Maple leaf rubber molds

[DocsMapleSyrup]

I'm wanting to get into making soft maple leaf candy. I'm pretty sure the rubber molds are for the softer candy. There are a few questions that I have and I'm hoping for some input with making the maple leaf candy.

What size mold to get 1/3oz, 1oz, 2oz? What size is the best to get the whole thing in your mouth? What have you found to be the most popular size for selling?

Approximately how many pieces of 1oz. candy do you get out of a pint of syrup (I'm assuming it's less than 16 because of the temp you have to bring the syrup up to)?

What is the easiest and best way to package?

Shelf life?

Thanks.

[wiam]

We sell mostly 1/3 oz. Recovery is about 75%. So 1 lb of syrup make approximately 3/4 lb on candy.

[SeanD]

1/3 oz. and 1 oz. are the most popular, but I like to have the larger sizes. When I have a backup in the trough, it's good to have a larger mold to help empty it out quickly. It sounds like you are working by hand, so it won;t be an issue for you. I package them in heat seal bags and keep them in the freezer between market days. Check out the info sheets the Cornell Extension puts out. Those are really helpful.

http://maple.dnr.cornell.edu/pubs/confections/Confection%20Notebook%20section7.pdf
http://maple.dnr.cornell.edu/pubs/confections/Confection%20Notebook%20section11.pdf

Sean