Candy Corn
October 26, 2010 | Print | E-mail | Filed under candy, greathallowtweet
In case you haven’t noticed on my sidebar, the #GreatHallowTweet is back! That’s right, today through Halloween day, Renee of Flamingo Musings is once again our ghoulish host. The list on my sidebar is the list of all of the bloggers who are participating, so you can “hop” from one blog to the next to check out all the Halloween-related treats…and on Twitter, you can follow the hashtag #GreatHallowTweet to be a part of all the fun. Now, on to the treats!
One of the things that usually bums me out when Halloween comes around is that I can’t eat candy corn anymore, since it’s processed in a facility with peanuts/nuts, which I’m allergic to. This year however, I decided to make my own from scratch – no peanuts, no nuts, and no high fructose corn syrup, either. I wasn’t quite sure how they were going to turn out since I’ve never made anything like this before, but they were easier than I thought and they tasted just the way I remember – hubby agreed that the flavor was a perfect match, too! Make these this week and get in the Halloween spirit. And, be sure to follow the links in my sidebar to see more Halloween treats from other great bloggers!
Recipe adapted from here.
- 2/3 cup agave nectar
- 1 cup sugar
- 5 Tbsp butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- Pinch of salt
- Orange & yellow food coloring
In a sauce pan, stir together the agave nectar, sugar, butter, and vanilla. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring frequently.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, corn starch, and salt.
Reduce the heat to medium and boil 5 minutes longer, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Let cool at least 20 minutes.
Knead the dough gently until smooth. If it begins sticking to everything, don’t add extra powdered sugar to the dough – simply work with the dough on wax paper.
Divide into 3 pieces. With rubber gloves on, knead several drops of yellow food coloring to one piece of the dough until the color is even. Repeat with the orange food coloring. Leave the third piece of dough uncolored.
Divide each color dough in half again. Roll each piece into a long, thin rope. Line one rope of each color next to the others: yellow first, then orange, and then white. Flatten with a rolling pin. Cut the ropes into triangles. Some will be yellow-tipped and some will be white-tipped.
Smooth out the edges with your fingers.
Place in the refrigerator for about 15-20 minutes to firm up, and then enjoy homemade candy corn!
October 26th, 2010 at 9:57 am
WOW!!!
I am super impressed. I don’t think I’d have the patience for it but it is so beautiful!
October 26th, 2010 at 9:59 am
Gasp! It never occurred to me that you could make homemade candy corn! I know, you can make homemade anything, but THIS one never crossed my mind. I don’t actually care for candy corn, but it inspires me to think of all the other things I never thought you could make at home.
October 26th, 2010 at 9:59 am
Adorable Tracy!! These are cutest little treats ever!
October 26th, 2010 at 10:02 am
No way! Those are so adorable!
October 26th, 2010 at 10:04 am
Love it!
October 26th, 2010 at 10:06 am
They came out perfect!! The kids and I were messing around making them ourselves last week…they wanted to make a “giant” candy corn…and we did…lol. Interesting use of agave nectar here! Your photos are just beautiful too!
October 26th, 2010 at 10:08 am
Waht a fabulous and healthy treat. So impressed you came up with a homemade version of yummy candy corn!
October 26th, 2010 at 10:13 am
these looks great! wow! i love them… you really did a great job. how fun!!!
October 26th, 2010 at 10:20 am
I loooove candy corn! These are so cute, great job!
October 26th, 2010 at 10:32 am
These are absolutely adorable! I’m super impressed. You did a fabulous job and who knew you could actually make candy corn at home. Very fun! It’s also nice to know what’s going into them too.
October 26th, 2010 at 10:56 am
I’m not sure I’d have the patience for this.. though the result looks impressively enticing.
October 26th, 2010 at 11:04 am
Great post! Candy corn is my fovorite Halloween treat! I enjoyed watching the process of you making them. I wouldn’t be worried about a little high fructose corn syrup though
Every treat in moderation!
October 26th, 2010 at 11:18 am
Oh my! I am falling out of my chair! – I am just sooooo impressed!!!!
October 26th, 2010 at 11:32 am
WOW! One of the coolest things I’ve seen!
October 26th, 2010 at 11:54 am
So creative!!! They look adorable and I bet taste so much better, too!
I was surprised to learn that Brach’s candy corn has sesame oil in them! Who would have guessed?
October 26th, 2010 at 12:58 pm
I can’t believe you made your own candy corn!! That is quite a task, my dear. I hope to have the energy to do this someday as I have a fondness for the whole candy corn thing, but mostly because of the colors, I think! You did such a perfect job w/ this!
October 26th, 2010 at 1:35 pm
Adorable! Love them!
October 26th, 2010 at 5:20 pm
Wowza Tracy! I’m impressed! They look great and I’m sure they taste even better than the store bought kind!
October 26th, 2010 at 5:47 pm
You made your own candy corn!!! How incredible is that! Love, love, love it!
October 26th, 2010 at 5:48 pm
This is great!! Can’t wait to make them with my peanut and sesame allergic 4 year old. One question, Brach’s talks a big game about their candy corn being made with real honey. I love that you used agave here, but do you think some of the sugar can be replaced with honey??
October 26th, 2010 at 6:03 pm
How fun! So pretty. I’m sure they taste way better than regular candy corn.
October 26th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
You’re so amazing. Just look at you, you could start your own candy corn business.
