A lollipop recipe perfect for making custom lollipop cakes
This lollipop recipe is easy to make and perfectly customizable. Change up the colors, flavorings and decoration to suit your theme. I love making this lollipop recipe because it makes a big impact and doesn't take a lot of work. Perfect for those trendy lollipop cakes!
What ingredients are in a lollipop recipe?
- 8 oz sugar
- 5 oz corn syrup
- 2 oz distilled or bottled water
- ½ teaspoon candy flavoring
- food coloring (optional)
The great thing about this simple homemade lollipop recipe is that the ingredients are easy to come by. Anyone can make them. You probably have these ingredients in your house already if you do any amount of baking. All you need is granulated sugar (not powdered), corn syrup, distilled (or bottled) water, candy flavoring and food coloring if desired. I also added some sprinkles to my lollipops for decoration.
Candy flavoring might be the odd ingredient in there but it's easy to find. You can get candy flavoring at stores like Michaels or Jo-Anns craft stores or in your local cake decorating supply store. Candy flavoring is specially formulated to withstand the high temperatures of hot sugar without losing it's flavor. You can't use juice or extracts in place of candy flavoring and get the same results, unfortunately.
What equipment and tools do you need to make a lollipop recipe?
To cook sugar you're going to need some equipment to make your life easier. I don't use any lollipop molds for this lollipop recipe but you can definitely use molds if you need a specific shape or size. Just make sure you are using molds made for hard candy, otherwise, they could melt from the hot sugar.
- Stainless steel pot with a heavy bottom to evenly distribute heat
- Candy thermometer
- Lollipop sticks
- Silicone mat
- Culinary torch
- Silicone gloves for protecting your hands
How do you make homemade lollipops?
Making the lollipop recipe is actually pretty simple when it comes down to it. Combine your sugar, corn syrup and water in your saucepan and bring it to a boil. Reduce to medium heat to a steady simmer. No need to stir. Cover your mixture with the lid for 5 minutes. This causes condensation to form on the lid which will drip down the sides of the pan and wash away and stray crystals of sugar which can cause crystallization if not melted.
Alternatively, you can also use a clean pastry brush and fresh water to brush around the sides of the saucepan to wash down the sugar crystals. Just make sure it's a new pastry brush and doesn't have any grease or food debris in the brush that might ruin your candy.
Once the mixture is bubbling away, insert your candy thermometer and remove the lid. This is the part where we have to wait for the water to evaporate out of the mixture. That might take a few minutes. You will notice that your temperature will stay around 225ºF for a while until all the steam disappears. Do not stir the mixture at all.
Watch your candy thermometer carefully, as soon as all the steam disappears and your water is gone, the temperature will rise quickly and you don't want to burn it. Let your mixture bubble until it reaches 300ºF which is called the hard crack stage.
Once you reach the hard crack stage, remove the mixture from the heat. Stir in your flavors and colors now if you prefer. Now you can pour your candy into your molds or onto your silicone mat to make your lollipops.
How to make lollipops without a mold
To make your homemade lollipops, wait for your mixture to cool down a bit so it gets a little thicker. If you pour 300ºF sugar onto your mat it's going to run all over the place.
You can also pour your candy into a smaller silicone measuring cup to have more control over the shape of your lollipop. If you need a lollipop template you can print out my lollipop template to place under the silicone. Make sure you wear some protective silicone gloves to prevent sugar burns.
Do a little test pour if you need to to make sure that the sugar is keeping it's shape. Make sure your surface is level or you're going to have a hard time getting round lollipops without a mold.
Place your silicone mat over the template and pour your sugar until it's slightly smaller than the circle. Place one of your lollipop sticks in the bottom ⅓ of the hot sugar then turn it over so that the stick is totally covered (see video).
If you're adding sprinkles, you can put a few on top now. For the gold leaf lollipops, I placed the leaf on the lollipop right after pouring.
To make my marbled lollipops, I colored my candy with a drop of white food coloring and another bit with a drop of black food coloring. Swirl together and pour. If you want your lollipops clear, only add food coloring. If you want them to be opaque, add a drop of white food coloring along with your color.
Let your lollipops cool for 10-15 minutes before lifting them off the silicone mat.
Once your pops are cool you can lightly torch the back side to make them crystal clear (optional).
How long do homemade lollipops last?
