Passing on Traditions "Homemade Lollipops"

As a child growing up with my mom (Irene Payne Steck), we made homemade suckers for every holiday.  We made them by the 100's it seemed, although not likely.  Mom Steck believed in making lots of everything and believed in sharing all our homemade goodies with friends, family, and neighbors.  We would start by picking out the molds, getting the clamps on and sticking the sucker sticks up through the clamps.  That was the job of us kids (Ashley, Paige, Holly, and Cindy) and mom's job was to take care of the recipe and the hot bubbling mixture on the stop top.  We enjoyed watching the candy thermometer climb up the degrees and mom would let us each pick a color for the food coloring and a flavor of the extract.  Once the suckers had been poured and cooled, we all loved to help take them out of the molds.  It was then our job to put them in bags, tape them closed and tie curling ribbon around them.  We did this for every holiday and birthday, what a fun tradition that I now get to pass on to Kelsey and Spencer.  So, we made Valentine suckers and taped them to all their Valentines to take to school and to their friends.  *Note these are the best Lollipops to have in your purse when taking a 2 year old shopping.  They are hard enough that they can't bite right through them like the dumb dumb suckers and will entertain them long enough for you to get through the grocery store!

Ingredients:
1 Cup Sugar
1/3 Cup White Corn Syrup
1/2 Cup Water
1/2 Tsp. Flavoring
Food Coloring

Directions:
Place molds on greased flat surface (I use a cookie sheet).  Place clip over tabs of molds and insert sucker stick between tabs.  Combine sugar, water, and corn syrup in small saucepan.  Cook on medium high to 300 degrees F (Hard Crack Stage).  Remove from heat and let cool to 275 degrees then add flavoring and food coloring.  Stir until blended.  Pour into molds.  Allow to cool until candy is set.  Remove clip from mold then remove mold from lollipop.  Set lollipop on second flat surface to complete cooling.

You can order molds and supplies at http://www.lollipopmolds.com/