Adventures of a Chef On The Run: DIY (Cherry) Kool-Aid Hard Candy

Since childhood, I've had a soft spot for lollipops and candy in general, although I know how bad that is for me.  Part of my love comes from the fact that hard candy is just like glass, and as a glassworker and a chef, that's intruiging. 

It's another one of those amorphous solids, and man I love those. From dabs to glass to candy, they all fit this interesting description.  A solid without a defined shape, how cool.

This is something I never imagined I could do myself easily, let alone with four ingredients and no experience in candy making.  So I'll share my recipe with you, for simple hard candy flavored with koolaid packets.

1 packet kool-aid, any flavor

1 cup, 200g sugar

150g corn syrup

110 g water

I use koolaid for the ease, as I hadn't come in contact with the bottled flavoring oils that professionals use for candy.  @modprobe brought me some from the states yesterday, as well as 48 packs of cherry koolaid from the states.  Of all the exotic flavors available here, cherry just isn't one of them.

I tend to get inspired by new things like 48 packets of cherry koolaid, so I decided I was making candy. And I did at 11:30 at night, and they turned out amazing.

Start by combining all the ingredients and putting them into a smaller pot.  Put on medium heat, and pay attention to what medium actually means on your stove.  For example, medium on my stove is actually medium low, so just look at your flame and that will tell you. Electric stoves may or may not be more accurate, so beware.

Stir until everything is dissolved, it should start boiling thereafter.  Once it does, stop stirring and let it cook. 

It'll start with massive bubbles that decrease in size over time.  It'll go from clear and bubbly to foamy and borderline off white in color with small bubbles.

I know it's ready when I stir the sugar and it all sticks to the spoon, so it pulls away from the sides of the pot when you stir.  If I'm unsure, I just drop a bit in some cold water.  If it makes a rigid strigny sculpture, it's ready.

Turn off the heat and stir to drop the heat some.  Adding the kool aid too early will cause it to burn, resulting in less or bitter flavor.  I've not had this happen, so I don't know.

If you want a more natural alternative, here's where you'd add oil and coloring.  I just dump the packet in and stir until the whole thing is evenly colored.

Pour into molds, I like silicone for the purpose.  If you're using plastic, make sure they're heat safe or they'll warp.

This is a great experiment to do with kids, and just with yourself too.  So long as you pay attention to the things I talked about in this article, success is nearly guaranteed.  

Leave the candy to cool, by the time it's room temperature it's ready to eat. I pop it out of the molds and pack it at this point.

Usually I make these with dabs, as I sell them to friends for extra money.  These were sin (that is without in spanish) dabs, totally for eating anytime, like now.

John doesn't usually approve of such frivolous candy eating, but when it comes to that intense cherry flavor he cannot say no, and he hasn't.

Try these at home, tell me your results!

Thanks for reading, following and supporting us, happy candy making!