Lollipops don't really have an expiration date since they are made of sugar and sugar is naturally self-preserving. Don't tell me you've never eaten year old Halloween candy. I know I have.
I did a little test and left my lollipops at room temperature for a few weeks just to see what would happen. It's February so we got all kinds of weather. Snow, sun, rain, hail. The only thing that happened was they got a little sticky. They probably wouldn't have gotten sticky if I kept them covered but I wanted to know if the air would affect them. If you're in a very humid area you should def keep them covered or individually wrapped with cellophane to keep the lollipops from turning into a sticky mess.
What can you do with leftovers?
You can pour leftover lollipop sugar onto a silicone mat and let it cool completely. Crush it into pieces an store in a plastic ziplock bag. Then you can re-melt it whenever you need some hard candy. No need to bring it back up to 300ºF, just melt in the microwave in a heat proof container.
Can you make this lollipop recipe without corn syrup?
This lollipop recipe contains corn syrup because corn syrup prevents crystallization. In some places of the world, it can be hard to get corn syrup. No worries, you can still make homemade lollipops without the use of corn syrup.
Simply leave out the corn syrup from this recipe but be very careful to wash down the sides of your pan to prevent sugar crystals from growing. If your sugar does crystallize, there isn't a way to save it.
How do you make a lollipop cake?
You may have seen some trendy lollipop cakes on Instagram lately and wondered how they make them! I decided to make one of my own with my lollipop recipe and I love how it turned out! I made three different types of lollipops. Clear with gold leaf, clear with gold dragees and white marble. I made three of each kind and arranged them on top of my cake.
I decorated my marbled fondant cake with some gold leaf to match the lollipops and love how it turned out. The key is to arrange the lollipops and varying height and mix and match them so they look balanced.
Want to learn how to make your own lollipop cake? Watch this video on how I created some beautiful gold and marble lollipops and used them to decorate my marble cake to create a trendy lollipop cake design!
For a sugar-free lollipop option, use Simi-Cakes ready to melt isomalt.
Recipe
Ingredients
Lollipop Recipe
- 8 oz granulated sugar
- 5 oz corn syrup
- 2 oz distilled water (or bottled)
- ½ teaspoon candy flavoring
- food coloring (optional)
Instructions
- Combine sugar, corn syrup and water in a heavy-bottomed, stainless steel pot over med-high heat. Bring to a boil
- Cover the mixture with the lid and let condensation build for 5 minutes (this helps to wash the sugar off the sides of the pan). Remove lid and reduce heat to medium.
- Insert candy thermometer and let mixture cook (do not stir) until it reaches 300ºF.
- Remove mixture from heat and stir in flavoring and colors
- Let mixture cool a bit until it's thick enough to hold it's shape when poured and then pour into circles on your silicone mat (or into your candy molds). Insert your lollipop sticks and let cool completely before removing them from the mat.
- Torch the back sides of the lollipops (optional) to make them super clear. Store in air-tight containers at room temperature or wrap individually to prevent them from getting sticky.
Video
Nutrition
Lollie says
Do you have a recipe for "sugar-free" lollipops...a few of my friends are diabetics, but truly love your artistry lollipops!
The Sugar Geek Show says
For sugar free lollipops use isomalt which is a sugar substitute used in sugar free candies
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qozKaUYhtk
Missy says
Can I seal this with PME glaze to avoid it getting sticky? Or will that make it taste weird? I've never used the glaze but I've seen you do it on your isomalt eyes.
The Sugar Geek Show says
Yes you can 🙂
Missy says
Thanks Liz! ?
Teisha says
I tried making these but mine came out more amber like caramel and then there is a slightly bitter taste. I’m sure I burned the sugar but I took it off at 300. Is there a way I can prevent this. Can I take it off a little before 300. It harden so fast that even adding color was difficult, any tips?
Lauren says
How do you keep them clear? Getting my sugar to 300 made it much darker (although they taste fine so it’s not burnt).
The Sugar Geek Show says
Using distilled water is usually what keeps them clear and then stopping the cooking right at 300º
Alison Price says
Hi, how do you clean the pan quickly after. The lollipops don’t take long to make but the clearing up puts me off.
