Sweeten Her Day: How to Make a Bouquet of Flower Lollipops

Summer is [almost] here! While we can’t believe it either, we’d be lying if we said that we weren’t looking forward to longer days, warmer weather, and the promise of colorful, fragrant blooms adorning our landscapes… and our upcoming projects!

While working on a garden might be on your list of to-do’s, we get extra excited for the excuse to make just about every cake, cookie, and candy project as floral as possible. Anyone else? We can’t be the only ones.

With  Mother’s Day coming up, we couldn’t think of a better project than a bouquet of flowers that’s extra sweet: hard candy lollipop bouquets! These delicate beauties are also the perfect addition to any spring or summer garden party centerpiece. In our opinion, lollipop bouquets are the best kind of bouquet you can get. They’re beautiful, handmade, and serve as a treat whenever a sugar craving needs to be satisfied. Add in your choice of edible flowers for a sophisticated twist!

Here’s what you need:

2 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup light corn syrup
3/4 cup water
1 dram (1 teaspoon) LorAnn super-strength flavoring, any flavor
Liquid or gel food coloring (as desired)
Daisy Lollipop Molds
Tulip Lollipop Molds
Rose Lollipop Molds
Sucker bags & twist ties
Edible flowers such as roses, lavender, or pansies (optional)
A candy thermometer (recommended)
Non-stick cooking spray

Make it!

Have all your ingredients and tools assembled and within easy reach of the stove; we recommend using metal spoons and measuring utensils. Before starting, lightly oil the cavities of clean, dry candy molds or spray with non-stick cooking spray and insert sucker sticks. You may also want to oil or spray a piece of aluminum foil for any excess candy you have left over after pouring your syrup into the molds.

1. Clip your candy thermometer to the side of a heavy 2-quart saucepan; make sure the tip does not touch the bottom of the pan. Mix together sugar, corn syrup, and water. Keep a wet pastry brush at your disposal to “wash down” any sugar crystals that form on the sides of your pan.
2. Let your mixture come to a boil without stirring. Continue to allow the mixture to boil until your syrup has reached the hard crack stage (around 300º F), remove it from heat. When the boiling action subsides, add in your food coloring then flavoring and stir to incorporate. Be careful when stirring to avoid rising steam!
   NOTE: If using edible flowers for this project, keep the food coloring to a minimum so that your flowers are visible in the syrup.
3. Allow syrup to cool briefly until most of the bubbles have settled. Carefully pour the hot syrup into your prepared flower molds. If you’re using edible flowers, fill your molds three-quarters of the way and then place them into your poured syrup at this time, using a lollipop stick to lightly push them in. Pour just enough syrup into the rest of the mold to cover the flowers.
4. Cool completely (DO NOT REFRIGERATE!) and store your lollies in sucker bags, securing them with twist ties. Store them in a cool, dry place.