Homemade Black Licorice Recipe
When I was a kid my parents used to drop me off at the town’s local movie theater. I’d meet up with my other pre-teen friends and we’d behave as if we were the coolest kids on the planet. I’d also buy a coke (yes, lowercase ‘c’ because where I’m from ‘coke’ is synonymous with any type of soda) and some Twizzlers.
In high school as a senior I was allowed to leave the campus for lunch and sometimes I’d go to a natural foods healthfood store and pick up natural, black licorice. I’m a licorice fan.
I never thought I’d make licorice at home. Who would have thought that it was even possible? Not me. Thank goodness for the internet and some reliable recipe sources.
This stuff is buttery delicious. I know that sounds like an odd adjective but seriously, the candy is buttery. It is chewy and molasses-y. It’s better than the natural stuff from the healthfood stuff and it is leaps and bounds better than Twizzlers. It couldn’t be easier to make, either.
Homemade Black Licorice (from Saveur)
Ingredients
- 8 tbsp. unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup dark corn syrup
- ½ cup sweetened condensed milk
- ¼ cup blackstrap molasses
- ⅛ tsp. kosher salt
- ¾ cup whole-wheat flour
- 1½ tbsp. anise extract (I found it at walmart)
- 1½ tsp. black food coloring
Instructions
Line a glass 8″-square baking dish with parchment; grease.
Bring butter, sugar, syrup, milk, molasses, and salt to a boil over high heat in a 2-qt. saucepan fitted with a candy thermometer until temperature reaches 265°.
Remove from heat and stir in flour, extract, and coloring; pour into pan. Chill until firm, 30–45 minutes.
Invert onto a cutting board, peel off paper, and cut into ¼”-thick ropes; twist to shape.
Place on baking sheets; let sit 1+ hours until set. Store between parchment in an airtight container.