I was trying to come up with some unique & different hostess gift ideas for the holidays recently, and remembered a cool Liquor Lollipops recipe from my copy of Sweet Confections (which is a fabulous cookbook, btw). Then it hit me… instead of giving the 2 most popular hostess gifts – flowers or a bottle of wine/liquor – it would be a fun twist to sort of combine the 2 ideas and create “bouquets” of liquor lollipops!

CHEERS AND THANKS

You can use any type of hard liquor you like (I used spiced rum for these but tequila, bourbon, etc will work too) – and the liquor flavor is very subtle, so the finished lollipops are definitely more sweet than anything else, which mean they’ll still please the palates of most anyone that deserves a sweet “thanks!”.

PERFECTION IS OVERRATED, RIGHT?

Now, I’m no candy making guru myself – nor did I have lollipop molds on hand – so my versions didn’t turn out perfectly round, but I ended up liking that because it kind of emphasizes the homemade quality and shows the recipient that you made some extra effort for them… so in other words they must REALLY be special. ;) Also – these lollipops were WAY faster and easier than I expected them to be, but they harden up F.A.S.T. – so my best advice is to be prepared to work quickly!

I arranged a few of the finished pops in mini vintage bottles and filled them with rice so that the pops would “blossom” out a little higher and stay put. They’re also embellished with tags from our Give Thanks Printable Party Collection, but of course this idea will work for any sort of holiday or occasion. Scroll down for the step-by-step tutorial and recipe.

LIQUOR LOLLIPOPS RECIPE

{recipe via Sweet Confections}

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon hard liquor, such as bourbon, tequila, or rum
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons Karo® Corn Syrup
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon food coloring of your choice (optional)

Step by Step Instructions:

Prep: If you don’t have lollipop molds, place a silicone mat on a baking sheet to get it ready for the candy.

1. Mix together 1/4 cup of the liquor, and the water, sugar, corn syrup, and salt in a 1- or 2-quart saucepan until all of the sugar is wet. If sugar crystals cling to the sides of the pan, dissolve them away with a wet pastry brush.

2. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally and gently with a heatproof spatula until all of the sugar is dissolved. Then boil to 300°F (149°C) without stirring.

3. Remove from the heat, and, working quickly, mix in the remaining 1 teaspoon liquor and food coloring, if using.

4-5. Still working with haste, drop the syrup into either lollipop molds or onto a silicone mat.

If using lollipop molds, quickly drop the syrup from the tip of a large spoon into the cavities of the lollipop molds. Place a lollipop stick in the center of each disk, and twist it 180 degrees so that it’s fully covered in syrup. Let cool completely.

If using a silicone mat, quickly drop the syrup onto the silicone mat so that it forms 2-inch disks and immediately after plopping the syrup on the sheets place a lollipop stick in the center of each disk and twist it 180 degrees so that it’s fully covered in syrup. Let cool completely.

Peel the lollipops from the molds or silicone and store in an airtight container, preferably at least overnight to allow the flavors to develop, until ready to indulge.

ENJOY!

*****

Recipe via Sweet Confections
Tutorial & Photos by HWTM