October 26th, 2010 at 9:41 pm
Candy corn is one of my favorite candies. I would have never thought to make it myself. Thanks for sharing the recipe. This will be a real treat for my family. Yours looks beautiful:)
October 26th, 2010 at 10:33 pm
Wow … I am very imjpressed!
October 26th, 2010 at 10:33 pm
And apparently I cannot spell: Impressed!
October 27th, 2010 at 2:09 am
I admire your patience, girl! Those are some sweet candy corns – my Halloween favorite, too! Fabulous!
October 27th, 2010 at 8:16 am
I’m SO impressed and inspired! My favorite Halloween candy…and homemade to boot!!! Great job!
October 27th, 2010 at 9:07 am
Awesome! Great post!
October 27th, 2010 at 9:12 am
Oh this is awesome!!! What a great idea to make your own. You are just so smart.
October 27th, 2010 at 9:15 am
I am so impressed! These look awesome, not too difficult at all, and I can’t WAIT to try to make them! How fun … making your own candy corn, lol!
October 27th, 2010 at 1:58 pm
What a cute idea…LOVE it!
October 27th, 2010 at 4:22 pm
Wow!! I am so impressed by these. I may have to try them. Such an inspiration….
October 27th, 2010 at 10:14 pm
Tracy, I did not know that you can make these candies! What an amazing sugarcrafter you are, in every sense! Great post.
October 27th, 2010 at 11:23 pm
Okay, you are seriously killing me with all of your yummy treats
I have a candy corn addict in the house these are a must make!!
October 28th, 2010 at 6:37 pm
You are awesome for making your own candy corn! I love it! And it looks so good!
October 30th, 2010 at 10:32 am
I love candy corn!! I have to try this, thanks for posting!!
October 31st, 2010 at 3:23 pm
These are terrific! I bet they were way better then the store bought kind!
October 31st, 2010 at 10:54 pm
So cute! I would feel so much better about feeding these to my kids, rather than the store-bought version.
November 2nd, 2010 at 10:08 pm
These look amazing, what a creative treat! I’m usually not a huge fan of candy corn beyond a piece or two (only highly unusual in that typically I can’t put down sweets) but I love the idea of homemade candy corn sans the high fructose corn syrup. I love most how they aren’t completely smooth though, the indents between each color really give it that homemade touch. Great stuff
November 10th, 2010 at 12:09 pm
I am going to try this with adding mint flavoring and tinting the dough 1/2 red and then making candy canes…hopefully it wont be too soft?
November 10th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
Marie Baars – Sounds wonderful! I’m excited to see how they turn out!
November 22nd, 2010 at 12:56 pm
WOW! This is so awesome an effort. I’ll probably use the recipe soon, since there’s no candy corn here, and I’ve always been curious about how it tastes
November 24th, 2010 at 6:54 am
do you have to use agave nectar? can’t you replace it with honey?
I really wan’t to try this, it looks so god and easy, i have only tried candy corn once in my life when I was a child, and i loved it… it would be so cool to make it myself
November 24th, 2010 at 5:57 pm
Tanja – I’d recommend substituting corn syrup for the agave nectar. Good luck!
January 13th, 2011 at 11:02 pm
This is great! I am making lollipops for my kids lollipop party and am thinking about trying some other candies. I was so excited to see agave nectar because I was wondering if I could replace the corn syrup of some candies with that. Now I will try it! Thanks again for posting.
January 14th, 2011 at 10:58 am
Nice blog! I’m so impressed and amazed to your idea. Your post was so great. Thanks for the tips in making a homemade candy corn. I think this is better than a store bought and I’m sure kids will like it.
September 30th, 2011 at 1:29 am
Thank you so much for posting this! It looks great! I am allergic to corn so this recipe is great, tapioca floor usually works as a replacement for cornstarch so I am going to give it a try
October 1st, 2011 at 7:28 pm
Do these get “melty” at room temp? A lot of the agave candy that I’ve made in the past doesn’t hold its shape well when it warms to room temp.
Thanks!
October 1st, 2011 at 10:32 pm
Victoria – No, they don’t get melty – I stored mine at room temperature for weeks. Hope that helps!
October 3rd, 2011 at 10:49 pm
Awesome, thank you! I’m trying these soon and will update then since I’ll be using homemade powdered sugar and arrowroot instead of the corn products… we’ll see how it goes
October 26th, 2011 at 2:54 am
Yours look way better, but if you’re not eeling up for the challenge, I understand that Jelly Belly makes candy corn that is peanut-free (and gluten-free). Not sure about the HFCS, though!
October 26th, 2011 at 2:55 am
“feeling”!
October 29th, 2011 at 2:00 am
Hey Tracy!
I got to try these with homemade powered sugar (no cornstarch) and arrowroot instead of the 1/3 cup of cornstarch! They turned out soooo well! Amazing!
Thank you so much
Thought you might like to see mine!
http://rediscoveringheirlooms.blogspot.com/2011/10/candy-corn-update.html
October 3rd, 2012 at 4:20 pm
My little guy has been begging for candy corn. We will be trying these this weekend! Thank you for sharing.
October 26th, 2012 at 1:51 pm
I’ve been looking for a recipe for candy corn with no corny syrup or powdered milk. I’m going to give this one a go
Might try molding little pumpkins, too. My son is fascinated with the little pumpkins in the mix.
Wondering if I can add some cocoa powder to a bit of it to make the stems…