Pina Colada Skull Lollipops

Pina Colada flavored Skull Lollipops

By now you can tell I am having a bit of a love affair with lollipops! You can't fit a whole lot of calories in one and they are easy to take on the go! This is my 3rd time making hard candy lollipops, each time a little different.

Since I haven't before I wanted to show you some of the supplies needed in making the lollipops

Supplies 

small pot (not pictured)

candy thermometer

lollipop sticks (not pictured)

White lollipop mold made for hard candy (still wet since I had just washed it)

plastic lollipop bags with ties (both found at my local cake store)

metal spoon (for both stirring molten hot sugar and for filling the cavities)

 

Ingredients:

(this makes 12 lollipops plus extra for loaf pan)

flavoring (I used a full 1 dram bottle of LorAnn oils)

 1 cup of sugar

1/3 cup corn syrup

1/3 cup water

  

Prepare mold with cooking spray and stick. Mix sugar, corn syrup, and water in pan. Cook on high heat, without stirring, until 302 degrees on a candy thermometer. As soon as the temperature is reached, remove from heat and add candy flavoring and candy coloring, if desired. Using a metal spoon, spoon the molten hot candy into each of the lollipop cavities and pour the rest into a sprayed loaf pan. After about 30 minutes, unmold.

I was multi-tasking when making these, okay I was chatting on the phone, so some of the skulls migrated to the edge and didn't fully get covered when I filled the mold cavities. Usually, I spray the candy mold with cooking spray first, this time I forgot, luckily the lollipops still came out just by pressing on the bottom of the mold. I did add the skull sprinkles when I put the sticks in the mold. Molds need to be prepared BEFORE cooking the mixture. The molten candy begins hardening fast, so time to work is limited!

As usual, I broke up the extra from the loaf pan for snacking! Using the 1 dram container of flavoring may have been a little strong, but the Pina Colada flavor may not have been as obvious without the entire container, and I would do it that way again. I decided not to add candy coloring to these, so they are "natural" colored.

  

~Christina

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Graduation Lollipops

The countdown to graduation continues!

The recipe used in making these lollipops is from Sprinkle Bakes, once again I halved the recipe. This is my second time successfully making these and they are easy and I just love them!  Before starting the cooking process, using cooking spray, I sprayed my 2 lollipop molds (makes 6 lollipops each) and sprayed a loaf pan to accommodate the extra candy to be broken up for snacking as well. I also put the sticks in the molds at this time.

In a medium saucepan, stir together- 1 cup of sugar, 1/3 cup corn syrup, and 1/3 cup water. Cook on high heat, without stirring, until 302 degrees on a candy thermometer. As soon as the temperature is reached, remove from heat and add candy flavoring and candy coloring. Using a metal spoon,  spoon the molten hot candy into each of the lollipop cavities and pour the rest into the loaf pan.

After about 30 minutes, I unmolded everything and piped the dates on with candy melts that I had melted and put into a piping bag with a coupler and Wilton tip 3.

These would also be for a New Year's treat with the year piped on! There are endless posibilities from names, to dates, to swirls in how the lollipops are decorated.

CONGRATULATIONS

CLASS

of

2012!

 

~Christina

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Beach Cupcakes!

Last week we had a great time on spring break spending 4 days of it at the beach! I love the heat of the sun and the sound of the ocean!

Spring break may be over, but the beach lives on...in these cupcakes!

Easy to make using candy molds for the palm trees and shells. I let each color of the palm tree set up before adding the next. The sand is simply brown sugar pressed onto the frosting!

 

I can't wait for the warm weather to stick around so we can go to the beach more often!

Now it's time to countdown until summer!

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Homemade Pink Lollipops

Pretty Lollipops in Pink!

Every since I saw Karen's beautiful blue butterfly lollipops at Trilogy Edibles, I have wanted to make some for my little girl! I thought today would be the perfect day to give them to the kids on the car ride to the beach!

I bought the mold a few days ago in anticipation of making these lollipops. Apparently you can't just use any candy mold for hard candy, it has to be one made just for hard candy, but that was easy enough to find at my local cake store. Next, I needed to find a recipe. I decided to use a recipe from a candy book that I have had for over a year now and not made a single recipe in it.

