How to Make Christmas Ornaments Out of Jolly Ranchers

Create a candy gingerbread man with Jolly Ranchers.

Jolly Ranchers are fruit-flavored, hard candies and Christmas ornament materials. It is not a well-known fact that you can make Christmas ornaments from these child-favored candies, making it an ideal craft for children. The candies produce a stained glass looking ornament in bright, fruity colors. Each ornament is a unique as the colors mingle in different patterns as they melt. The craft takes about an hour and does not require a lot of clean up.

Things You'll Need

• 2 - 14 ounce packages of Jolly Rancher candies
• Small, glass bowl for each color of candy
• Aluminum foil
• Cookie sheet
• Metal cookie cutters
• Non-stick cooking spray
• Mallet (optional)
• Chopstick
• Ribbon
• Scissors

Instructions

1. Remove the Jolly Rancher candies from the wrappers. Sort them into bowls by color.

2. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Farenheit.

3. Place a piece of aluminum foil on the baking sheet. Cover the entire surface of the sheet with foil. Use two sheets side-by-side if the foil is not wide enough.

4. Spray the bottom and inside of each cookie cutter lightly with the non-stick spray. Place the cookie cutters onto the cookie sheet.

5. Fill the cookie cutters with candies. Vary the colors of the candies to produce a stained glass look. You may need to break the candies with a mallet to get them to fit in the cutter.

6. Place the cookie sheet in the oven and bake for approximately ten minutes or until the candies have melted completely.

7. Remove from the oven and let cool. After three or four minutes, spray non-stick spray on the end of the chopstick. Poke a hole with the chopstick in the top of each ornament.

8. Let the ornaments cool about 30 to 45 minutes. Gently pull the cookie cutters from the baking sheet.

9. Cut a piece of ribbon and string through the hole. Tie in a bow and hang on the Christmas tree.

Tips & Warnings

• If the candy runs out the side of the cutter while baking, do not be alarmed. Gently break the excess off after the ornament has cooled.

• If the hole closes up after you have pierced the candy with the chopstick, the candy has not cooled enough. Wait another minute or two and try again.

References

• The Pink Couch; Candy Ornaments - Tutorial; December 14, 2009
• Just Drink a Coke; Jolly Rancher Ornaments; December 18, 2010