One of my favorite treats of the holiday season are spiced gumdrops. My grandmother used to keep a big bowl of them in her living room every year–and now my mother has carried on that tradition. Last year while we were making our holiday gifts, LittleMissSunshine asked me if we could make our own gumdrops and give them away. I thought that it must be a terribly complicated recipe, one that we couldn’t possibly make on our own. Was I ever wrong! It does take a bit of time, but it is a simple recipe, one that you can make with your kids. Even better, these are completely natural made with real ingredients–and they taste WAY better than the chemically flavored store brands.
Ingredients:
4 tbsp unflavored gelatin
1 cup cold water
1 1/2 cups boiling water
4 cups of sugar
10 drops each lemon, orange, peppermint and cinnamon essential oils
Food coloring (I buy natural food colors here)
1/2 cup your choice of sugar for coating
4 3×5 square cake pans
Directions:
1. Using a large pot, soften the gelatin in cold water for 5-10 minutes.
2. Add the boiling water to the softened gelatin, stirring until fully dissolved.
3. Stirring constantly, add sugar and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
4. Pour the mixture into the cake pans, dividing evenly.
5. Add your flavorings and food coloring to each pan–one pan lemon, one pan peppermint, one pan cinnamon, one pan orange. Stir until blended thoroughly.
6. Cover the pans and let chill for 6-10 hours in the fridge.
7. Remove from fridge and check if they are set. They should feel more solid than jello but not fully gummy texture yet.
8. Take a cup of hot water and a sharp knife. Let the knife soak in the hot water until the blade is warm, about 3-5 minutes. Use the knife to cut along the edges of the pan and to cut the gelatin into cubes. The gelatin may grab at the knife or pull–simply warm the blade again and keep cutting.
9. Separate the cubes and roll in the sugar to coat.
10. Set aside on sheet pans or paper to air dry. They will harden up a bit now. I let mine sit overnight.
Makes 8 dozen gumdrops
A few quick tips:
- I have used both regular food coloring and natural food coloring in these. Either work–it is up to you and your lifestyle which you choose to use.
- If you use raw sugar or a coarser sugar, try putting it in the food processor and pulsing it for a few seconds to get a finer sugar to coat your gumdrops.
- The longer you let the drops air dry, the gummier they become. The texture is up to you. If you prefer a softer gumdrop, then less time is better for you. If you like a harder gum drop, you may want to let them air dry for a couple of days.
- Taste test your mixture before putting the pans in the fridge. Some people’s spicy is another man’s bland. I like my lemon spice drops to be tart, so I will frequently add lemon juice or a teaspoon of citric acid to them.
- For cinnamon, you might want to add a tsp or two of ground cinnamon to the sugar you are rolling them in, for an extra kick.
