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brightly colored homemade sour easter gumdrops in bunny, carrot, chick, and egg shapes
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Sour Easter Gumdrops
Prep Time
25 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
 
This Easter fill your candy dishes and baskets with these cute and colorful sour Easter gumdrops. Each bite-sized bunny, chick, carrot, and egg-shaped candy is coated in colorful sugar that has been blended with citric acid to give it a sour punch.
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: candy, gumdrops, sour candy
Servings: 36
Calories: 61 kcal
Author: Beth Klosterboer
Ingredients
Gumdrops:
  • baking spray and butter to grease pans
  • ¾ cup water
  • 1.75 ounces powdered fruit pectin (do not use low or no sugar pectin)
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup light corn syrup
  • ½ teaspoon flavored candy oil (green apple, watermelon, cherry, lemon)
Colored Sugar
  • ⅔ cup granulated sugar
  • 3 teaspoons citric acid powder plus more to increase the sour flavor
  • liquid food coloring
Instructions
Gumdrops:
  1. Spray an 8-inch nonstick square baking pan liberally with baking spray.
  2. Grease one medium-large saucepan with butter and set aside.
  3. In another medium saucepan combine the water, pectin, and baking soda.
  4. Stir the foamy mixture and set over high heat.
  5. Bring to a boil then remove from the heat and set aside.
  6. Pour the corn syrup into the greased saucepan then add the sugar on top.
  7. Set the pan over medium-high heat and allow it to cook for one minute.
  8. Gently stir the sugar into the corn syrup and continue stirring until the sugar begins to dissolve.
  9. Place a lid on the pan for two minutes. The steam build-up will help wash any sugar crystals down the sides of the pan.
  10. Remove the pan lid then clip your candy thermometer onto the side of your pan.
  11. Cook, without stirring, until the thermometer registers 260 degrees Fahrenheit.
  12. At this point place the pan of pectin back over high heat and bring to a boil.
  13. Once the pan of sugar syrup reaches 280 degrees F remove it from the heat.
  14. Begin stirring the sugar syrup and then drizzle the hot pectin into the pan very carefully. The mixture will bubble up and the steam will be very hot.
  15. Once all the pectin has been poured into the saucepan, return it to medium-high heat and cook it for one more minute without stirring.
  16. Remove from the heat and stir in the flavored candy oil.
  17. To test if the candy will set properly you can drop a spoonful of the hot liquid candy into a cup of ice water. Let it sit in the water for 30-60 seconds then lift it out.
  18. The candy should have cooled down enough to safely touch and it should feel firm but pliable like a gumdrop.
  19. If it’s too soft, then you will need to reheat the mixture to 280 degrees F.
  20. Pour the liquid candy carefully into your prepared 8-inch pan.
  21. Set aside to cool and firm up for 8 hours.
Colored Sugar:
  1. Stir together the sugar and citric acid.
  2. Divide the sugar into small zip-top bags according to the number of colors you’d like.
  3. Add drops of liquid food coloring to each bag and shake and knead the sugar until the color completely coats the sugar.
  4. Pour the colored sugar into bowls and set aside, stirring occasionally, until it air dries.
Cutting Gumdrops:
  1. Just before cutting the gumdrops place the pan in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
  2. Remove from the freezer and run a thin plastic spatula or metal knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the candy from the pan.
  3. Flip the pan upside down and allow the gumdrops to fall out of the pan.
  4. Spray your mini Easter cookie cutters with non-stick baking spray.
  5. Press a cutter into the gumdrops to make a nice clean cut.
  6. Push the candy out of the cutter into a bowl of the sugar.
  7. Toss the candy to evenly coat it with sugar then set it on a non-stick baking pan to dry.
  8. Continue to cut your gumdrops.
  9. The scraps of gumdrops and be cut into small pieces and tossed in the remaining sugar.
Recipe Notes

Store covered for up to 2 weeks.