Cooking4Fun
Senior Cook
Can a person melt hard candy and remold it, or are there complications and pitfalls to that?
Making candy from candy?
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Aunt Bea
Master Chef
Maybe. 
We used to make stained glass cookies using hard candy.
We used to make stained glass cookies using hard candy.
One year I made stained glass cookies for the Christmas tree. LOL took me forever to find all the colours in Lifesavers as it was just about that time they were cutting back on the variety of colours. But finally managed - cost me a fortune in ingredients if I remember correctly.
That was the time the dogs knocked the tree over and ate all the decorations.
That was the time the dogs knocked the tree over and ate all the decorations.
Cooking4Fun
Senior Cook
I just have these lemon candies I melted and cooled in molds. They didn't taste quite the same second time and were super shinny and sticky. Might need new coat of powdered sugar. But that aside didn't taste as lemony I don't think.
Cooking4Fun
Senior Cook
Perhaps there is a protocol for using hard candy a 2nd time but reshaped?
I think perhaps melting them enough to pour into molds might be the problem. When making those cookies (many, many years ago) the chips of cookies were placed directly into the holes of the dough and melted in the oven.
They were in there only long enough to just, just be melted.
Only guessing here. Are the molds capable of being put in the oven or the micro? You could fill them with the crushed candy and let them become melted inside the molds??
They were in there only long enough to just, just be melted.
Only guessing here. Are the molds capable of being put in the oven or the micro? You could fill them with the crushed candy and let them become melted inside the molds??
Cooking4Fun
Senior Cook
The molds are silicone.
So my silicone accessories are oven safe to a certain degree. The candy molds must be as well if you are pouring hot melted sugar into them.
Just an idea.
Just an idea.
Cooking4Fun
Senior Cook
What is wrong with fully melting candy before cooling it either in fridge or room temperature?
Should I use a double boiler to keep farther from heat source?
Probably nothing wrong with melting it before hand and pouring. But you say it is stickier and seems to have lost some taste.
Yes, I believe I would have used a double boiler in the first place. Like chocolate, I'm pretty sure that the sugar will go thru changes with the application of the heat. As in example soft ball stage to hard ball stage.
So to my mind, the less heat applied, the less chance of change.
Again, I'm just guessing at all this. But what harm can it do to try it?
Crushing the original hard candy into pieces and melting in the moulds, will take less time, less chance of any molecular change, fewer overall steps, less clean-up and last but not least - less chance for the flavouring to be driven off with the heat.
Yes, I believe I would have used a double boiler in the first place. Like chocolate, I'm pretty sure that the sugar will go thru changes with the application of the heat. As in example soft ball stage to hard ball stage.
So to my mind, the less heat applied, the less chance of change.
Again, I'm just guessing at all this. But what harm can it do to try it?
Crushing the original hard candy into pieces and melting in the moulds, will take less time, less chance of any molecular change, fewer overall steps, less clean-up and last but not least - less chance for the flavouring to be driven off with the heat.
Aunt Bea
Master Chef
Why not try making it from scratch?
This is one of many simple recipes available online.
½ cup confectioners' sugar for dusting
2 cups white sugar
1 cup water
⅔ cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon peppermint oil, or other flavored oil
1 teaspoon any color food coloring
Generously coat a cookie sheet with confectioners' sugar, and set aside.
In a heavy bottomed saucepan, stir together the white sugar, water and corn syrup until sugar has dissolved. Bring to a boil over medium-high and cook to a temperature of 300 to 310 degrees F (149 to 154 degrees C), or until a small amount of syrup dropped into cold water forms hard, brittle threads. Remove from heat, and stir in the flavored oil and food coloring.
Immediately pour the sugar mixture onto the prepared cookie sheet in a thin stream (this helps it cool). When the candy is cool enough for the outer edge to hold its shape, cut into bite size pieces with scissors. Let cool completely, then store in an airtight container.
This is one of many simple recipes available online.
½ cup confectioners' sugar for dusting
2 cups white sugar
1 cup water
⅔ cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon peppermint oil, or other flavored oil
1 teaspoon any color food coloring
Generously coat a cookie sheet with confectioners' sugar, and set aside.
In a heavy bottomed saucepan, stir together the white sugar, water and corn syrup until sugar has dissolved. Bring to a boil over medium-high and cook to a temperature of 300 to 310 degrees F (149 to 154 degrees C), or until a small amount of syrup dropped into cold water forms hard, brittle threads. Remove from heat, and stir in the flavored oil and food coloring.
Immediately pour the sugar mixture onto the prepared cookie sheet in a thin stream (this helps it cool). When the candy is cool enough for the outer edge to hold its shape, cut into bite size pieces with scissors. Let cool completely, then store in an airtight container.
Aunt Bea - she's come up with the right answer ... again! Cooking4Fun - note that the flavouring and colouring are added at the end.
