Lollipops in 30 Minutes

Recipe for Lollipops/Hard Candy:

(from LorAnn's website, halved)

1/3 c. + 1 T. water

1/3 c. light corn syrup

1 c. granulated white sugar

1/4 t. flavoring oil

Other Supplies Needed:
Saucepan
Metal/silicone utensil
Candy molds (instructions on how to make your own below)
Candy thermometer (water test will work too)   

Directions:

(Prep molds, pour flavoring into measuring spoon, have coloring ready to be used).

1. Add the sugar, corn syrup and water to pan, turn it on medium while stirring constantly till it is dissolved or starts to boil.
2. 

   Once boiling, stop stirring. Now is the time to clip on your thermometer if you don't have an infrared. You'll notice the mixture will go from rapid boiling (low 200's) to a slower boil as it gets thicker (around the 260's). You're just reducing it, and once the sugar saturation gets high enough the temperature will climb rapidly.
3. When you see the thermometer reading 270 add your coloring. Just drop it in and let the boiling incorporate it. 
4. If using a clip on style thermometer I would (carefully!) try to get a reading on the center of the mixture. When most of the mixture is 300 F, take the pan off the burner. Once the boiling stops stir in the flavoring and Tart & Sour (if using). Pour into a Pyrex, candy funnel or just hold the pan in one hand and use a large spoon to fill molds. Work quickly! This is the part that takes the most practice, as it cools it thickens, so fill small molds first. That's it! Let the candy cool, and fill the pan with warm water for easy clean up later. I usually scrape the excess candy out of the pan onto a spoon and let it harden.

Flavoring/Coloring

I like using LorAnn's candy making oils. It's $1.40 for a dram on their website, and using the recipe here it yields 4 batches of candy. One batch is about 15 suckers, but this really depends on your molds. You could theoretically use flavor extracts like those from the grocery, or even spices like cinnamon or ginger, but I have only tried the candy oils. My favorites are watermelon, strawberry-kiwi and pomegranate, and hubby loves cinnamon. There is also a product called Tart & Sour (citric acid) to be used with fruity flavors to make them sour. The cheap food coloring from the grocery worked better than my concentrated Ateco stuff, the gel types don't mix in as thoroughly.

Molds

Be sure to use the white molds made for candy making. Wilton sells clear ones but these are for chocolates, and they will melt under the heat, I have a few warped ones to prove it. The molds are about $2.50 each, I have bought some by LorAnn and some by CK Products. The CK molds have warped slightly and now do not lay flat, so I recommend only the LorAnn molds. If you don't have molds, it's super easy to make your own. Pour powdered sugar into a dish and use a round object to imprint circles into the sugar. Add sticks and hot candy, voila! Or, pour onto greased/sugared surface and score with a knife to make breakaway candies.

Candy Thermometer

Candy thermometers are cheap and easy to find at the grocery store, but I find them super annoying to use compared to our handy infrared thermometer (thanks to hubby for this one). Our infrared came from Harbor Freight and cost about $20, but it has proved to be invaluable in the kitchen for testing liquids. I wouldn't attempt candy making without a thermometer of some sort, whatever is used just make sure it's measuring the liquid and not the bottom of the pan. 

Saucepan/Utensils

I have used a hard anodized pan with success and also a stainless steel saucepan for my candy making. The stainless steel one is superior, it heats much more evenly and cleans up easier. Use either silicone or metal utensils, obviously plastic will melt but materials that aren't porous are best. A candy funnel is awesome too, but I just use my spoon, the funnels are $15-20 and I'm cheap :). 

Tips and Tricks

I have read that you must wash down the sugar crystals on the sides of the pan, but I have never done this and have not experienced any crystallization either. If you're using corn syrup, it shouldn't crystallize. If you look closely in the pictures to the right I added heart sprinkles to one and star candies to the other. It's easy to add inclusions while the candy is still hot or place them in the mold before you pour.

Cooking to 280 will leave the candy a little soft, and it sticks to your teeth. Hard crack stage is technically 300-310, but go too far over and it will start to caramelize and won't be as good. Using my infrared I take it off the burner when most of it has reached 300, the edges of the pan are still in the 290's. 
 
In the LorAnn recipe it says to use a dram for a full batch, which would be ½ dram for the recipe I posted above. I use a little less than ¼ dram (¼ teaspoon) for the recipe above and for strong flavors like cinnamon I use an 1/8 teaspoon.