How To Make Sugar-Free Hard Candy at Home
There are so many reasons you might want to make your own candy. You might have a knack for creativity and want to try something new in the kitchen. Maybe you’ve recently discovered our delicious low-in-sugar baking ingredients and want to use them in your own recipes.
Whatever your motivation for making candy at home, the beauty of creating your own sweets is that you can dream up fantastic goodies that suit your tastes perfectly. It's not hard, either.
Let's discover the types of sugar-free hard candy you can make in your kitchen in just a few easy steps.
What Types of Hard Candy Can You Make at Home?
You might know what you want your end result to taste like, but you're still unsure of where to start. The first step to making hard candy in your home is to decide which type gets your mouth watering the most.
Common choices include:
- Lollipops
- Individual candies
- Broken up sheet candy
Once you decide the type of hard candy you want to make, you can start gathering ingredients.
Which Ingredients Are Used To Make Sugar-Free Candy?
For this sugar-free hard candy recipe from Sweet Smarts, we’ll be using the following ingredients:
- ¼ teaspoon plant-based flavoring oil
- 1 ½ cups of erythritol
- ½ cup of water
- Plant-based food coloring in a hue of your choice
In addition, you’ll need the following tools:
- A precision thermometer, which you can buy for less than $10
- A lightweight stovetop pan
- Molds in a shape of your choice — we’ve got some tips for shapes to get listed down below.
- Lollipop sticks are optional but can make these candies even more fun to eat.
What Are the Steps for Making Sugar-Free Hard Candy?
Ready to make your sugar-free hard candy? Follow the steps listed below.
- Mix your erythritol and water and bring them to a boil in a small pan.
- Wait until the boiling mixture reaches the hard-crack stage (290 degrees). You can check this with your precision thermometer.
- Once the mixture reaches the right heat, put it on another burner and let it simmer.
- When it stops bubbling, stir in your vegan flavoring oil and vegan food coloring. You can use as little or much as feels right to you.
- Let the mixture cool slightly and place it into your candy molds. If you’re using lollipop sticks, place them in each mold so they’re touching the bottom.
- Let the candies cool in their molds until they start to retain their shape. You can refrigerate them overnight if you want, but they don’t need to be refrigerated to taste delicious.
How Can You Make Hard Candy More Exciting?
What, DIY candy isn’t fun enough for you already? Alright, alright — let’s spice things up.
If you're making sugar-free hard candy with friends or little ones, adding some decorative flair and unique flavors can amp up the fun.
Let's look at a few ways to make hard candy even more enjoyable (if that’s even possible).
Use Decorative Molds
After your sugar-free candy mixture has begun to cool, you can pour it into molds of your choosing. You might consider pouring the candy into multiple molds to add variety to the bunch.
Here are a few cute mold ideas for your hard candy:
- Butterflies
- Bears
- Bows
- Animals
- Fruits
- Instruments
If you're approaching a holiday like Halloween or Christmas, you can also select molds that match the season. Here are a few more candy mold ideas related to holidays:
- Skulls
- Pumpkins
- Ghosts
- Christmas trees
- Presents
- Hearts
- Four-leaf clovers
Add Food Coloring
Perhaps you want to take your hard candy to the next level. In that case, you might consider adding a bit of food coloring to your sugar-free mixture.
For multiple colors, simply separate the mix into smaller containers and add the coloring to each miniature batch. After they cool, you can enjoy bunches of multi-colored sugar-free candy.
Experiment With Flavors
Another way to make your candy more exciting is by adding flavor to it before it cools. Your candy will be sweet no matter what because of the sweetener. Still, adding splashes of flavor can upgrade your candy and make each batch unique.
How To Make Sugar-Free Gummy Bears
What if hard candy isn't your thing? If you want to try your hand at crafting other low-sugar sweets, we've got a few ideas in mind — starting with low-sugar vegan gummy bears.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 120ml (½ cup) fruit juice
- 1 tbsp maple syrup (for a lower sugar version, you can use our No Added Sugar Maple Flavored Syrup)
- ½ tbsp agar agar powder
Start by pouring the fruit juice of your choice into a saucepan. Next, mix in the agar agar powder until it’s fully dissolved. Add the maple syrup, then bring the mixture to a quick boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer.
Once it has reached a simmering point, let it sit for two minutes.
As the mixture begins to cool down, transfer the gelatinous liquid to the silicon molds of your choice. Place the molds in your refrigerator for 20 minutes to let them harden, then enjoy the vegan sweet goodness!
More Low-Sugar Recipes To Make From Home
We're on a roll now, so let's keep talking about the easy low-sugar sweets you can make in your kitchen. If candy isn't your thing, we've got a few other swoon-worthy recipe ideas for you.
3-Ingredient Cookies
Did you know you can make delicious, easy cookies with flax seeds, nut butter, and maple syrup? Okay, if you want to splurge, you can add a fourth ingredient: MiiRO Dark Chocolate Baking Chips.
Following our 3-ingredient cookie recipe will give you all the details you need to knock this lazy day recipe out of the park.
Vegan Apple Pie
If you're following a vegan diet, finding an apple pie recipe that doesn't contain animal by-products can be challenging… but not impossible. Following this vegan apple pie recipe will delight your taste buds with all the warm, cozy cinnamon feels.
Low-Sugar Popsicles
Popsicles are one of the MVPs of warm weather, but you can make them year-round, too! The flavor possibilities are endless. If you can drink it, it's popsicle-able.
Try using low-sugar fruit juice with coconut milk to create this savvy summer treat. Just stick the juice in a mold, pop it in the freezer, and wait for snack perfection.
Low-Sugar MiiRO Treats
When you're in the mood for a sweet snack that isn't homemade, you don't have to go overboard with sugar. At MiiRO, our low sugar and low carb chocolates and baking products challenge the idea that you need loads of sugar to enjoy sweets.
Each of our delicious, velvety Chocolate Bars contains less than a teaspoon of sugar and uses high-quality sweeteners that your taste buds will love. Browse our creamy Chocolate Bars or our dreamy Peanut Butter Cups to find the perfect plant-based sweet snack you can enjoy any time you want to revel in life’s simple joys.
Making At-Home Treats Is Easy
Your life doesn't have to revolve around sugar if you don't want it to. Sugar-free and low-sugar candy options can be every bit as lovely and exciting as traditional candy.
By now, you can see how easy it is to make your own candy. But sometimes, treating yourself to low-sugar, pre-made MiiRO chocolates is a necessity.
Sources:
Artificial sweeteners: sugar-free, but at what cost? | Harvard Health
Never Eat A Sugar Ridden Lollipop Again With These Sugar Free Suckers! | SweetSmarts