My first attempt...FAIL! First, I found that my 6 inch lollipop sticks were too long and had to cut them down to fit in the molds. It is also a little difficult having an electric stove, the burner goes off and on and off and on. When I picked the stove out years ago, I had no intention in ever baking much less making candy, so I wanted a flat top electric. Well, I think that was another of my many problems. The next problem, I think my candy thermometer is a little slow at registering.  I am really not sure what went wrong, but the sugar began caramelizing right well before the 300 degrees that the sugar needed to reach. I continued on and poured it in the molds and realized it wasn't just caramelizing, it had started to burn. I now had a garbage can full of disappointment!

So where did these pretty pink lollipops come from?

I decided to give it one more shot before heading off to the beach. Instead of using the same recipe again, I decided to use the tried and true recipe that Karen from Trilogy Edibles had used. The recipe is from Sprinkle Bakes. Shazammm! It worked! I did cut the recipe in half first, since I too, only have one lollipop mold. Hey, I want to try it before I invest in more than one! I also decided to take the sugar off the burner as soon as the thermometer hit 275, in case it was slow at registering. For flavoring I used 3 tiny candy droppers full of Wilton Cherry Candy Flavoring. I am not sure if it is necessary that candy flavoring should be used, or if any type of flavoring can be used, so decided to go with the oil based flavoring. I also added just one drop of pink gel coloring, the same coloring I use in my icing. There are tiny little specks of pink in the lollipops, so maybe I should have used candy coloring, but that really doesn't bother me as much as my first attempt.

I still ended up with extra molten hot sugar even after halving the recipe and filling my mold of 6 lollipops. I have made candy before for the Broken Glass Cupcakes, so before I started this whole adventure, I prepared a metal loaf pan with cooking spray to accommodate any leftover molten sugar that I may have. This candy sets up quick so everything must be prepared in advance. Once the candy had set, it easily unmolded from the pan and with one swift bang on the counter, I had all these beautiful pink shards of candy to snack on!

Now...I think I need to find some more hard candy molds, shapes and stuff!

Be sure to check out the beautiful blue butterfly lollipops at Trilogy Edibles which inspired me to try these!

For the recipe and to see some gorgeous spring flower lollipops made with real flowers, visit Sprinkle Bakes!

~Christina

 

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Rose Brownies with Mint Frogs

Spring break is going on here and I have been having a blast with the kids! I don't want to spring break in the kitchen, but I just had the urge to make a little something sweet without a lot of time! I used a dark chocolate brownie mix and substituted coffee in the mix for the water and sprinkled the top of the brownie batter with a spring sprinkle mix before baking. After baking I let the brownies cool fully before cutting the circles with a cookie cutter.

The decorations were quite simple since I always save my "dud" royal icing flowers. Royal icing flowers will keep practically forever in an airtight container once they have fully dried and that is how I store the flowers that didn't turn out so perfect to use for stuff like this. I melted white candy melts and colored green with candy coloring and added creme de menthe candy flavoring to the candy. The candy was drizzled on using a piping bag with the tip snipped off. I immediately placed a rose on top of the of the brownies while the candy was still melty.

I had leftover melted green candy and decided to make up some frogs to go on the brownies, however the roses were already stuck down, and there wasn't enough room left on top of the brownie for the candy frog, so they are just hanging out on the side!

 ~Christina

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Easter Bunny Pops

I have never been a fan of an Easter basket full of candy. I like to include healthier treats and useful gifts. In fact, this year my kid's Easter baskets will contain no storebought candy at all! Instead I made all of these bunny pops! You may recognize the Pink Bunny Pop that made from leftovers and just couldn't wait to share with you not too long ago!

Dark Chocolate and Vanilla White Chocolate Bunnies! The little bows are glued on with a dab of chocolate.

All packaged up and ready for the Easter Bunny to Deliver!

Happy Easter!

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Don't forgot to stop by and link up your Easter crafts and recipes at:

Look for the features from the Bunny Hop to be posted on Easter Sunday- April 8th!

Bunny Pop

This year I decided that I just can't buy Easter candy when I can make it instead!

I found this cute little Nordicware bunny pop mold at Target! I think I am becoming the candy mold junkie, every time I see one I have to get it!

If the pink Candiquik looks familiar, it is what I used it in making the Pretzels in Bloom!

I made one bunny in pink and the rest I will do in chocolate just in time for the visit from the Easter Bunny!!



Pretzels in Bloom

I love dipped pretzels, the sweet and saltiness I crave, all in one place. Dipped pretzels are super easy to make too, but these...are easier! These pretzels are made using a Wilton Pretzel Mold. For some reason our Michael's (where I usually shop for Wilton products) has been sold out of all of their pretzel molds. If you can't find them at Michael's, try Party City, that is where I got this pretzel mold.

