Title:	Candy Is Magic: Real Ingredients, Modern Recipes
	Author:	Jami Curl
	Published:	April 18, 2017, Ten Speed Press
	No. of Pages:	312
	Cover Price:	$35.00 Hardcover, $18.99 Kindle

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One of the best things about Candy is Magic by Jami Curl is the author’s enthusiasm on the subject of candy. It’s actually catchy, and will make readers want to start making candy now. This is certainly not your typical candy cookbook – it doesn’t have recipes for fudge, penuche, divinity or the old fashioned candies. Rather there are dozens of unique recipes for lollipops including several fruit flavors, coffee flavor, and caramel lollipops, along with trendy flavors such as Chai Tea Lollipops, Pinot Gris Lollipops, and Pinot Noir Lollipops. There are recipes for homemade marshmallows (several kinds), fancy gumdrops, and innovative caramel confections.

The section on ingredients, equipment, and flavors is very comprehensive and has enough information to turn even the most inexperienced cook into a great candy maker. Curl’s explanations are not only easy to understand, but her enthusiasm and love of the subject come through and will energize everyone. Some of the prose is witty and fun, so the book is a joy to read, even if it isn’t a good time to make candy.

Before making some of the candies, most will need to go to a good supply store to purchase special ingredients and some special equipment – none of it is expensive, but it is necessary nevertheless. Once that is accomplished, the only difficult thing will be to choose what to make first. The beautiful pictures help to let us know what the different candies will look like, but there are so many that look mouthwatering, it will make choosing even more difficult.

Contrary to what is in most candy cookbooks, Curl has included ice cream recipes in this book, as well as fruit syrups, Magic Dusts, and infused creams. There is also a chapter on special projects that actually sound like fun, and may be something to involve the whole family.

This is definitely not your grandmother’s candy cookbook! Anyone serious about making unique, trendy sweets will have fun with this excellent cookbook.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.