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"Hey, I can do that!"


Thursday, June 16, 2011

Homemade Gummy Candy

Homemade Gummy Candy

Ready for another "Hey, I can do that!" adventure?  I've jumped on to the homemade gummy candy band wagon!  Kim from http://www.eat-the-evidence.com reassured me that it's super easy.  She'll be demonstrating how to use gelatine in many ways at the Capital Confectioners cake club's Day of Sharing next month.  She will also be teaching some of those techniques for the club's monthly class.  I've used gelatine several times (e.g. fondant, pastillage, gelatine sheets, and of course JELL-O), so I wasn't too intimidated after researching some recipes.  The proportions and ingredients varied, but I eventually settled on the simplest recipe I could find, especially since I actually had all the ingredients on hand.

Stats:
  • 1/3 c cold water
    • try juice instead for an extra fruit kick
    • try sweetened condensed milk for opaque white
  • 1 small box (3 oz) of JELL-O (featuring strawberry flavored)
  • 2 packets of unflavored gelatine (featuring Knox brand)

Pour the JELL-O and gelatine into the water.  Recipes I found online say "sprinkle" the gelatine into the water, but I don't get how you sprinkle it when the ratio of solid to liquid is practically 1:1.  I guess you want it evenly dispersed.  Otherwise, the gelatine can lump together later on and you'll have to work that out.


Let the gelatine "bloom" ... which means let it sit there and do its thing.  I think I let it sit for 5 minutes while I cleaned up and prepared my tools.


The gelatine will congeal ... it's practically gummy at this point.  Wiggly and very little liquid pouring out.


Now you need to heat it up so all the sugar and gelatine will dissolve and the result will be clear (or at least not cloudy).  Recipes online had it on low heat in a pot on the stove.  I kinda forgot about that and just popped it in the microwave like I usually do when I make fondant.  I did 30 second intervals and stirring in between.  It took about 2 1/2 minutes total to get the consistency I wanted.  30 seconds was apparently too long in the end and the liquid bubbled up and overflowed in the microwave.

YUCK!  When's the last time I cleaned the microwave plate anyway???

Once all the solids have dissolved, you can start pouring into your molds.  I tried pouring directly from my Pyrex measuring glass and also using a baster.  The baster isn't a precise instrument ... it would be neat if I had a smaller version of it.  Hmm ... maybe I should have dug out some of my daughter's medicine droppers.  Dang ... why didn't I think of that earlier?  I set out my new Wilton Fondant & Gumpaste molds as well as some candy molds (hearts and seashells).

UPDATE (2011-07-07)
I recently tried making gummies again and used the Wilton Squeeze Bottles (for chocolate candy making) to pour into molds.  It worked great!  My gummy mixture was about 175 degrees.  I didn't damage the bottle, but I did have to hold it wrapped with a towel.


LFMF (Learn From My Fail)!  If you get bright red liquid on your kitchen table, clean it up immediately!  It might not exactly stain, but it'll be a nice reminder for next time.




This is a messy adventure.  You might have to re-warm up the liquid as it starts to gum up on you.  Here is the chopstick I used to stir with.



The seashells turned out the worst.  The liquid was very bubbly at this point, so there was a little foam on the top.  I recall some recipes using gelatine suggest to filter off the foam.  I can see why.


Let these puppies set in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.  The candy mold gummies took the longest to set because they were so deep.


The Wilton mold gummies turned out the best.  The candy caught all the details of the mold beautifully!  The silicone gave it a matte finish too, where as the plastic candy mold trays made the gummies look glossy.


Here's a big bubble that had formed on the back that I didn't reconcile.
 
 LFMF!  Don't put the gummies on a ceramic plate!  It stuck immediately.  Afterward, the gummies went straight to my silicone mat.  It's pretty hot and humid right now, so the gummies are spending the night in the fridge.  Otherwise, I'd bet there'd be a puddle of red goo on the counter in the morning.



The gummies released from the silicone molds nicely, but not so much from the candy molds.  Recipes said you didn't have to prepare the molds in any way.  It was tough to pull out the hearts, but you can be pretty firm with the candy without damaging it.




 Cute as a button!  Really!

Matte vs. Glossy


Not sure what I'm going to do with all these!  I've already got a bit of a tummy ache from sampling them (for quality assurance, mind you).  They taste just like firm JELL-O (big surprise).  Hope my co-workers are peckish.

6 comments:

  1. Very clever! Think they'd work as cake decorations too, instead of isomalt or sugar candies? Or too heavy?

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  2. that's what i was thinking! i'm concerned it would melt, though, when in contact with icing. perhaps on fondant? when it's not humid? or maybe if there was more gelatine in it so it'd be harder ...

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  3. What a great idea - thanks for sharing.

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  4. Has anyone made these and put them on a cake? What icing did you use..buttercream or fondant?

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  5. I am wondering the same thing:)?

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  6. So ... make some and lay them on some fondant and see what happens and then you can report back ... lol

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