment paper over the hot candy and use a rolling pin to roll it out to a 1/4 inch thickness. After rolling it to desired thickness, leave the parchment in place until the candy is cooled enough that it releases easily.
The surface of the candy will be dulled a bit after using the rolling pin and parchment paper. To polish the surface of your candy after removing the parchment paper, raise an oven rack to second highest setting and turn on the broiler and let the oven heat up for about 5 minutes.
Once the oven is hot, transfer the cookie sheet with your dulled candy under the broiler. Leave the oven door open and watch the surface of the candy until it turns shiny, moving the cookie sheet to evenly heat the surface until it's glossy. This process only takes about 1 minute total so DO NOT close the oven door and Do NOt stop watching your candy at any point while under the broiler. Once glossy, remove immediately and let cool.
Once completely cooled, break up the brittle and serve or store in an air tight container until ready to serve.