The purple candy is precolored Wilton Candy Melts. The pink candy is Vanilla Candiquik colored pink with pink Wilton Candy Coloring. Whichever you like to use, melt according to package directions. Put the candy in a piping bag and snip of the end just a very tiny bit to make the dots in the flowers. Let the dots set up a few minutes before piping in the second color. Be sure not to fill the cavities full of the candy as you will need room to press in the pretzel. The pretzel won't be all the way covered. To make them look a little more finished, I zig-zagged candy across the back. Now that the weather is warm, it is easiest to just pop these in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes to set up. If they don't unmold easily, they aren't ready to be unmolded, stick them back in the fridge!

These pretzel molds come in many designs and as soon as I find them, I will be adding more to the collection! So just when you think it can't get easier than dipped pretzels, try these molded pretzels...not to be confused with moldy pretzels! Haha!

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Snowflakes & Snowmen Recap

Winter 2011

Is that it? Really Winter 2011? Technically Winter didn't even start until December 21st and is still going on...but I am just not feeling it. Watch old man winter come late and hang around until June! Today, a jacket isn't even needed! When it was raining a couple days ago and around 60 and sunny yesterday I almost complained, and then I thought, "Hey this really isn't bad for January, this is good weather!" So while adorable little snowmen are still appearing in blogland, mine are here to say good-bye, my mind is springing forward!

Oldest to Newest....Newest to Oldest

Where should I begin?

Newest.

Snowflake Cookies

These were my crown jewel of the season, my absolute favorite!

Snowman Gingerbread Cookies

These were just a fun and yummy cookie with the snowman candies that my daughter loved so much!

Dude, Where's My Snowman? Cupcakes

This is what happens when I am having a rough day...I find laughter in making snowmen pee!

I am not really a snowman bully...he just had too much eggnog!

Snowman Oreo Pops

Once again, the favorite snowman candies on a favorite quick and easy treat!

Snowman Oreo Pops

This is the traditional Snowman Pop I found popping up on the internet possibly originating from The Farm Girl Recipes, that was as far back as I could find it!

Dipped Christmas & Winter Oreos

It doesn't get any easier than this and I just thought they were so pretty...and yummy! I really don't like just eating Oreos plain, but dipped, now that is another story. There is a red and green Christmas Tree version of these also on the original post.

Mini Snowman Cupcakes

This was the first time I used the mini snowman candies. My youngest daughter picked out the snowflake mini cupcake liners and the candies for these cupcakes!

Snowman Family & Snowflake Cookies

My first cookies of the season!

Snowman Family & Snowflake Cookies

Just the snowflakes from the collection. These were my first snowflakes, they were my favorite until I made the last snowflake cookies of the season (listed first on this page)!

 

Mint & Dark Chocolate Snowflake Candy

Some may call this "bark", I just call it "candy", since it was made in a mold. It is another super easy and pretty sweet treat and they were the first snowflakes of the season!

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Mrs. Fox's Sweets 2011 Christmas Recap

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Today is a day for family, fun, and festivities!

Maybe Santa brought you a new baking supplies? Of course it is never too late to bake up Christmas goodies, and many can be adapted to winter or other seasons!

Here is what I baked up this Christmas season!

 

The #1 Viewed Sweet I made was:

#1- Holiday Peppermint Patties

#2- Christmas Dipped Oreo Pops

#3- Christmas Tree Cake Pops

 

The many more sweet treats I made for the 2011 Christmas Season

(In no particular order)

Pink Princess #25- Cool Peppermint Cupcakes

Polka Dot Christmas Tree Cupcakes

It's a Pink Christmas! Cupcakes

Dipped Christmas & Winter Oreos

Peppermint Cake Pops

Christmas Present Cake & Bow Tutorial

Christmas Cupcake Bites

Peanut Butter & Chocolate Cookie Cups

 Gingerbread Men & Boys

Christmas Light Cupcakes

Christmas Tree Cookies

  

I baked up a sweet treat for my furry heartbeat at my feet...

Rex's Cookies...These Cookies are for the Dogs!

  

For the first time at Mrs. Fox's Sweets, I also baked up a craft!

Salted Dough Handprints & Ornaments

 

Look for a recap of all of my Snowmen & Winter decorated sweets in a recap coming in January!
  

From the Mrs. Fox's Sweet's Family to yours

Have a very Merry Christmas

& Happy Holiday!

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