The Sugar Geek Show says
I fill my pan with some water and bring it to a boil or you can put the pan in the dishwasher
Alison says
Thank you. Took me ages to clear up yesterday especially from the sides of the pan. Scared the sugar will block up the dishwasher
The Sugar Geek Show says
It won't 🙂 Sugar dissolves in water very easily
Amanda Lee says
Hi. I tried this, but without corn syrup. Mine looked nice, but then ALL OF THE SUDDEN, a cool reaction happened right before my eyes! I have no idea what I did, but all of the sudden, it like turned back into sugar. I'm guessing I burnt it. But it had already been off the oven for a few minutes and I also put it in the ice bath like you did in the video. What did I do wrong?
The Sugar Geek Show says
Hi Amanda, your sugar crystalized which can happen because of not adding the corn syrup. Corn syrup is an invert sugar which inhibits the granulated sugar crystals from getting grainy.
Kelsey says
These were super fun to make!
Jay says
Where do you buy the gold leaf?
The Sugar Geek Show says
amazon is where I got mine 🙂
Bell says
Hi! I've never made lollipops before and want to give these a try for a cake I'm decorating. My question is will the lollipops begin to melt if left out at room temp for a few hours? I've made sugar only shards before and they ended up melting all over my cake! Thank you!
The Sugar Geek Show says
It depends on the humidity in your area. Lollipops are made of sugar so they will melt if it's very humid outside
Kayleigh says
Can you help me with how to get bubble free mixture when using in molds for smsll lollys. Will the torch burn the mold if i lightly go over the top and is this best to do when mixture is still hot or cool.
Thank you in advance for your reply.
Kayleigh
The Sugar Geek Show says
First, wait until the mixture has cooled slightly so the mixture is clear when you pour. You can definitely lightly torch the top to pop bubbles when the mixture is hot
Emily says
Is there any reason the water should be bottled or distilled?
The Sugar Geek Show says
Yes, regular tap water has impurities in it that will burn and turn the sugar brown before you reach the correct temperature
Sejal Patel says
Hey loved the lollipops candy just one query to ask for is there any substitute for corn syrup because of lockdown i am short of corn syrup if u can replace it then it's gonna be helpful. Thank you in advance.
The Sugar Geek Show says
The only other thing you could use is glucose
Emily says
Hey, great advise! What food colouring do you use? I'm struggling with the marbled effect, when added to the pan unless its fully mixed in it seems to stick to the pan when i pour.
Elizabeth Marek says
Sounds like your mixture is just getting cold, warm it up a bit until it's liquid again
Marcela M says
Hi Liz!, if I decorate a cake with these lollipops could they be affected if I leave them in the cake in the fridge overnight?, thanks🙏.
Elizabeth Marek says
They do get sticky but shouldn't be otherwise affected.
kayleigh says
Do you need the lollies to completely cool before spraying with glaze? Also how if using molds can you achieve both sides of lollipops to be smooth as my underside has a texture. I've tried plastic molds but some ive purchased have melt. Also when using cooking sprayto release the lollipops are left with grease on them?
Elizabeth Marek says
Hi, you can't use plastic for hot sugar. They need to be silicone. Torch the underside that touched the mat to remove the texture and once they are cool enough to handle, you can spray them.
Barbara M says
Can the flavoring be omitted? I assume it will still taste good as duh, it's sugar, but wanted your opinion! Thanks!!
Elizabeth Marek says
Yep! It will just taste sweet instead of like any particular flavor
Angela L. says
I loved the video and watching you create such beautiful cakes. I plan on making a lollipop cake for my sister for her birthday. My only question: “Is there any other way to get lollipops clear other than torching them?” I don’t own a torch and my stove is a glass cooktop.
Elizabeth Marek says
Not that I know of
Lisa B says
This was so fun and easy once I had the right tools. The silicone mixing/pour cup I found to be a huge help and the torch is a must for the super polished look of the lollies.
MS says
Hi,
This recipe is great! Worked really well! Just wondering if you know where I can get either heart shaped lollipop moulds or giant circle lollipop moulds? I’ve searched the highs and lows of the internet and can’t seem to find any!
Thanks!!
Sugar Geek Show says
Hi yes I have a heart shaped lollipop tutorial! https://sugargeekshow.com/recipe/heart-lollipops/
Zeneida Bisono says
Best recipe ever!l fast and easy to make!
Mira says
Amazing recipe. Colored it pink. Easy and quick.