How to: Blown Sugar

Make candy using blown sugar and surprise your friends.

Dessert creations often include beautiful and interesting decorations made from sugar. Two techniques used to make these decorations are pulled sugar and blown sugar. Pulled sugar has a glossy sheen and will take on any color you desire with the addition of the right color of food dye. The other technique uses pulled sugar as a starting point and blows hollow intricate shapes by placing a small amount of the pulled sugar on the end of a hollow stick and blowing air into the mixture. The pulled sugar expands as the air enters the blob of pulled sugar, much like blowing soap bubbles.

Things You'll Need

• Pot
• Sugar
• Water
• Glucose
• Cream of tartar
• Heat lamp

Instructions

Making Pulled Sugar

1. Add sugar, water, glucose and cream of tartar to a pot and heat quickly to 312 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the pot from the stove and briefly place the bottom of the pot in cold water to stop the boiling.

2. Pour the contents out onto a lightly oiled slab or lightly oiled piece of flat unwrinkled aluminum foil.

3. Allow to cool slightly so that you can handle it without burning yourself.

4. Pull the sugar mass from two sides with your fingers. Fold the edges back into the middle and pull out the other two sides as you did before. Work the crystal until it takes on a glossy finish. The finish will also be slightly white and will become whiter with continued pulling.

Blowing Sugar

1. Pinch off a small ball of sugar and place on the end of a hollow tube. Work in front of the oven or a heat lamp to keep the sugar warm and malleable.

2. Blow down the open end of the tube to create a bubble on the end of the tube. Blowing too hard may pop the bubble and you will have to start over.

3. Create intricate shapes by working the outside of the bubble with an oiled knife or metal skewer. The oil will allow the tool to form the bubble into the desired shape and not stick to the sugar.

4. Place the finished shape near the heat source to allow slow cooling. If the sugar cools too rapidly it may crack or break.

Tips & Warnings

• Make sure that everything that touches the hot syrup is oiled lightly to avoid sticking.

• Hot Sugar syrup will cause extreme burns if it comes in contact with your skin. It also sticks to your skin intensifying the burn.

References

• Gingerbread House Heaven: What is Pulled Sugar, Blown Sugar and Cast Sugar
• Candymaking: Candies and Bonbons And How To Make Them: Pulled Sugar