Holiday Hokey Pokey

Holiday Hokey Pokey isn't a dance—it's a great, quick gift. My in-laws were serving as missionaries in New Zealand when my husband and I met, and years before my husband had served a mission in Scotland. Both of these countries have a lot of the same foods, food customs, and candy.

If you've ever had a Crunchie bar or a Violet Crumble, the middle is what Kiwis call "hokey pokey." There, they even mix it into ice cream. (Other places call it "honeycomb," which is a pretty good description.) It's a little like toffee--caramelized sugar--with tons of tiny bubbles throughout for a fun, light texture.

My original plan was to make my grandma-in-law's famous toffee—but my thermometer display steamed up and I was afraid I'd ruined my first batch, so I decided everyone would get some hokey pokey. (It actually tastes pretty good, though.)

I used a recipe from Candy Addict and seriously thought about Sunday Hotpants's experiments. To make hokey pokey, you mix 1/4 c corn syrup with 1 cup sugar. Make sure the sugar dissolves completely, then boil for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Then sprinkle 2 tsp baking soda dissolved in 1 Tbsp water over the sugar mixture. It bubbles up:



Note that it does get darker when you add the water & baking soda, so you might want to add it a little sooner than I did. Stir it in quickly and pour into a pan lined with freezer paper.

Let it cool, then break in pieces. You can put it in ice cream, dip it in chocolate or just enjoy! If you keep it, be sure to store it in an airtight container at room temperature.

I used this as holiday gifts for my mother- and sisters-in-law this year. I got some cute holiday tins at Wal-Mart and lined them with oiled waxed paper (yes, both—it stuck to the waxed paper). Since I had to prepare it a few days in advance, once the hokey pokey was cooled, I put the lid on each tin and wrapped the tin in several layers of plastic wrap. (Here's hoping it keeps!)

This idea came from Martha Stewart via Pinterest:

Source: marthastewart.com via Jordan on Pinterest

But the closest hammer we found on short notice was this:

We decided to skip that part ;) .

What do you like to give family and neighbors?