I remember the days of walking through the streets of Greenfiled Village and getting so excited about eating Rock Candy. This treat has been around for generations and is a fun afternoon activity to do with your kiddos when they're bored.
Ingredients
4 wooden candy sticks or popsicle sticks
4 cups of granulated sugar
1 cup of water
Food coloring
Candy flavoring or flavored extract (optional)
Quart Size Jars
Clothespins
Directions
Soak sticks briefly in water and roll in sugar to coat. Allow to dry completely.
Add warm water to a large saucepan. Stir in sugar until mostly dissolved.
Place the saucepan on the stove, and bring to a low boil over medium heat. Add remaining sugar and any additional sugar as needed until you reach a fully saturated solution and no more sugar will dissolve. Allow to cool for 25 minutes.
Set clean jars and add food coloring and candy flavor to individual jars.
Slowly pour sugar solution into individual jars. Tip: pouring sugar solution into a measuring glass with a pour spout will reduce spillage.
Add two sugared sticks to each jar, making sure that the sticks don't touch the jar or each other. Use clothespins to hold the sticks in place as needed.
Set in a place where they will go undisturbed and watch each day as the crystals begin to grow on the sticks. Depending on size of desired candy stick, these delicious treats are usually ready in 5-10 days.
