Butter the sides of a small saucepan. Set aside.

In another 3-quart saucepan, combine water, pectin, and baking soda. The mixture will be foamy.

Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and set aside.

In the buttered saucepan pour corn syrup into the bottom. Sprinkle sugar in the center of the pan.

Turn the heat on medium-high and allow it to cook for one minute. Then stir gently to dissolve sugar. Be careful not to splash the sugar crystals onto the side of your saucepan.

Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.

Cook, without stirring, until a candy thermometer registers 260 degrees Fahrenheit.

You will continue to cook your sugar (ultimately you'll want it to reach 280 degrees which is the soft crack stage,) but at this point, you need to set your pan of pectin mixture back on the stove and heat it over high heat until it comes to a boil.

Once your pot of boiling corn syrup/sugar reaches 280 degrees remove it from the heat or turn off your gas.

Slowly and VERY CAREFULLY drizzle in the hot pectin, stirring slowly yet constantly. You DO NOT want to splash any of this hot boiling sugar on your hands.

Once all the pectin has been poured into the saucepan, return it to medium-high heat and cook it for one more minute, then remove from heat and pour into a glass bowl, with a spout, preferably. This stops it from continuing to cook.

Immediately add food coloring, if using, and flavoring. Start by adding 1-2 drops of color and ¼ teaspoon of flavoring. Add more coloring, if desired. To check if you like the flavor of your gumdrops, fill a glass with ice water, take a small spoonful of your hot gumdrop mixture, and set the spoon in the ice water.

Leave it in the water for at least 30 seconds. Remove it and touch it to make sure it is cool. Return to water, if too hot. Taste it. Adjust your flavoring accordingly. I found ¼ teaspoon of apple oil to be the perfect amount.

Carefully pour the hot mixture into the cavities in a silicone bunny mold.

Allow the candy to cool at room temperature for up to 8 hours. If you are in a hurry, cool for an hour then freeze for an hour.

To remove the gumdrops from the silicone mold, press on the backside while peeling the candy out of the mold.

Pour colored sanding sugar into a dish or bowl.

Stir in 1-3 teaspoons of citric acid.

Drop your gummy bunnies into the sugar and toss to coat.

If you want to add faces to your bunnies, use corn syrup as glue and add candy eyes, pink confetti nose, and black or chocolate jimmies for mouths.