[It may sometimes be too late for coffee, but it's never too
late for (Tu Bishvat) toffee...]
In America we call these candies taffy and in Israel we call
them toffee. Either way, these pliable sweet treats make
great miniature Tu Bishvat fruits. They can be used for a
post Tu Bishvat activity, for cake decorations or
m'shloach monos [see -- we can even be EARLY].
Finger size Tu Bishvat toffee fruit can be made easily on the
kitchen table in ten to thirty minutes of afternoon activity
enjoyment time. It is not messy and only requires about
twelve pieces or less of wrapped toffee per child for four
pieces of fruit and a woven taffy tray or plate. It is also
an inexpensive Tu Bishvat activity for whole classes of
school children or with other groups.
FRUIT PLATE
Taffy fruits can be served on a plate as the miniature fruit
plate center piece. Or, combine taffy `fruits' with marzipan
(almond paste) for an elegant and sweet assembly of mock
samples of the seven-species of Eretz Yisroel or other
specimens of Hashem's creations.
A TAFFY PULL
Today, Israeli taffy comes to us in a parve version and is
pronounced `toffee'. Taffy comes in a variety of types. Taffy
with butter, cream, or with vinegar, sugar and water, and
those with molasses and peppermint oil. Making your own taffy
necessitates a good pair of arms and a free afternoon ready
for an old time candy pull event, surely to be memorable.
Do any of us remember the old fashioned taffy pull? I can
only say that I heard of it from my Bubbie. Her parents in
Russia had a soda and candy factory. I can almost envision my
grandmother as a young girl with braided hair and a white
apron working with the taffy. Her strong hands gathering up
the soft mass on a block and repeatedly twisting, folding and
pulling out lengths of satiny opaque toffee before cutting
the soft pliable mass into edible size pieces and wrapping
them.
AMOUNTS AND DIRECTIONS
You will need about twelve pieces of toffee per child for
every four fruits and a toffee basket or plate.
Easy Directions
Toffee is pliable if you find the right variety. Elite
candies make the Megadim brand with a Badatz supervision. It
should be soft and workable immediately. If it is hard, it
will crack. Soft toffee makes very cute little bite size
fruits that can be molded into miniature bananas, grapes,
pears, oranges etc. Add on whole cloves for instant stems.
(For older children and adults only.) Or form your own stems
and leaves from the toffees.
Toffee comes wrapped in bite size pieces in soft pastel
colors. Try to get the colors you'll need: green for stems
and leaves, yellow, pink, lemon, orange etc. for the fruits.
If your `palate' is limited, with only yellow, pink and
orange, use the orange as if it were brown. For example, add
a tiny ball of orange (for brown) at each of the tips of a
banana and pull the toffee between the thumb and first finger
to form the cut-off banana stem.
Toffee doesn't lend itself to intricate details because of
its texture, so keep your design simple. You can blend colors
slightly by `pinching' and `pulling' two colors together.
Apply a blob of a green stick on top of a yellow fruit for a
stem. Pull the toffee between the thumb and the first finger
to form the stem and pinch off the excess green toffee so
only a very thin short stick remains. The two colors will
have mixed a bit from the yellow and the green. Roll a tiny
piece of yellow and green together for two leaves. Join to
stem.
WOVEN BASKETS OR PLATES
* Toffee can be molded into woven baskets or plates.
Roll out little `snake's, all the same size. Flatten slightly
and weave to make a mat or basket.
* Or flatten out a toffee and shape sides up to form a bowl.
Press in a complementary color to form an abstract design on
the surface of the bowl.
* Or work the toffee to be a little larger than you want it
to be. With scissors, cut out a circle shape, being careful
not to cut off more than necessary of the toffee square.
Bring sides up to shape a round basket. Put fruits inside.
TREES
Try putting a handful of toffees together to make a tree with
fruits. Small trees, not larger than the size of an egg can
be formed to stand with a toothpick support in the center.
Trees can be made to lie flat on a tray. Keep trees from heat
to prevent wilting. Likewise, a warm room temperature makes
the toffee more pliable.
MORE TAFFY SWEET IDEAS
Cake Decorations -- Torah scrolls, miniature flowers, little
children, letters, cars/trains, twisted candles.
Before using toffee candies for cake decoration, take an
extra fifteen minutes and try out different arrangements
until you come up with your favorites. Repeat the successful
designs as needed for your cake decorations.
* Flowers: make several individual petals, attach to a ball
in the center, add stem and leaves.
* Torah scrolls: roll two cylinders and attach to rectangle,
one at each side. Add details as desired.
* Toy car: shape a car/train in one color such as yellow and
fit on pink wheels. Add a light green window.
* Little children: roll out six or eight balls. Use one for
the head, another for the shirt and another for the skirt or
pants. Roll four cylinders for arms with hands and legs with
feet. Mold hands and shoes from ends of cylinders. Add
features and details: eyes, nose, mouth, hair, kippa,
buttons etc. as desired.
* Letters: draw out a pattern or design of the letters and
words on paper first. Roll toffee into thin or chubby letters
and arrange on cake as desired.
* Twisted candles: roll out two snakes of different colors.
Twist them together around a toothpick and stand them up on
cake. Real string can be used for wick, stuck on top, or red
licorice `shoelace' can be twisted in and looped on top for
an edible wick.
Devora Piha is available for art and crafts therapy for
motorical skills and/or emotional difficulties.
Ramat Beit Shemesh 02-992-0501
