Easy Candy Sugar Balloon Bowls
I love, love, love experimenting and developing something new that’s never been seen before on the internet or TV. As I write this there are no blog posts about this, no YouTube videos and no Pinterest pictures – it is just totally fresh and new. To be honest I didn’t think this idea would work, I expected that I’d get hot sugar splattered around the kitchen. But it really did work and they looked even more beautiful and amazing than I’d imagined they would. I’ll definitely be doing more of these.
Candy Splash Sugar Bowl Recipe
(Developed by Ann Reardon. IMPORTANT: if you use this blog post to film your own video or write a post PLEASE do the right thing – GIVE CREDIT AT THE START of the video/post and put a link above the fold to my original video. “I found these on the internet” is NOT giving credit, the internet is not a person, it does not create anything. I know that this sounds a bit like a rant but I’m really tired of getting blatantly copied without credit. C’mon, you can be better than that 🙂
300g (10.58 ounces) or 1 1/3 cups sugar
200g (7.05 ounces) or 1/2 cup glucose syrup
75mL (2.54 fluid ounces) water
flavouring and colouring (optional)
Candy Thermometer
Balloons (CAUTION make sure you have helium quality balloons and test with an un-inflated one first to check it does not melt).
Fill your balloon with water and remove all the air as shown in the video. Dry with paper towel and rub with a little oil.
Mix together sugar, water and glucose syrup and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Wash down the sides of the bowl using a wet pastry brush. Heat the syrup up to 150C (302 degrees Fahrenheit). Remove from the heat and stir in desired colours. Then pour over the balloon.
Leave to cool completely then make a small cut in the balloon and let it deflate.
Store in an airtight container until ready to use.
Sugar Bowl Part 2 and Danger WARNING
My Cookbook
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All recipe quantities in the book are in grams, ounces and cups.
Hi! Have you tried using isomalt on this water balloon technique? I’m hoping to make really clear transparent ones for edible snow globes.
Thanks!
Oh sorry, I just saw that you’ve answered this already.
Thanks!
Hi Kathy Isomalt melts at 135C-148C . Sugar is ready to set hard when heated to 150C. Ann thinks that because the temperature is so similar that as long as you wait for the bubbles to subside it should be okay. Please note that she has not yet tested this recipe using isomalt so you would need to experiment (with care).
I had great fun messing about with this, thank you and so much taster than the gelatine variety.
Mine were very sticky, is there anything I could do differently to help this?
Hi Anna, If your sugar bowls were immediately very sticky, then you might like to try slightly increasing your cooking time, taking the sugar a fraction further. The bowls will naturally get sticky when exposed to the air.
could you use light/dark corn syrup instead of glucose syrup for these please?
Hi Hannah, Yes you can use light corn syrup.
Could anyone tell me how long do these take to set?
Hi Hugo, They harden and cool pretty quickly- usually just a few minutes.
Thank you very much for the idea!
Sorry for the photo quality
They look good Alexander!
Hi. This is a brilliant idea! Can I do this with isomalt instead of the sugar solution?
Hi Nancy, Isomalt melts at 135C-148C . Sugar is ready to set hard when heated to 150C. Ann thinks that because the temperature is so similar. that as long as you wait for the bubbles to subside it should be okay. Please note that she has not yet tested this recipe using isomalt so you would need to experiment (with care).
Can you use light corn syrup instead of using glucose syrup when you make the sugar syrup to make sugar bowls?I couldn’t find any glucose syrup I could only find light corn syrup at Walmart.
Hi Kamran, Glucose syrup and corn syrup are the same thing, so yes you can.
What is the shelf life of a bowl? I was going to make one as a gift but didn’t want person to be upset if it starts to break down.
Hi Carla, If the climate is dry then they last well. Up to a week is possible, because it is like a boiled sweet. If the climate is humid or they come into contact with moisture it will start to get sticky.
Okay 2nd try much better!
Wow that is really cool Mari!
HI Ms. Ann, love your work you make so simple, this is my attempt to do a fish bowl…lol
Never work with candy before so I think it wasn’t too bad. Thanks!
Hi,
I have a few questions:
1) We’re having induction at home and i have noticed that sugar recipes dont work out since the temperature is reached very quickly with an induction stove. In your opinion, on which level should I heat the sugar – or how long should the sugar be cooking?
2)I was planning to make these bowls the night before I need them. Do you think they would survive until 24h later?
Many thanks in advance
Hi Jane, The bowls should keep overnight well as long as they are in a cool, dry place.
This is such a good idea… used your recipe to make a wave for on birthday cake… will be back for more ideas…thanks heaps
Wow Shona! How did you manipulate it to the shape you wanted? Did you still use a balloon?
awesome cake Shona! Very creative 🙂
Awesome video!
How do you get the bottom of the finished bowl to sit flat to fill with ice cream? Thank for all you excellent videos!
Hi Mari,
You can create a little bed or foot for it to sit on using melted chocolate or some sugar just to stabilize it if needed.
Quick question Miss Ann, in regards to glucose syrup can corn syrup work as a substitute? I’m afraid they don’t sell glucose syrup in many stores here in America. ( or are they the same thing? I’m not sure,…google wasn’t very helpful…) 🙁
Hi Phia, They are the same think. Glucose syrup and light corn syrup are interchangeable (the light refers to the lack of color).
Ann, wonderful job! I made these for a birthday party and they were a hit! Thank you for sharing your talent with the world! i have a question though–I need to store these for a week until my family reunion. How can you keep them fresh?
Hi Athena, When exposed to air they will gradually become sticky. Store in an airtight container in a cool dark place. If they sweat they will become sticky
i love your video and with the other candy splash video did it actually burst and went everywhere on your new kitchen and on your camera
Thanks! It really helped!
i had the same question!
What can you substitute for the glucose syrup?
Is there a way to store a bunch of theses 2 weeks before? Thinking of using as wedding decor to hold candies as a favor
Hi Cindy, how long they will keep will depend on your local environment. They will gradually get sticky from the moisture in the air. You will need to do a test run and see how they last in your local weather. I would suggest making them no more than a week in advance and keeping them in a cool, dry environment out of direct sunlight.
Hello!
The recipe looks so cool! I’m gonna try it today.
But, how many bowls (normally sized) can you do with this amount of ingredients?
Thank you,
Emma
It will depend on how thick you make your sugar coating, but Ann found it did 2-3.
How to scrub sugar off the pan?!!
It is always good to use an old pan, but if you have sugar stuck on the pan, it can be soaked off with water as long as you haven’t burnt it. If it is really stuck on, add a good amount of water to the pan, bring it to the boil and the sugar will dissolve in the boiling water. Take it off the heat, allow it to cool enough to be safe and then pour it out and wipe out your pan.
You are SO amazing!