Rainbow-colored and cloud-like cotton candies cram child-friendly places and kids (and we, adults, secretly) simply adore them! Often times, we want to look “cool” in front of our kids and curtail the cravings of our sweet tooth. What do we do? Here’s a step-by-step guide for you to follow in creating your own cotton candy sans the vendor’s cotton candy machine.
First Part: Preparation
Be ready to set up the following tools and ingredients. Most of the ingredients and tools are practically the basics of your kitchen.
Get these ingredients:
- 2 cups of sugar
- ½ cup water
- ½ corn syrup
- 1 tsp. cherry extract
- food coloring
Tools:
- cooking spray
- measuring cups
- large pot
- bamboo skewers
- candy thermometer
- whisk (note: choose an inexpensive one)
- wire cutter
- newspaper/ clean paper/ plastic
Improvise your whisk:
- Using your wire cutter, cut each loop of your whisk (refer to note). Form each into straight wires.
Second Part: Actual Cooking
Hazard: Candy mix can is really hot.
- Put together the sugar, water, corn syrup and cherry extract into a large pot.
- Whisk ingredients, put the thermometer into the pot and dissolve mixture on high heat.
- During heating the candy mix, place bamboo skewers under a heavy book. Protect the floor from melted sugar by covering both with newspaper/ clean paper/ plastic.
- Monitor your candy mix closely. When it reaches to 300 degree F, remove from heat and let it thicken a little.
- Get your food coloring. Estimate amount to be used and blend in with candy mix.
- When the candy mix thickens, use whisk and move in a back and forth motion just above the bamboo skewers to let candy “strands” fall from the whisk and fall over skewers.
- Get the strands and create your own design.
