Blog
Published on October 21st, 2012 | by Jane
0Make Your Own Sugar Skulls for Halloween!
Remember when we learned about Día de los Muertos, the Mexican version of Halloween? I sincerely hope so, because today we have something sweet that is just “dying” to be made! Meh, that was a kinda lame introduction but whatever, you get the gist.
A prominent custom for Day of the Dead is the creation of colourful sugar skulls. Which you can make. And you can eat. Yay!
What You Need:
- 2 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 egg white from an extra large egg, or 2 from small eggs
- 1 teaspoons light corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Cornstarch, about a half cup, for powdering surface
- Colored sprinkles
- Food coloring
- Fine paint brush
- Colored icing
- Candy sticks (optional)
Here’s How:
- Sift sugar into a large mixing bowl.
- In another bowl, mix the egg whites, corn syrup and vanilla.
- Slowly pour the liquid into the powdered sugar. Mix with your hands until a sandy dough forms.
- Form dough into a ball. At this point you can continue or you can refrigerate dough for later use.
- Lightly dust surface with cornstarch as well as your hands. Pinch off a heaping tablespoon of dough and shape it into a skull.
- Press the candy sticks into the bottom of each skull.
- If you’re using them, lightly press colored sprinkles into the soft candy.
- Let the candy dry overnight.
- When candy is dry, use the paint brush with food coloring to decorate the skulls. Or you can use frosting (one that will dry hard) with a find tip to decorate them.
- Hand them out as is, or wrap in a small cellophane bag tied closed with a small ribbon.
Here are some tips that I found that might be helpful if you make these!
Tips:
- The skulls may not dry completely on a humid or rainy day.
- If you use the molds, you should follow each manufacturer’s instructions as some molds only work with certain recipes.
- The “dough” should be the consistency of damp sand. Just moist enough to hold together. If “dough” is too dry and crumbly, add 1 teaspoon of water at a time to moisten.
- If “dough” is too moist, add sugar one tablespoon at a time until “dough” is the right consistency.
- If the candy has trouble drying completely, place in a 125 degree warm oven until dry.
Yes, Moms, it is candy, but it’s also culture.